The coaching cliche has been around for ages: Offense wins games, but defense wins championships.
For the Utah Jazz, one of the hottest teams in the league, those words ring true. If coach Quin Snyder’s team has any chance of challenging in the top-heavy Western Conference this season, they’ll have to do it with defense. That side of things in Utah is anchored by the reigning two-time Kia Defensive Player of the Year, Rudy Gobert.
Gobert’s impact on a game can be lost on eyes fixed on offensive accomplishments and amazing feats therein. But there’s no overshadowing how his presence is a game-changer for a Jazz team that makes its bones on the back of the best rim protector on the planet.
“He’s really turned into the master of a lost art,” an Eastern Conference general manager said of Gobert. “The way we play in our league now, the way the game is skewed to offensive players, it’s hard for regular eyes to gain a full appreciation of just how big a difference he makes for them.
“It’s really a beautiful thing to see a big man control the action the way he can around the rim. We’re so focused on the 3-point line and the game from distance, but go back and watch the action around the basket and he’s on a level all his own these days.”
Gobert can singlehandedly blow up the opposition’s offensive possessions without blocking any shots. His presence alone creates the appropriate fear needed for the Jazz to feed off his game. And if you need advanced metrics to verify Gobert’s impact both defensively and overall, this recent NBA.com/Stats breakdown from Brian Martin is all you need.
Gobert’s continued improvement on the offensive end has helped him shove his way into the Kia MVP conversation this week, too.
He’s tied for second in rebounds per game with Houston’s Clint Capela (14.5 rpg), trailing only Detroit’s Andre Drummond (15.7 rpg). Gobert is also averaging 15.0 ppg on a career-best 67.4% shooting overall and 1.9 blocks per game. That last number might be even higher, but like a shutdown cornerback in football, Gobert is rarely tested by players who know his reputation of erasing buckets.
It all adds up to a critical component for Snyder, who has built the Jazz into a legitimate contender in a way that few other teams have during this pace-and-space era.
Defense comes first in Utah, with Gobert quite literally front and center.
