The most die-hard Utah Jazz fans probably think about Rudy Gobert all the time. But trying not to reminisce about him and about a better era of Jazz basketball certainly became a lot harder after the events of Wednesday evening.
In the Minnesota Timberwolves' Game 5 against the Los Angeles Lakers, Gobert finished with one of the most dominant performances of his entire career. The former Jazzman put up a playoff career high 27 points, 24 rebounds, and was one of the main reasons Minnesota closed out the series, on a night where several of his teammates couldn't get it going.
It was a performance that served as a resounding answer to all the doubters that ridicule Gobert and take delight in his failings. Rudy admittedly had trouble finishing around the rim through the first four games of this series. But he executed to perfection on the offensive end in this one, catching passes and finishing layups, throwing down put-back dunks and just looking like an all-around complete offensive player.
There's no question it was a complete reversal of what had ailed him most to begin this series, and Gobert brought his best at the perfect time to send the Lakers home. Timberwolves coach Chris Finch heaped priase on Rudy in his postgame interview.
Gobert had one of his best career games on Wednesday
"When you have this guy on your team, you understand what a professional and a winner is," Finch said. "It was Rudy’s night, and nobody was around to stop him ... He drives winning. You can not like who he is, how he does it, what he looks like etc. He doesn't listen to the outside noise, we don't listen to the outside noise. No one is happier for Rudy than his teammates, particularly Anthony (Edwards)."
Jazz fans know that back in July 2022 when Utah traded Gobert, many around the NBA community were making Minnesota a laughingstock, claiming that the Jazz totally and utterly fleeced them. While the return still wasn't bad for Utah, a contender like the Timberwolves are reaping the benefits of employing a winning player like Rudy.
This development has to give Jazz fans thoughts of what could have been had Utah opted to keep Donovan Mitchell and Gobert back in the 2022 offseason. Perhaps that team had already hit their peak considering the dream 2020-21 season, but it's hard not to dream about the possibilites.
Clearly, Gobert is still at or at least close to the peak of his powers. He's looking positively dominant at times, while the Jazz are still stuck in a rebuild. One day, Utah will be back in the playoffs. But for now, seeing Rudy thrive like this stings.