Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert not getting nearly enough touches

The Utah Jazz would benefit from a bump to Rudy Gobert’s shot attempts.

Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert has shot a combined 13-for-15 from the field between the past two outings following his five-game absence. In other words, as of late, almost everything the three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year touches on offense somehow turns into points.

And Gobert is now shooting a career-high 71.3 percent from the field this season. That’s not to mention the 29-year-old’s suddenly respectable 68.0 percent from the charity stripe with a career-high 6.7 foul shots per game in what is his ninth year in the NBA.

So it ought to seem illogical that the Jazz (29-15) would accept such a high level of efficiency from their reasonably potent big man without trying to set him up for considerably more attempts to score. Indeed, more Gobert touches should be their aim, at least until his shooting percentage drops below 70 or so.

Improvements from the Utah Jazz weapon remain underappreciated

Although Rudy Gobert’s offensive moves often look choppy and aren’t nearly as advanced as some of the other high-profile big men in the league, there’s no denying the significant recent strides in his development on that end of the floor.

Consider that part of the reason for France’s silver-medal success at last summer’s Olympics was its creativity in finding opportunities for Gobert to thrive down low as a bucket-getter.

Now, the 7-foot-1 “Gobzilla” has the tools to do more damage offensively yet simply isn’t getting sufficient touches to dominate at times. While “dominate” is perhaps too ambitious, it likely wouldn’t hurt for the Jazz to mix things up a smidge by feeding Gobert with a bit more regularity, even if only to become less predictable and less dependent on hot shooting nights beyond the arc.

After all, Utah’s overreliance on its 3-point arsenal was on full display in its 101-95 road loss to the Los Angeles Lakers (22-22) on Monday night.

Yes, Donovan Mitchell, Bojan Bogdanovic, Jordan Clarkson, and Rudy Gay went a combined 1-for-26 from downtown in the game, equating to a 3.8 shooting percentage. No, that won’t work.

Meanwhile, especially during the fourth quarter — in which the Utah Jazz had put up only 12 points entering the final 30 seconds — Rudy Gobert frequently had about a six-inch height advantage over his defender. Nevertheless, all he could do was watch his teammates heave one brick after another.

Stay tuned to The J-Notes for more on Rudy Gobert’s offensive progression plus other Utah Jazz news and views.