Rudy Gobert shined in the Minnesota Timberwolves' series-clinching victory Wednesday, dominating in the paint against the smaller, overwhelmed Los Angeles Lakers.

Throughout the Wolves' 103-96 win in Los Angeles, the 7-foot-1 Gobert capitalized on the Lakers' inferior size; oftentimes matching up against guards or wings, Gobert recorded 27 points and 24 rebounds, which are both his new playoff-career highs. Additionally, Game 5 marks the first time he has tallied a 20-20 game in the playoffs in his career.

For a good chunk of his NBA career, Gobert has been among the most often maligned players in the league. Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green, in particular, has taken aim at Gobert at several points in the past, and players have seemingly taken on the task of trying to beat Gobert one-on-one. Luka Doncic is a notable example, although it did not work out often for him in this playoff series.

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Despite an off-night from Anthony Edwards, Gobert was among the players who kept Minnesota's offense afloat in Game 5. The French giant's 27 points were the most on the Timberwolves and just one point shy of Doncic's game-high 28. Julius Randle added 23 much-needed points, and Mike Conley Jr. hit some timely 3-pointers. Edwards, who scored 43 points in Game 4, struggled mightily on the offensive end on Wednesday; he missed all 11 of his 3-point attempts en route to a 15-point, 11-rebound, and 8-assist performance.

The win closes out the Timberwolves-Lakers first-round series, which went 4-1 in favor of the Wolves, who now await the winner of the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers.

Last postseason, the Timberwolves advanced to the Western Conference Finals by defeating the Nuggets in seven games. Since then, however, Minnesota traded franchise cornerstone Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks for Julius Randle and Donte DiVincenzo.

The start date of the Timberwolves' conference semifinal series is still to be determined. The Nuggets and Clippers are set to play Game 6 in Inglewood on Thursday evening, and if L.A. wins, Game 7 will be played in Denver on Saturday.