Rudy Gobert is the reigning NBA Defensive Player of the Year and has won the award three times, but Patrick Beverley was openly unimpressed with the Utah Jazz star on Wednesday night.
Gobert vs. Karl Anthony-Towns was the biggest matchup to watch during Utah’s game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, but Gobert did not exclusively guard his fellow center. The Jazz moved the 7-footer around the floor a bit, which surprised Beverley. He threw some shade at Gobert after the game.
Patrick Beverley on Rudy Gobert, the Defensive Player of the Year, not taking the challenge of guarding the Timberwolves best player, Karl-Anthony Towns: pic.twitter.com/HKlPUna8cu
— Dane Moore (@DaneMooreNBA) December 9, 2021
Timberwolves swingman Anthony Edwards also had some unflattering things to say about Gobert.
Anthony Edwards said the best rim protector in the league is Kristaps Porzingis. On Rudy Gobert, Ant was honest …
'Anytime I go against Porzingis, I don’t get no layups. I don’t get why we couldn’t finish on Rudy Gobert. He don’t put no fear in my heart. I don’t know why."
— Chris Hine (@ChristopherHine) December 9, 2021
The Jazz beat the T-Wolves in a 136-104 blowout. That’s probably all that matters to Gobert, who scored 13 points on 4-of-4 shooting and grabbed 10 rebounds. Towns led Minnesota with 22 points, which clearly wasn’t enough.
Beverley is one of the better defensive players in the NBA as well, so he feels qualified to speak on the subject. Still, it’s not the best look to criticize your opponent after your team was just dominated. Gobert is certainly used to opposing players ripping on him, but we can’t imagine he was too bothered by what Beverley and Edwards had to say.
Photo: Feb 24, 2020; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (27) warms up before the game against the Phoenix Suns at Vivint Smart Home Arena. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports
