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On Wednesday, Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert joined elite company, making Anthony Edwards proud. The French big man posted 27 points and a playoff career-high 24 rebounds.
Following the series win against the Los Angeles Lakers, Edwards gave a unique comparison to the Stifle Tower.
“He was a dragon tonight. … He was the dragon from Game of Thrones tonight,” Edwards said via Chris Hine on X (formerly Twitter).
Once Edwards made that comment, teammate Julius Randle was laughing hard.
Either way, the Timberwolves' beatdown of Los Angeles shouldn't go unrecognized. Not to mention, Gobert struggled throughout the series.
He was being put out on the perimeter and taken into isolation by Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves, or even LeBron James.
Still, the four-time Defensive Player of the Year stepped up when it mattered most. The Lakers had no answer for the Minnesota big man in the second half.
He continuously slipped away from coverage and had a barrage of easy looks at the basket. Furthermore, Gobert was a putback machine. The Timberwolves needed every single one of his 24 rebounds on the night.
Anthony Edwards loved Rudy Gobert's impact in the Timberwolves' win
One of the biggest issues Los Angeles had was the lack of a center. After they traded away Anthony Davis for Luka Doncic, that only heightened their problem.
As a result, the Timberwolves center took total advantage. He was swatting away shots, getting easy looks at the basket, and being a forceful presence in the paint.
Either way, Gobert's historic 27-24 game couldn't have come at a better time.
It helped Minnesota secure the series win over Los Angeles and helped them move on to the second round. They'll face the winner of either the Houston Rockets or the Golden State Warriors.
If they end up playing the Warriors, it could be another opportunity for Gobert to turn into that Game of Thrones dragon. Although Golden State has more centers than Los Angeles, there isn't a star defensive center to match up with Gobert.
At the end of the day, the Timberwolves will enjoy another series victory. They went to the Western Conference Finals in 2024, so that could be on their minds in 2025.
Defeating the Lakers in five games is a statement, to say the least. Hopefully, this can be the turning point for Gobert as his team looks to make a deep playoff run.
Regardless of who they play, he'll need to keep being that Game of Thrones dragon, as Edwards mentioned.
