The Minnesota Timberwolves earned a second straight conference finals appearance by defeating the Warriors in five games behind another strong closeout game from Rudy Gobert. Many quickly said Tim Connelly and the Wolves drastically overpaid after trading five first-round draft picks for the big man, but Gobert is flipping the narrative. He was Defensive Player of the Year in 2024 and keeps coming up clutch for Minnesota.
The Timberwolves had won just two playoff series in franchise history before getting Gobert. They have won four in the last two seasons with the 7’1 big man starting every game. He is a four-time Defensive Player of the Year but draws plenty of heat. Those fans are nowhere to be found at this stage.
The Gobert trade is not the only Wolves gamble that looks brilliant right now. Landing Rudy was costly, but it has helped Minnesota become an elite defense and do something that the franchise has never done before.
Timberwolves have clearly won the Rudy Gobert trade
Minnesota still owes Utah three first-round draft picks, including the 21st overall selection this year, from the Gobert deal. The opening selections resulted in the Jazz getting Walker Kessler and Keyonte George. Utah has been tanking since the trade and looks years away from contending. It was time to let Gobert go, but the Jazz have failed to turn the massive haul into a difference-making one.
The 7’1 big man has led his team to the playoffs for nine straight years. In his first season in Minnesota, the Wolves lost to the eventual champion Nuggets in the opening round. Gobert and company got revenge in 2024 by knocking them out in the second round. Minnesota is a serious title threat this year and are just four wins away from their first NBA Finals appearance.
Anthony Edwards is Minnesota’s star, but Gobert anchors their defense. Many view the big man as overrated and undeserving of being a four-time DPOY. The slander is wild. There was even a long-held narrative that Gobert couldn’t win in the playoffs, but he is changing that.
Luka Doncic cooked him in the 2024 conference finals, but Gobert evened the score in the first round. The 32-year-old closed the Warriors series with 18 points, eight rebounds, and one block while being a plus-21 in 28 minutes. This is the best version of Gobert fans have ever seen, and the Timberwolves owe a lot of their success to the big man.
Hate on Rudy Gobert if you wish. He is familiar with it and will keep getting the last laugh. The Minnesota Timberwolves are hungry to get to their first NBA Finals and expect the Stifle Tower to take center stage again in their bid to make it happen. One thing is clear. The Wolves clearly won this trade and things are looking worse by the day for the Jazz.