Utah Jazz: Rudy Gobert shut out of All-NBA honors

The league may have recognized Utah Jazz star Rudy Gobert’s defensive prowess this week, but All-NBA honors are a no-go.

“All-NBA center” — has a nice ring to it, huh? For the last year, that’s what Utah Jazz fans have been able to call star big man Rudy Gobert. The Stifle Tower may not have received an All-Star nod or won Defensive Player of the Year for his efforts in 2016-17, but there was solace for the diehards in the all-league honors.

Fast-forward to now and Jazz fans can still refer to Gobert as an All-NBA center. Unfortunately, the “2017” qualifier is now required.

The votes are in and selections for the 2018 All-NBA teams were announced on Thursday; despite showing on several of the ballots that were cast, Gobert was ultimately left on the outside looking in this time around.

First-team All-NBA honorees were more or less the players you would have expected. The only surprise was Damain Lillard’s inclusion (which really wasn’t that surprising if you were paying attention) —

Anthony Davis was the first team center, with Joel Embiid making the second team. So, ultimately, it was Karl-Anthony Towns‘ third-team nod that bumped Gobert out.

Here’s the full breakdown of honorees —

2017-18 ALL-NBA FIRST TEAM
G: Damian Lillard | Portland
G: James Harden | Houston
F: LeBron James | Cleveland
F: Kevin Durant | Golden State
C: Anthony Davis | New Orleans

2017-18 ALL-NBA SECOND TEAM
G: Russell Westbrook | Oklahoma City
G: DeMar DeRozan | Toronto
F: Giannis Antetokounmpo | Milwaukee
F: LaMarcus Aldridge | San Antonio
C: Joel Embiid | Philadelphia

2017-18 ALL-NBA THIRD TEAM
G: Stephen Curry | Golden State
G: Victor Oladipo, Indiana
F: Jimmy Butler, Minnesota
F: Paul George | Oklahoma City
C: Karl-Anthony Towns | Minnesota

In total, Gobert received 51 points in the vote. That number was second to Chris Paul‘s 54 among the others receiving votes crowd. Towns had 99.

Elsewhere in the voting results, Jazz rookie Donovan Mitchell picked up two points.

In any case, the debate between Gobert and Towns is largely a philosophical one. Essentially, it boils down to how you weigh defense against offense. KAT averaged 21 points per game and shot over 40 percent from 3-point range from the frontcourt. Meanwhile, Gobert spearheaded the league’s best defense.

The Jazz surrendered less than 98 points per 100 possessions when he was on the floor. His first-team All-Defense selection earlier this week was a no-brainer despite the fact that he lost 26 games due to injury.

Nevertheless, I won’t decry Towns getting a leg up here. Clearly, he’s one of the game’s elite big men. But I definitely wonder whether he’s really more impactful overall than Utah’s pivot man.

Towns is as bad defensively as he’s dominant offensively. Gobert at least adds value when the Jazz have the ball with his picks/screen assists and vertical gravity. In terms of individual offensive rating, the Jazz star actually joins Towns in the league’s top 15. Furthermore, Gobert’s net rating (8.3) trumps KAT’s (5.9).

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In the end, there are arguments on both sides. They’re both really, really good players.

Regardless, Jazz fans can rest their laurels on the fact that this All-NBA “snub” will fuel Gobert’s fire throughout the summer. Expect him to put the Association on-notice next season.