It's that time of the regular season again when contending teams are looking to rest up their star players in preparation for the postseason haul. Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert admitted they want to remain on top of the NBA win-loss standings, but remaining injury-free holds top priority.
Gobert made the admission after their win over the Oklahom City Thunder on Tuesday. With less than 20 games left to play in the shortened 72-game regular season, the Jazz lead the NBA with a 41-14 record. They aren't out of the woods yet though as the Phoenix Suns are just two games behind while the Los Angeles Clippers are three and a half games behind.
That's why for Gobert, avoiding the hospital bill is key (per Eric Walden of the Salt Lake Tribune).
Rudy Gobert, on balancing rest with wins down the stretch: "We want to keep the first seed, but keeping our health is more important."
— Eric Walden (@tribjazz) April 14, 2021
Seeding is critical in the NBA Playoffs, especially this time since the league has no plans of holding the postseason in a bubble set-up like last year. Homecourt advantage—now that a good amount of fans are allowed in arenas—can make the difference between who wins or who goes home.
Gobert's comments reveal how confident he is with the Jazz. Falling to the second or third seed would definitely be a pain in the butt, but they have found the secret formula to success this season. All they need to do is to execute better come postseason time.
The Jazz have been eliminated in the first round of the NBA Playoffs in back-to-back years. And Rudy Gobert, who's been putting up impressive numbers, is more than motivated for them to make the leap this season.
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