Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert found himself in the spotlight after Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokić delivered an outstanding performance in Game 5 of their NBA Playoffs matchup. Jokić, a three-time MVP, had one of the best games of his career against Gobert, a four-time Defensive Player of the Year. In response, Timberwolves legend Kevin Garnett offered some candid advice to Gobert during his appearance on the “All The Smoke" podcast.
"You gotta switch it up, bro… You can’t just give [Nikola Jokic] the same dose… Be a presence in there, motherf*cker… You’re 7’5. Play like it," Garnett told Gobert.
"You gotta switch it up, bro… You can’t just give [Nikola Jokic] the same dose… Be a presence in there motherf*cker… You 7’5. Play like it."
Kevin Garnett had a message for Rudy Gobert 🗣️
(via @allthesmokeprod)pic.twitter.com/SEAZmRRnU4
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) May 16, 2024
Jokić ended Wednesday night’s game with 40 points, 13 assists, and seven rebounds, leading Denver to victory with a smooth and unstoppable offensive flow. The Timberwolves struggled to contain him, and Gobert admitted that their inability to slow Jokić down affected the team’s morale.
"The second half, we got a little too demoralized and we can’t have that," Gobert said, according to The Athletic. "I think we have to be mentally tough, individually and collectively, to be able to keep playing our game and not let anything that happened in the game affect the way we play, our confidence, and the way we compete."
Gobert emphasized the importance of maintaining mental toughness, especially when defending a player of Jokić"s caliber. Despite heavy resistance, Jokic shot 15-22 from the field and 2-3 from beyond the arc, showcasing his versatility and making it seem like nothing the Timberwolves did could disrupt his rhythm.
Meanwhile, former NBA player J.J. Redick defended Gobert against critics focusing on one performance.
"I want to make a couple of points on Rudy Gobert because again, I"m not going to do the full discourse and explanation right now because no matter how many times I"ve f—ing done it over the last three or four years," Redick said. "You know people want to point to these singular games where it"s like oh that"s your Defensive Player of the Year like okay. So Jokic last night, was 8 for 9 with Gobert as the primary defender. Going into that game last night he was 11 for 28 with Gobert as the primary defender including 4 for 13 in Game Four."
Redick highlighted that it’s unfair to judge Gobert’s defensive prowess based on one game, noting that Gobert has often succeeded in containing Jokić in the past. The ongoing discourse underscores the challenges of defending elite players and the importance of resilience and adaptability in high-stakes games.
