In Saturday’s win by the Timberwolves over the Clippers, Rudy Gobert didn’t attempt a field goal until the final quarter (and he only attempted one). Now in his 13th season, and fourth with Minnesota, his 11.0 points and 6.0 shot attempts per contest are both his lowest marks since the 2015-16 season.
Now, the four-time Defensive Player of the Year is more known for his work on that end of the court, and Gobert still plays a huge role for Minnesota on defense, as evidenced by his on/off splits. The 33-year-old does the majority of his offensive scoring right at the rim, and he has led the league in field goal percentage three times. He’s currently leading again, and he’s on track to go after the single-season record.
Rudy Gobert doesn't miss very often
Having not missed any of the Timberwolves’ first 23 outings, Gobert has shot 102-139 from the field thus far on the year. That’s good for a 73.4 percent mark. Now, while there are still 59 games remaining, that percentage would be the second-best in a single season in NBA history.
The current record-holder is Mitchell Robinson, who did it with the Knicks in 2019-20 (still with the team now). Much like Gobert, Robinson isn’t going to travel outside the paint to attempt a shot. In his record-breaking season, Robinson shot 74.2 percent from the field. According to Basketball Reference, his average distance from the basket on his field goal attempts that season was 1.3 feet.
Gobert is a little above that this season at 2.3 feet. Just two of his 139 field goal attempts on the season have come from outside of 10 feet. In his 13 years, Gobert has yet to make a 3-point try (on 17 attempts).
Timberwolves are performing much better with him on the court
Now, in the last two games, head coach Chris Finch has gone with Naz Reid over Gobert at the end of close contests. That shouldn’t devalue the impact that he has had for Minnesota this season, though, even as his offensive role continues to decrease.
The Timberwolves are 11.9 points better per 100 possessions when The Stifle Tower is on the court. Their defensive rating skyrockets whenever Gobert is off the court, as Gobert is still one of the game’s premier rim defenders.
After a very poor start by the team on the defensive end, Minnesota is now 11th in defensive rating. They have been top-10 in the metric in each of Gobert’s first three years with the team (including first in 2023-24).
Ultimately, Gobert's impact on winning is clear, and setting a record for the best field goal percentage in a season would be a nice feather in his cap.