The Minnesota Timberwolves NBA franchise confirmed on Wednesday, the start of the official NBA transfer period, that it had recruited French pivot Rudy Gobert from Utah. Gobert, 30, was traded from Minnesota to Utah that received five players (Patrick Beverley, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt, Leandro Bolmaro, Walker Kessler) and four first-round draft picks in the years to come (2023, 2025, 2027 and 2029), the Timberwolves said.
The transaction was announced by the ESPN television channel on July 1, then confirmed by Gobert himself on his social networks the next day, without however specifying the name of his new team. “utah!!!! I was just a kid from France when I arrived here nine years ago, but I felt welcomed and supported from day one.“, had written on his Twitter account the Olympic vice-champion of Tokyo and triple best defender of NBA.
One of the highest paid French athletes
«I grew as a man and as a player in front of your eyes and I thank you for every moment that I have lived. Utah and its people will always hold a special place in my heart, thank you, the journey continues“added the pivot of 2.16 m. Gobert has spent his entire NBA career, which began in 2013, at Utah, averaging 12.4 points, 11.7 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game.
With the Salt Lake City franchise, he never made it past the Western Conference semi-finals (2017, 2018 and 2021). The Jazz was eliminated this season in the first round of the play-offs. His new team also bit the dust from the first round. It has never won the NBA title since its inception in 1989.
Gobert, one of the highest paid French sportsmen, enters the second year of his mega-contract signed in December 2020 (205 million dollars over 5 years) which guarantees him in his new jersey an annual salary of more than 38 million of dollars.
