Rudy Gobert is guiding Wolves back to their defensive identity

Gobert did a little bit of everything in Wednesday night's win over the Clippers.

Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert shoots over Los Angeles Clippers center Ivica Zubac (40) during the first half at Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif., on Dec. 4, 2024. / Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

Rudy Gobert got a steal, ran up the floor in transition and delivered a no-look pass to Jaden McDaniels for a layup. In a similar sequence, the Minnesota Timberwolves center got another steal and dished a no-look bounce pass to Naz Reid.

Gobert did a little bit of everything in Wednesday night's 108-80 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers, Minnesota's third straight win. It was a bit of a full-circle moment. The Wolves kicked off the three-game winning streak with a win over the Clippers on Friday, and Gobert was the anchor of a Minnesota defense that allowed them to squeak out a 93-92 victory.

Starting with the one-point victory Friday, Gobert has been the engine that's driven the Wolves back to their defensive identity, and with it, their winning ways. In the NBA Cup victory against the Clippers, Gobert played an arduous 43 minutes, posting a team-best plus-minus of plus-9 on a night he had eight points, 12 rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block.

Gobert followed up that showing with a 17-point effort in a 109-80 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Monday. With an insurmountable lead late, he was able to get some rest down the stretch, but he still played a team-high 32 minutes and grabbed 12 rebounds and a steal to go along with his 17 points. He was a plus-17 as the Wolves stacked another strong defensive showing, outrebounding the Lakers 43-39, dominating in transition with 20 fast-break points to L.A.'s seven, forcing them into 21 turnovers and holding them to 41% shooting from the field and just 19% from downtown.

“I think what’s really been better the last few games, I think our focus, our mental focus on the details, it’s been more consistent," Gobert said after the game against the Lakers. "It’s like we’ve talked about, getting to the next play, not letting the offense affect us, not letting — whatever happens. Bad call, we got fouled … whatever that is, don’t let that affect your focus on what needs to be done, on the mission.”  

The focus and consistency was once again there for the Wolves on Wednesday. They had 15 steals and forced the Clippers into 23 turnovers. They won the rebounding battle 50-46. They ran the floor, putting up 32 fast-break points to just eight for the Clippers. And they held Los Angeles to shooting clips of just 35% from the field and 28% from deep.

Gobert individually filled up the box score with eight points, nine rebounds, seven assists, five steals and a block. He finished a plus-21 and didn't have a single turnover, becoming just the second Timberwolves player to have a 4-by-5 game with no turnovers, joining Terrell Brandon, who did it twice, the most recent time all the way back in 2001.

And again, Gobert's 29 minutes were a game high.

With 8 points, a team-high 9 rebounds, a season-high 7 assists and a career-high-tying 5 steals in last night’s win, Rudy Gobert became the second player in @Timberwolves history to have a 4x5 game (pts/reb/ast/stl) with 0 turnovers. (Terrell Brandon, 2x; MR: 1/21/2001 at VAN). pic.twitter.com/FY0zyxIOrs

— Timberwolves PR (@Twolves_PR) December 5, 2024

Over the last three games, Gobert has the sixth-best defensive rating in the NBA at 87.1 among players who have played all three, and Gobert is averaging far more minutes than any of them. And four of the players ahead of him are his Wolves teammates: Julius Randle (80.0), Donte DiVincenzo (82.1), Mike Conley (85.0) and Nickeil Alexander-Walker (85.4).

As you could imagine, the Wolves have by far the best defensive rating as a team over the last three games, when they've allowed just 86.6 points per 100 possessions. Over that stretch, the starting lineup has a defensive rating of 84.8.

It's clear something on that end of the floor is starting to click for the Timberwolves, and their defense over the last three looks a lot more like the unit fans grew accustomed to watching last season. The caveat is the Wolves have caught the Lakers and Clippers on the second half of back to backs the last two games. That's a trend that will continue Friday night when they'll visit the Golden State Warriors, who will be playing for the second night in a row.

But the Wolves can only play the games on the schedule. And they haven't just been squeaking out the wins against the two tired opponents, they've been running them out of the gym with dominant, stifling and frustrating defense. That effort is in large thanks to Gobert, who's looked every part of the four-time Defensive Player of the Year in the last three games.