Brooklyn Nets head coach Kenny Atkinson is well aware of the impact that Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert brings on a game, and he acknowledged that before their teams meet on Tuesday.

Prior to the Nets' game against the Jazz, Atkinson gave Gobert big praise and called the seventh-year pro the best defensive center in the NBA.

“He’s the best defensive center in the game. I think he’s in the all-time, pushing himself into the all-time greats.” Kenny Atkinson said per Brian Mahoney of The Associated Press.

Atkinson's claim certainly isn't that bold. Gobert has won the last two NBA Defensive Player of the Year Awards and has made the All-Defensive team three times.

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With Gobert in the middle, the Jazz have been one of the best defensive teams in the league.

This season, Utah is eighth in the NBA in defensive rating and Gobert, once again, has been an absolute force on the defensive end. The 7-foot-1 Frenchman has put up per-game averages of 14.8 points, a career-high 14.4 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game while shooting an efficient 67.3 percent from the field.

Gobert and the Jazz have faced off against Brooklyn one time earlier this year. In a 119-114 Utah win, the 27-year-old big man put up 18 points, 15 rebounds, two blocks and two steals.

The Jazz come into the game as one of the hottest teams in the NBA. Winners of their last nine games, Rudy Gobert's defense has allowed Utah to climb the Western Conference standings.

At 27-12, the Jazz are tied with the Denver Nuggets for the second-best record in the West.