All a basketball fan needs to see to know that Rudy Gobert is still a monster on defense is a quick glance at a chart that shows how poorly opponents shoot when they try to score on him in the paint.
In the chart below, you can see that Washington Wizards sophomore sensation Alex Sarr has defended far and away the most shots at the rim (145) this season, while Gobert is easily the best in the NBA at limiting opponents’ field goal percentage on shots within six feet of the rim. Like, by a lot.
The Gap between Sarr and rest of the group is crazy. Impressive he’s doing it with such an impressive DFG% as well. Also Rudy 👀 https://t.co/0bipexgmtl pic.twitter.com/DOS5tKFqfR
— Hoopology (@hoopologyxx) November 13, 2025
While Gobert may be clumsy on the offensive end, his excellence on defense makes him an unquestionable net positive for Minnesota. When you hear Shaq say he’s overpaid or Charles Barkley claim the Wolves can’t score with him on the court, or Draymond Green saying Gobert “sucks,” you needn’t look any further than the data below to prove them wrong.
According to Cleaning the Glass, the Wolves outscore opponents by 20.9 points per 100 possessions with Gobert on the floor, which sits in the 95th percentile.
“He’s a walking top-five defense all by himself at times,” Wolves coach Chris Finch told Zach Lowe this week.
Regression is likely, but finishing double-digits better per 100 possessions is realistic. Utah hit plus-14.6 with Gobert on the floor in 2016-17, and those Jazz teams posted plus-12.78 in 2019-20 and plus-13.9 in 2020-21.
It took time for the Wolves to reach this level. They were minus-0.3 points per 100 possessions with Gobert in 2022-23, then plus-3.8 and plus-3.9 the next two seasons. The jump to plus-20.9 early this season is staggering.
The most effective look with Gobert is the starting five: Anthony Edwards, Donte DiVincenzo, Jaden McDaniels, Julius Randle, and Gobert. That group is averaging 132.4 points per 100 possessions and allowing 104.0.
Minnesota’s long-standing issue was sustaining offense with Gobert on the floor. Early data (just 11 games) suggests the scoring isn’t elite no matter when he’s on the court, as the Wolves’ offense ranks in the 8th percentile with him out there, but the defense ranks in the 100th percentile. That gap is carrying them right now.
The defense is just too strong with him out there to be outweighed by his limitations. And because most of his minutes are now coming with Edwards, McDaniels, and Randle, it masks many of his shortcomings.
Bottom line: Minnesota has found an elite lineup combination to maximize Gobert’s value, and there’s not much to debate the way he’s playing right now. Could that change? Of course, but the road ahead has opportunities to prove this isn’t a fluke as Gobert and Minnesota face the likes of Nikola Jokic and Denver, the dominant Thunder, and Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs in the days and weeks ahead.
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