Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert is one of the front-runners to win this season's Defensive Player of the Year award, and he remains confident he can win it for the second straight year.
“I don’t think there is another player who impacts their team’s defense like I do. There are a lot of good defensive players, but I don’t think they can change the philosophy of an offense like I do.”
He's the main reason why the Jazz is one of the best defensive teams in the league. Gobert averages 12.9 rebounds and 2.2 blocks to go along with 15.5 points per game.
Gobert isn't someone who lacks confidence, and he's extremely dedicated to what he does for the Jazz. However, he sometimes feels that the league under appreciates defensive big men like him. In fact, he became really emotional when he was snubbed in this year's All-Star team selections.
Still, there's no denying that he's arguably the best defensive center in the league, and while other bigs would usually adjust their game to become long-range shooters, Gobert knows what he needs to do to be effective, and he's one of the few guys who doesn't want to follow the trend.
For Gobert, defense is not being given enough importance anymore, and judging by his words and actions, it is clear that he's an advocate of making it relevant again in the league.
Winning Defensive Player of the Year is a good start, but Gobert wants defense to be recognized even more.
It's his motivation, and it works for him in Utah.
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