Former Utah Jazz star center Rudy Gobert has been put under a microscope. Many have debated just how impactful his presence on the floor is. While his offensive game is far from stellar, he has proven to be one of the best defensive players the NBA has ever seen. At 30 years old Gobert is still in his prime and has already racked up numerous awards both in the NBA and on the international level while playing for the French National team. This raises the question: is Rudy Gobert a Hall of Famer?
While pondering this question it is important to recognize all he has accomplished in his first nine years in the league. These are his NBA awards thus far:
3x NBA All-Star, 6x All-Defensive, 4x All-NBA, and 3x Defensive Player of the Year.
This is already a resumé that could stack up against that of many legends who are already in the Hall of Fame. For example, he already has more All-Star and All-NBA selections than Hall of Famers Dennis Rodman, Bill Walton and others. Not to mention the success he’s had on the international stage, having won the silver medal in the 2020 Olympics as well as two bronze medals in the FIBA World Cup.
At the moment the biggest thing missing from Rudy Gobert’s list of accolades is any degree of postseason success. Despite the amount of All-Star and All-NBA selections he has received it would be difficult to imagine him getting to the Hall with his postseason record. In his nine years with the Utah Jazz they have been to the playoffs six times and lost in the first round in half of those seasons and never having advanced past the second round.
It’s worth noting that Gobert left the Jazz on bad terms. That being said, beef with fanbases is not grounds to keep him out of the Hoops Hall when his time comes. Plus, his lack of postseason success could be fixed in Minnesota, who instantly became a contender when the Wolves mortgaged their future for him.
While he is still likely to make the Hall of Fame one day with the accomplishments he already has he may have to wait much longer than the four year minimum for his enshirement. However, this could change drastically if he is able to help lead a team to an NBA Final or even a conference final. Only time will tell if this is something he’ll be able to accomplish in his new home.
Gobert may not be a first-ballot entry, but other international stars like Manu Ginobili rode Olympic and FIBA success to Springfield, so if Gobert gets a ring–or even gets close–he could wind up enshrined someday.