Subscribe
Follow Us
The Utah Jazz sang tons of praises towards defensive anchor Rudy Gobert after his magnificent performance in their 112-107 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday night.
Following the game, Donovan Mitchell vouched for his center to make the All-Star team, while Bojan Bogdanovic said that Gobert is playing at an MVP level right now. Even former teammate Enes Kanter, now of the Boston Celtics, campaigned for Gobert's All-Star candidacy.
After hearing his teammates' praises, Gobert — though appreciating the value of individual awards — simply brushed it aside and said that he only aims to help the Jazz win an NBA championship.
Rudy Gobert, on being called an MVP candidate by Bogey and an All-Star by Donovan: “For me, winning the No. 1 thing. How can I help my team win? I mean, DPOY is great — it’s an award, it’s hardware, it’s great for your legacy; MVP, too. … Winning a championship beats all that.” pic.twitter.com/TjWgtTo70G
— tribjazz (@tribjazz) January 26, 2020
The two-time Defensive Player of the Year helped secure the win for the Jazz with a number of key plays down the stretch. He made a crucial putback with a minute remaining in the fourth, blocked a potential game-tying shot from Delon Wright, and grabbed the game-sealing rebound with 11 seconds remaining.
The big man finished his night with 22 points, 17 rebounds and five blocks, while shooting a clean 8-of-8 from the field and 6-of-9 from the foul line.
Gobert has been magnificent for the Jazz, especially over their past 23 games where they have gone 20-3. Utah boasts the second best record in the Western Conference.
A lot of their success this season has to do with the leadership of Gobert, especially on the defensive end. As Mitchell touched on in his post-game interview, Gobert has also done a great job in cleaning up Utah's mistakes.
With the way he has been playing this season, Rudy Gobert definitely deserves to make the All-Star team in February. He could also warrant some consideration for MVP should he continue to lead the Jazz to their winning ways until the end of the season.
