Rudy Gobert: Regain respect by yourself!

In the 2025 NBA playoffs, the Timberwolves sang all the way from a team that was generally underestimated by the outside world to the West Division finals. They defeated the strong Los Angeles Lakers in the first round, and then withstood the pressure and eliminated the experienced Golden State Warriors, making a bloody road in the powerful West Division, just one step away from the Finals.

The reason why this Timberwolves can break out in the Western Conference surrounded by powerful people is that in addition to Edwards' strong evolution and Randle's running-in integration, there is another person silently changing the fans' perception of him: Rudy Gobert from the inside penalty area.

, the best defensive player of the four-time, finally regained the achievements that were not respected in the past bit by bit with his real playoff performance.

From the perspective of the style of the game, Gobert has never been the kind of player who is amazing at first sight. He will not pass the ball behind the back like Jokic and play with the defender, nor will he crush his opponent with his footsteps like Embiid, nor will he run into the game violent dunk like Antetokounmpo. Most of his offense comes from all-in contacts after pick-and-roll, offensive rebounds or simple all-in contacts. His role seems to be very easy to replace for the Timberwolves.

This is also the past few years. Although he has four DPOYs, he has never won the recognition of most NBA players or fans. Zhu Meng Green once publicly stated that he does not think that Gobert is a historical defender. O'Neal also mocked his annual salary and performance on the show for not matching. Most fans also believe that he cannot reach the level of a top player in the league, and believe that his defensive awards are more inclined to good luck, and the league is more inclined toward offense.

But as the playoffs gradually deepened, Gobert slowly let the fans understand that the value on the field is not only reflected in the data table, but also in the defensive details that are not visible on the surface.

In the first round of the playoffs, the Timberwolves were not optimistic. The Lakers held two major ball-holding cores, LeBron James and Doncic, as well as Reeves, a gradually improving ball-holding point. Especially Doncic, he has made Gobert the background board several times in the past few encounters. This time, facing an opponent who once made him lose his dignity, Gobert did not respond much strongly. He just returned to his essence and regained his defensive value.

At the beginning of the first round of the series, Doncic frequently called Gobert to attack. In fact, in the first few games of the series, this top single player in the league did put a lot of pressure on Gobert, and Gobert was once difficult to effectively limit Doncic's offense. However, after encountering foul trouble in the second game, Gobert began to learn from the game's lessons.

He realized that he could not completely block Doncic's offensive firepower, but he could control the losses, especially in the penalty area to avoid the opportunity to score a 2+1, the change in this regard was the most obvious. Gober's defensive strategy changed in the second half of the series and became more cautious and patient. He no longer rashly blocked, but instead delayed Doncic's offensive efficiency by sticking his figure.

Although his blocking data was not outstanding in several games, his game influence was everywhere. Relying on his tall figure and stable assisted defense position, except for Doncic who can barely break, other ball-holding points will basically not directly attack against Gobert, which will cause the Lakers' overall offense to become intermittent.

The Lakers also tried to open up space with five small lineups and pull Gobert out of the penalty area, but the Timberwolves showed a high degree of tacit understanding and strict discipline. Even if Gobert was forced to raise the high position, he could still quickly make up for defense and return to the position at critical moments and make up for the team's last line of defense.

The most important fifth game in this series, Gobert transformed into an inside monster, contributing 27 points, 24 rebounds and 2 blocks in the whole game, dominating the penalty area in full. Not only did he complete the work of eating cakes and grabbing tips on the offensive end, but he also completely blocked the Lakers' penalty area on the defensive end.

Meet the Warriors in the second round, and a similar scene reappeared. Curry's outside threat was enough to target any center, but in the absence of Curry due to a hamstring strain, Gobert, who regained his confidence, became a high wall for the Warriors to be unable to enter the inside.

In the entire series, it is basically difficult for the Warriors two major ball holders Butler and Cumingga to gain advantage in the inside, and they can only shoot from the outside. After losing Curry, the historic outside scorer, the Warriors' outside line is completely something the Timberwolves are willing to accept.

In addition to the basic defensive end, Gobert is also taking advantage of the Warriors' high disadvantage to score frequently at the basket. In the final game of the series, Gobert contributed 8 points and 3 rebounds in the first quarter, scoring 17 points in the game. The Timberwolves shot up to 77% in two-point shooting percentage, and Gobert's inside restraint is definitely one of the key factors in this high efficiency.

Overall, Gobert's defensive efficiency in these two rounds of the playoffs was 104.7, which is enough to show his impact on the defensive end. When he was the main defender, his opponent's shooting percentage was only 35.8%. Even when shooting from mid-range, Gobert was able to use his long arms to interfere with his opponent and reduce his opponent's scoring efficiency.

More importantly, he can interrupt the opponent's offensive system, and the ball holder is often forced to turn to the other side to launch an attack when he breaks through to Gobert. In addition to tactical interruptions, the consumption of time also makes it extremely difficult for the Warriors to score. Just looking at personal data, it is still difficult for Gobert to become the focus of the topic. He averaged less than 10 points per game and made only a handful of shots. Sometimes he only relied on free throws and all-in-one points in the whole game, but his impact on the game is far more than that.

In addition, there is a small but important enough influence that Gobert can make teammates play more at ease. Both Edwards and Randall can release threats on the offense because they know that Gobert is standing there at the last position of the team's defense line. It is precisely because of such a backing that we can see Edwards' bold scoring performances one after another.

For a long time, Gobert's image is a system-based player with good defense, offensive limitations, and frequent playoff performance, but this time, so far, he has at least proved his value with his actual actions. It also verifies an iron rule that growing tall is indeed useful on the basketball court. As long as he can make the right choice, his influence will rise sharply.

Next, the Timberwolves will face a more severe challenge. If they are facing the Nuggets, Gobert will face the strongest center killer today. If the opponent is the Thunder, they also have a mobile center from the new era, with enough changeable skills to challenge Gobert's defensive set. Regardless of the result, this playoff journey is enough to allow Gobert to turn his negative image in his career.

From the laughing stock of the past to the defensive center today, Gobert is not moving fast, but he is solid enough. He is no longer just the French Tower that only knows how to get stuck, but a key puzzle for whether this young Wolves team with potential can truly hit the championship in the end.

Maybe he will never become a superstar among fans, but as long as he stands in the penalty area, the opponent must keep an eye on him. You can not like him, but you absolutely cannot ignore him. And being able to do this is enough for Gobert.