Rudy Gobert

Tangled into a world-colliding battle of strengths against Alperen Şengün’s low-post artistry on 50 possessions — and 17 different shot attempts — Rudy Gobert proved noticeably ready during one of November 26, 2024’s most consequential head-to-head collisions. Harshly reminding Houston’s up-and-coming center of who owns four Defensive Player of the Year trophies in a case nearby, Gobert, backpedaled into a pick-and-roll drop, sends Şengün’s layup attempt appropriately off glass, drawing the home crowd’s applause. The standout play kept the Minnesota Timberwolves and Houston Rockets in a scoreboard deadlock with under 20 seconds remaining, a decisive moment that soon encouraged overtime. Houston’s late-game OT run ultimately allowed for both victory and the securing of the NBA Cup’s West Group A. Gobert, though, held his own nonetheless against one of the NBA’s more paint-oriented offenses, holding opposing scorers to just 9-of-29 shooting (31.0 percent) as the nearest defender. The three-time All-Star complemented said tracking data brilliance with a five-point, 16-rebound, two-assist, one-block contribution on the box score.