His defense is incredibly impressive. Future DPOY.
I haven't watched any of his game but is he really as good as advertised? I just remember when JaVale McGee came out after his first year and similar hype surrounded him. Aside from his bone headed play sometimes, wouldn't they be similar? Over 7 footer who swats everything and can rebound.
Yes, I think so. I think he is incredible.
Gobert is not just a stat-padder like a McGee. Someone who gets blocks but doesn't effect overall defense much. Gobert transforms Utah's defense when he is out on the floor.
It is nothing like someone like JaVale McGee. Watching the games, you could see McGee was running around the court like a headless chicken. That he had really bad defensive fundamentals. That he was frequently out of position and unable to challenge the play correctly. That his elite size and athleticism was bailing him out on plays where he was out of position. McGee would make some great defensive plays but he also was making a huge number of terrible defensive mistakes that wiped out most of his good efforts.
When Utah had Gobert and Favors (strong defensive PF) starting together while Kanter was injured, they looked to be one of the best defensive teams in the league. On the season, Utah is a bottom 5 defense (in terms of defensive efficiency). The is a huge difference. Night and day.
When it is just Gobert, minus Favors, it is a huge difference to Utah's interior defense. A vastly superior defender to Favors at center position (Favors middle of pack defensive C). He cannot overcome all the weak defenders that usually play around him in the 2nd unit but you can see the number of defensive plays he is making and how much worse it would be if Gobert wasn't there.
I think Gobert changes more shots around the basket than any other player in the league right now. It is not just the ones he blocks. It is the number of shots he challenges and alters around the basket. It is the number of plays where guys will refuse to even challenge him because they are so intimidated by him. It is an incredible sight.
Offensively, Gobert is nothing more than a garbage man ... but his defense is extraordinary and his rebounding is very strong.
Gobert is nothing like that. He has good positioning and discipline on defense to go along with his elite size and strong athleticism. Gobert understands his purpose while on the court and is committed to being a defensive stopper.
If you look at Utah's on/off defensive stats, Utah allow 116.4 points per possession when Gobert is off the court and only 105.7 points per possession when Gobert is on the floor. A huge difference. A trans-formative defensive presence.
There are still things he can improve on. Not a finished product yet defensively. Positioning is more good than great and he still needs to improve his physical strength. Playing against the most physical muscular centers (like Dwight Howard) is still hard for him. I am optimistic those are things that Gobert can improve because (1) he is so young (2) it looks like he really enjoys playing defense (3) major progress / improvement he has made from year one to year two.
Next Dikembe Mutombo.
Topic: Rudy Gobert 13 points, 18 rebounds, 4 blocks. Now 5th highest center PER in NBA. (Read 6749 times)