Sadly beaten by a Rockets team that had just lost 13 games in a row, the Wolves had proof that their ills were far from over. In this galley, Rudy Gobert however managed to sign a quality match statistically, in particular embellished with a huge counter on the colossus Bruno Fernando!
After an upturn in recent weeks, Wolves fans thought their new-look squad had finally found the right formula. Clearly, that’s not the case, and last night’s loss to Houston is a painful reminder of that. Rudy Gobert, hampered by physical glitches lately, has yet held his rank with 15 points and 16 rebounds. He is also the only player on his team to shoot more than 50%.
To these figures, it is necessary to add the 4 counterattacks made by the tricolor. Criticized by some observers for his number of “blocks” down compared to his time at Jazz, the pivot of the Blues protected the hoop with ferocity. If you have any doubts, do not hesitate to ask a certain Bruno Fernando…
Rudy Gobert releases the tarp of the week to Bruno Fernando
10 short days before Candlemas, Gobert served a very salty pancake to the 24-year-old Angolan. Launched at full speed by the basket, Fernando (2m08, 110 kg) had dreams of grandeur and imagined himself posterizing “The Stifle Tower” in front of the cameras. Balance sheet? A relentless counter from Rudy, and poor Rocket crashing helplessly to the ground:
Gobert met ’em at the rim ???? pic.twitter.com/LCxYWJzq8E
— NBA TV (@NBATV) January 24, 2023
This sequence obviously reminds us that the native of Saint-Quentin is not a multiple Defender of the Year by chance, and that in good conditions, his defensive contribution is quite simply one of the best in the league. However, it remains to perpetuate this type of action, and above all to improve overall defensive communication within a team that is still too imperfect defensively.
It is at this price, among other things, that the Wolves will be able to get out of the hole in which they find themselves, and finally hope to achieve the enormous ambitions they had set themselves. As a reminder, Gobert and others were talking about an NBA ring goal during the summer. For the moment, it is only 9th place, with a record of 24-25, that Chris Finch’s men have monopolized…
If the Wolves had a bad evening collectively by losing against one of the dunces of the league, Rudy Gobert held his rank and displayed all his defensive deterrence. Bruno Fernando will think twice before trying again to crush the Frenchman in the circle…
