At 33 years old (34 in June), Rudy Gobert is one of the best defensive players in the league. The four-time Defensive Player of the Year was named to the All-Defensive first team for the eighth time in his career this season while finishing fourth in DPOY voting.
Sure, the Minnesota Timberwolves may be looking to make changes to the roster after two straight blowout losses to the San Antonio Spurs eliminated them from the playoffs. That doesn’t mean Minnesota should just look to trade Gobert for anything.
They need to get quite the haul back to consider dealing their center, and Bryce Simon of the Game Theory Podcast agrees. As he and Sam Vecenie discussed the Timberwolves' offseason, Simon mentioned that he would only trade Gobert if they got a premium return.
“If I’m Minnesota, I’m getting a premium if I’m trading Rudy Gobert.” Simon said. “Because trading Rudy Gobert, especially in a trade where it’s expiring, young pieces, and draft capital, I probably am resetting my timeline.”
Another team presenting an offer that would force the Timberwolves to have to say yes is the only way they should trade the Stifle Tower.
Gobert should still have immense value around the league
It would be unrealistic for Minnesota to expect a team to give up the same value that they did when they acquired Gobert back in 2022. He had just turned 30 when the trade was completed with the Utah Jazz, and now he will be turning 34 on June 26. However, some first-round picks, along with some real talent, should be expected in return for Minnesota to even consider a deal.
Getting younger isn’t necessarily a bad idea, but trading Gobert would certainly hurt them in the short-term. Yes, the team has Joan Beringer, who looked good in his limited minutes as a rookie center, but he is turning just 20 on November 11. It would be unfair to believe that the youngster can anchor a defense the way that Gobert can.
Unless Gobert’s play on that side of the court next season unexpectedly falls off a cliff, he essentially provides the club a floor of being a top-10 defensive team. They gave up 11.8 points less per 100 possessions with him on the court compared to when he was off, a 98th-percentile mark.
Obviously, the scoring is far from prolific, but Gobert is still an elite screener and offensive rebounder.
I have a lot of belief in the future of Beringer, and I’d like to see him in the rotation next season. Preferably, the team finds a way to trade Julius Randle, rather than Gobert, to open up a rotational frontcourt spot.
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