Minnesota Timberwolves Rudy Gobert Wins NBA Defensive Player of the Year Award Again

So what did the NBA's commissioner, Adam Silver, give Rudy Gobert after the birth of his son? The NBA's Defensive Player of The Year Award, of course. The win ended speculation that Wemby, who came on strong in the last couple of the season, had done enough to take home the trophy in his rookie season.

Rudy Gobert has had a busy couple of days. First, he experienced the birth of his first child, watched his teammates hammer the Denver Nuggets on TV, and today, collected his fourth NBA Defensive Player of The Year Award. He had previously taken home the honor in 2018, 2019, and 2021.

"It's great teamwork," Gobert told TNT's "NBA Tip-Off" on Tuesday. "We love to get individual awards and all these things, and it's great, but you can't do it alone. I really have a lot of gratitude for ... all my teammates for believing in me, allowing me to do what I do best every day and just try to change the culture here in Minnesota. It's great for the guys for buying in."

Led by Gobert, the Timberwolves recorded an NBA-best 108.4 defensive rating and are now 6-0 in the playoffs. He became the third player to win the award four times, joining Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace.

Gobert finished the regular season averaging 12.9 rebounds and 2.1 blocks in a little over 34 minutes per game. He was one of two players in 2023-24 to average over two blocks and 12 rebounds per game.

"This year, training camp, we came Day 1 and said we wanted to be a top defense in this league," Gobert said. "Every guy has bought in. Everyone has put in the work every single day, and now we're here with one goal in mind, to try to get this championship.

"... Great things take time. You guys all know winning is not something that happens overnight. You need to overcome adversity, you need to go through some ups and downs as a group."

THE UNDERRATED OPINION
Some people may be disappointed Wemby didn't win the award, and I suspect he would have if the Spurs had allowed Wemby to play a little more at the start of the season. Still, you can't argue with the Timberwolves record in the West and the teams' overall defensive performance.

For just a moment, forget about stats and just watch Gobert play defense, and you'll see how much he alters what the opposing offense is trying to do.