Rudy Gobert
Numbers don’t quite tell the tale of how great Rudy Gobert has been this season. Since declaring himself the best center in the game, the Stifle Tower has accomplished something few in such a position actually do — he’s backed up the talk. Not only has he been the most intimidating defensive presence in the league, but he’s also morphed into a major threat on offense.
Again, numbers aren’t the end all, but I’m going to hit you with the litany anyway because his are sensational. This is what Gobert has done statistically and where he ranks league-wide in each category —
66.2 FG percentage (2nd)
68.4 True shooting percentage (1st)
1.88 Points per shot (1st)
12.5 Rebounds per game (5th)
2.56 Blocks per game (1st)
7.0 Block percentage (1st)
42.9 Defensive FG percentage at the rim (T-3rd)
29 Double-doubles (4th)
127.8 Offensive Rating (3rd)*
97.3 Defensive Rating (1st)*
3.4 Defensive win shares (1st)
4.6 Defensive box plus/minus (2nd)
*The NBA and other statistical firms have different methods of calculating Per 100 poss. ratings. I went with Basketball Reference here.
If you wanted to extend the categories and go beyond Top 5 status, we could be here all day. However, none of his numbers impress me as much as his free throw percentage. After being the player that opponents intentionally fouled in the clutch throughout his career, he’s flirting with 70 percent from the line this season.
Gobert was always really, really good. This season, he’s approaching greatness.
Grade: A
Next: Gordon Hayward