Another INSANE Rudy Gobert Defensive Performance…

Another INSANE Rudy Gobert Defensive Performance…

Welcome to another how and GRS breakdown today we’re talking about Minnesota’s defense again and we’re zooming in again on Rudy go now this was a fantastic game between the Timberwolves and the Oklahoma City Thunder in what is becoming a really fun matchup that hopefully we get another look at come

Playoff time but the story here was how Minnesota shut the Thunders offense down in the fourth quarter with what has become a really recognizable brand of Defense the Thunder scored just 24 points on 42% shooting for the fourth quarter and Minnesota turned a 4.3 qu time deficit into a Sixpoint win at the

End of the night and it was go who was the tip of that defensive spear so let’s take a look at that fourth quarter film and see what we can find out about go and his team’s defensive performance okay we start here and I speak a lot about how dangerous

Minnesota’s defense is if they’re allowed to stick go bear on a non shooter like he is here with Josh giddy but you see him call cat to switch with him here that means he can rotate down here more easily to provide a wall at the rim when Jaylen Williams is driving

But that defensive switch means he can also get out here to contest a potential three shout out to nille Alexander Walker who is in here in help but then he gets out to take that three away as well that close out is exceptional he squares his body up and doesn’t

Overcommit that means he rides jdub’s hip all the way down and he’s got go lurking behind him who rotates over here in case Williams does get past Alexander Walker in the end it’s wonderful perimeter defending to add on top of goz brilliant backside help and Minnesota

Force a tough shot and get a stop and again the difference between this Minnesota defense and the defense of do’s Utah Jazz days is that perimeter defense that’s in front of him you see Alexander Walker is fighting to get over this screen here and then when the

Screener fans out and reverses that pick he’s fighting again to get over it while McDaniels is in here in gap help and getting back out here with his length when that pass does come so the Wolves shut off all of that original action and then it’s go rot into the paint behind

It all and that forces Jay dub to pull up instead of getting to the rim and Alexander Walker is in his grill making that a tough contested look so it’s not just about go he’s on the backline warding off any Thunder players from getting all the way to the rim but

Because of the hassling perimeter guys in front of him life is just so tough for offenses the other difference to go bear of old is how often he’s willing to move his own feet on the perimeter when Williams comes out of the pick and pop

Here go is happy to call out the switch and send Anderson veering back to the shooter so Williams is looking at that like it’s free lunch but you see how go b gets his body angled squared to the player and the rim that angles off the drive and towns helps him here by

Getting in front of Dort to box him out and rebound that miss that willingness and ability to defend smaller quicker and highly skilled ball handlers is a massive change in goar’s game this season and part of the reason why he’s back to his very best defensively you

See it in a different way here it’s a broken floor defensive situation so JM rotates out here to the corner while an drops in to defend Chad under the rim towns inexplicably drops into here as well though which prize open a shooter on the weak side and goz them most alert

Player on the floor he gets out there quickly while it’s not a perfect contest it’s an enormous human being soaring at Lou D and that’s going to be infinitely more difficult to make than a wide open look I’m not entirely sure if go bear makes that rotation in Prior years and

He certainly wouldn’t have made it in his first year with the Timberwolves so all of this has been behind the scenes kind of stuff that is often overshadowed in NBA discourse but now now we get some of the more obvious defensive pop with hren running the inverted pick and roll

Go switches with ant to once again get closer to the rim and ant closes up that space hounds the big man and blows up another original action with that perimeter D but he’s been ball watching here in gap help so when Chad notices and slips in behind him with that back

Door cut goar’s heads on a swivel he steps across to protect the rim he gets the block and makes the Thunder pay for SGA giving up the ball in the fourth quarter the perimeter stuff is Awesome from go but plays like this is what he’s known for and he’s still spectacular at

It from here on out we get full team lock down possessions so let’s just run through all the great stuff we’re going to see first it’s ant closing up this space quickly to stop SJ from isolating towns in space that means Alexander Walker is going to shift over to cover

One pass away McDaniels is checking two players by himself on the weak side and towns drops in here to help on the potential drive but also flare back out to the corner to get a contest on that catch and shoot three that’s not go bear but it is a fantastic possession that

Warranted praise and we get two more examples of the whole team defending on one string as the game comes to a crescendo here again it’s Edwards eating up this space rapidly while his man is slow to get up the floor that stops any early attack from gilas Alexander when

SJ does attack Alexander Walker is shadowing him the whole way McDaniel stunts over to show a body Edwards sucks in but he gets back out there quickly to shut off any three-point attempt and then towns rotates out of the sgaa double to provide a contest on that

Catch and shoot look and then with around 2 minutes left on the clock and OKC really needing a bucket we get this final noteworthy possession again it’s Jaden McDaniel’s length and speed that allows him to sit on Shay’s drive here while also guarding Williams one pass

Away and not giving up anything the shot is well contested and clanks off the back rim but it’s rebounded by the Thunder and Minnesota go to work again Alexander Walker is out to the corner quickly to shut that off again it’s all about cutting off that first easy option

So OKC flow into pick and roll and McDaniels and go are so long they virtually touch hands here on the Trap Williams still gets through it and again it’s go taking this angle moving laterally with Williams and forcing the traveling turnover to pretty much close the curtains on this game we’ve seen

This kind of complete team defense led by Rudy go all season from the Timberwolves but it’s always really fun to watch when it’s at its best and even more so when it’s against a team like the Oklahoma City Thunder who are loaded with Talent really well coached and a

Joy to watch operate offensively at this point with this kind of film it’s almost a no-brainer that gobear takes home his fourth Defensive Player of the Year at season’s end thanks again for watching hows and GRS Please Subscribe for more

The leader of the number one defense does it again.