Following Rudy Gobert's dominant performance as the Minnesota Timberwolves eliminated the Los Angeles Lakers last night, Utah Jazz alum Derrick Favors not only praised his former teammate but also called out one of the biggest myths about Gobert.
When a Jazz fan asked Favors about his thoughts on Gobert's performance, Favors praised his former teammate and said something that not many know about Gobert.
"He did what he was suppose to do! Everyone hates on him until he’s on your team and then you appreciate him," Favors wrote.
The former Jazzman is commonly considered one of the most hated players in the NBA. Some of that stems from his offensive limitations, and because he has shown that even the league's best scorers can occasionally get the better of him, despite being considered one of the best defenders of his era.
However, another myth about Gobert is that he's a bad guy. The funny thing is, Gobert doesn't have a long history of having issues of skirmishes outside of one (and we'll get to that), though he has had the occasional fight every now and again.
D'Angelo Russell also had issues with Gobert when they first teamed up in 2022. Note that they weren't teammates for long, and well, Russell has a much worse reputation as a teammate for anyone who doesn't remember.
The truth is, most players who have had issues with Gobert have largely been opponents, like Draymond Green, who is also considered one of the more hated players, though that is a reputation he has certainly earned.
Favors knows extensively about what it's like to play next to Gobert, having done so from 2013 to 2019, then again from 2020 to 2021. The two also started together in Utah's frontcourt for a few years, though their limitations as partners later led to Favors transitioning to a backup spot, which Favors accepted gracefully.
Favors was there for the peak of the Gobert with Gordon Hayward and the peak of the Gobert era with Donovan Mitchell, so if there's someone who definitely knows Gobert on the court and in the locker room, it's him.
This was always a myth that was fueled by something that was as true as it was sad.
Rudy Gobert's issues with Donovan Mitchell fueled this myth
It had been reported for years how strained Gobert and Mitchell's relationship became over the five years they were teammates. Neither looked good from the situation, and though they were able to put their differences aside at times, they never put their beef behind them when they were Jazzmen.
The fact that neither has had reported longstanding issues with other teammates since their breakup shows that their issues come down to the two of them simply just not seeing eye to eye with each other. That happens sometimes.
Mitchell has been a good soldier in Cleveland, much like Gobert has been in Minnesota. It is a shame that the two couldn't work out their issues, which factored into the Jazz disappointing in the playoffs, but while it's true they weren't buddies, they weren't problem children either.