Rudy Gobert made peace with being one of the NBA's most widely criticised players by adapting.

Tim MacMahon joined ESPNDallas.com in September 2009, covering both Dallas Cowboys and Mavericks before making regular appearances on 103.3 FM ESPN Dallas 103.3. Please be aware this story was originally published April 23, 2014. Rudy Gobert needed time and space for reflection after Minnesota Timberwolves’ playoff exit last spring, which had been both trying and nerve-wracking for him personally. 2018 had been an exceptionally hard and trying year, as Gobert battled through physical challenges as well as personal challenges during an otherwise challenging and trying year of his professional life. He had anticipated spending his career with Utah Jazz but was forced out when they decided to rebuild, receiving five first-round draft picks as compensation in return. It was this massive return that brought Gobert under intense scrutiny; typically reserved for star scorers. Minnesota found itself struggling due to knee issues for Gobert while Karl-Anthony Towns was sidelined for much of the season due to calf troubles. Minnesota won their play-in game to secure eighth seed status for Western Conference play-offs. Minnesota went 42-40 overall. And Gobert failed to receive one single vote for All-Defensive teams this season – breaking his streak of six first team selections – forcing him to reach out for guidance from one of sports’ most divisive figures, NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Through mutual acquaintanceship he reached out directly for insight from him as an expert advisor on basketball strategy and tactics.

But Rodgers did not want to discuss professional challenges he was currently facing with him after being traded to New York Jets after 18 seasons with Green Bay Packers. Gobert wanted to inquire about Rodgers’ experience at Sky Cave Dark Retreats in southern Oregon. Mike Conley described Gobert as being quite eccentric; these traits had always distinguished his play style. He regularly wears necklaces and rings featuring crystals and gems believed to have healing powers and provide energy, such as crystal necklaces. Gobert had long been intrigued with the notion of darkness retreats. “Our minds can easily become distracted from everything going on around us,” Gobert once explained to ESPN. “Everything around us — media, phone calls and conversations we encounter every day–prevents us from ever truly connecting with ourselves,” Gobert laments. Instead, external stimuli often led to what he describes as the false narrative: too frequently and loudly expressed itself through external feedback channels. He faced bullying from both current and former teammates within his league as well as from those with established platforms for former players to share their grievances against one another. Total peace and solitude were essential elements in his experience, so after speaking to Rodgers he made reservations in late May – just before flying off to France for their World Cup training camp – for 64 uninterrupted hours alone in an isolated cabin with nothing other than nature as companion. No phones, books or distractions of any sort; just his thoughts and the sounds of nature around him! Editor’s Pick2 RelatedGobert enjoyed every second. Gobert had seen the cabin before all its lights went out, so he knew where his bed, sink and toilet were located – though they would need to be found by feel for three days! For exercise he did push-ups and squats; otherwise the time spent during retreat consisted of deep meditational introspection: Gobert described his retreat experience as being equivalent to “meditation times a thousand.” Gobert found the experience immensely humbling: it felt like both an enormous reset and powerful checkpoint – filling him with gratitude. After reflecting upon my journey thus far and all that it had brought, and taking stock of everything that had taken place so far – things I experienced, hardships encountered and life lessons learned – it dawned upon me that this momentous occasion marked exactly where my journey should lead me. “…when in darkness, your inner thoughts reveal themselves through what you see around you; negative things become manifest as do positive ones if your mood shifts; at the end of each day, your attitude determines your reality…” Gobert has endured much ridicule throughout his 11-year NBA career. Much of it has come from within; for instance in March 2020 when Gobert joked around touching all microphones and tape recorders during his initial socially disassociated media availability session — only days later becoming the first NBA player ever tested positive for COVID-19. Donovan Mitchell blamed Gobert for transmitting the virus, while strangers on social media accused Gobert of spreading it across America. Gobert explained, “That was when I learned more about people.” People can often make you look bad. Rudy Gobert is considered an overwhelming favorite to claim another Defensive Player of the Year honor this season. Lauren Leigh Bacho/NBAE via Getty Images Gobert arrived to the NBA as an underappreciated 7-footer from France who felt undervalued after falling to 27th overall pick in draft. As a reminder of all those who doubted him, Gobert chose No. 27 for his jersey number to keep reminding himself daily who his critics were. Gobert quickly rose in stature as one of the premier defensive forces of his generation, earning himself accolades and recognition from players, fans, and Hall-of-Famers alike. However, as his profile rose he often found himself being mocked or attacked from within his team as well as outside it; including cultural differences, quirky personality quirks, style of play differences as well as wealth earned. With each passing year Gobert contemplated why this might have occurred and discussed them among himself and members of his inner circle: cultural differences, quirky personality quirks as well as money earned. Gobert noted, “People see me more as this odd guy from France who keeps winning awards despite not necessarily fitting their mold and it may cause irritation among some fans,” saying it can make his presence felt at games less. His impact is unique as opposed to that of some others so sometimes respect is harder coming his way. “I think most of the time people misunderstand me; it seems I cause more friction with a lot of them than ever. “For much of Gobert’s life he felt isolated by society – his white single mom raised him with racist epithets which hurt and confused him as children grew. Gobert had only limited contact with Rudy Bourgarel, his 7-foot former pro in French league basketball, following their separation when he was still young. After his divorce was final, Bourgarel returned to Guadeloupe – an island located off of France in the southern Caribbean – more than four thousand miles from his original hometown, Saint-Quentin. “Mother had difficulty accepting that she had had an encounter with an African-American, which meant cutting ties with some members of our family,” Gobert remarked. She later cut those connections in order to protect me. “She always protected and supported my dreams – something for which I will always be immensely thankful. Catch all of NBA season long on ABC, ESPN and ESPN app: Bucks at 76ers at 7:30, Suns @ Clippers 10
Corinne Gobert offers her son Gobert her full support in terms of sympathy. That was evident when Gobert called her sobbing five years prior, upset at not receiving recognition he felt was due him. Today however, during a meet and greet after Jazz morning shootaround on Feb 1, 2019, Gobert managed a forced smile as he met local reporters after practicing. Gobert had long anticipated his All-Star debut, yet was disappointed to learn he wouldn’t make it when reserve picks were announced the night prior. Gobert expressed his displeasure via voice message as reserve picks were announced: his voice choked up; it became evident he felt so deeply for such an honor and expressed this to his mother who called and texted crying about how important this honor would be to him. Gobert answered a couple more questions while remaining composed before his eyes began watering up again and his tears began streaming down his cheeks. Looking down and bowing his head lowly he told himself “Sorry”, bit his quivering lip, shook it off, then bit into it once more swaying back up in anger before shaking the chair back out again in shame and moving along his line. Gobert turned away from the cameras, covered his face with his hand, leaned against the fabric team backdrop before waving his hand and walking away, too upset to continue speaking to reporters. Video of this moment became viral and made Gobert an easy target. That included several tweets from two core members of the Golden State Warriors’ dynastic franchise. Draymond Green, having lost his streak of three consecutive All-Star appearances, jokingly tweeted out “Cry Also!,” complete with teary eyed emojis. Andre Iguodala used an iconic line from Friday as inspiration when asking whether Gobert would “Cry in His Car,” since at that time Gobert had just become Defensive Player of the Year after Green won it two years prior. He boasted multiple All-NBA honors and two first-team All-Defensive accolades on his resume; yet images of this 7-foot-1 Frenchman weeping became his primary identifier. “From that point forward, people began developing feelings for him who hadn’t met him before,” stated Conley who was Gobert’s teammate both in Utah and Minnesota. “This phenomenon is quite remarkable given how dominant Gobert is at what he does… But that said, his dominance in basketball should come as no surprise to anyone…. But it truly remarkable.” People seem more focused on doing trendy things as opposed to really diving deep into how good of a player he is.” Green taking public jabs at Gobert — prompting verbal or social media responses from him in return — has become a recurrent theme. Green has not been alone among current or former NBA players who have criticized or made fun of Gobert, yet his words stand out most harshly on TNT analysis and on popular podcasts hosted by him as host and TNT analyst respectively. Gobert tweeted in October 2022, responding to Green punching Jordan Poole at Warriors practice, that their insecurity is always loud. Six months later he was suspended for Minnesota’s inaugural play-in game for punching Kyle Anderson after responding negatively when being called “b—-” during timeout in their regular-season finale game. Green was quick to seize on this opportunity to mock Gobert: he tweeted out, “Insecurity is always loud.” On his podcast later that same day – “[Anderson] spoke for many people”, and further commented, “Rudi Gobert has an easier-going character compared to some.” Anderson gained some respect from me by standing up for himself. “Anderson and Gobert quickly moved past this incident: Anderson said of Gobert: “He is such an outstanding teammate – what else could anyone want!” Anderson told ESPN of Green and Gobert. Green has not reciprocated this sentiment and the two have not had much interaction this season, until an incident on November 14 in San Francisco between Warriors guard Klay Thompson and Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels lead Green to grab Gobert from behind and drag him across the floor for several feet before they were separated. Gobert didn’t fight back, instead raising his hands to show that they weren’t aggravating the situation and leading to Green being ejected and facing a five-game suspension. When Green later struck Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic with his elbow less than one month later resulting in an indefinite ban of 16 games from NBA competition, Gobert told ESPN he felt sympathy towards Green because they knew “something wasn’t well within”. Asked recently why Rudy Gobert gets under Green’s skin so often, Green demurred by noting there were numerous players within the league who can divide opinion; Gobert does not seem to receive as much criticism than others do according to him, although Green acknowledged this point during an ESPN interview. Regardless, Gobert remains under constant fire. Green has no regrets over his contributions, noting to ESPN: “I don’t really regret words. At the end of the day, people tend to get what they deserve–whether that means me getting suspended, or him receiving punishment.” “Eventually, you get what is due. “The Boston Celtics defeated Dallas Mavericks to claim victory in the NBA Finals and take home our comprehensive coverage. * NBA Finals Recap on News, Scores & Features* Lowe: How Boston Cracked the Code for 18th NBA Title* Shelburne: Confetti Champagne and That Impossible Title* MacMahon: Why Mavs remain Title Contenders* Paine: Are the Celtics The Ultimate Four-Player Depth Team?
Shaquille O’Neal, one of the stars on TNT’s “Inside the NBA” cast and an early critic of Gobert, has become one of his fiercest critics since Gobert signed his five-year, $205 million contract that ends with an opt-out for 2025-26 at $46.7 million per season. O’Neal said during a March episode of “The Big Podcast with Shaq,” that at 42 he’d make Rudy Gobert money with twelve points and eight rebounds per game he could do it now. ” “Gobert, who is widely expected to tie for his record-tying fourth Defensive Player of the Year Award this season, averaged 14.0 points and 12.9 rebounds per game – his eighth straight double-double season! However, traditional stats don’t accurately portray Gobert’s value.” O’Neal dismisses Gobert’s defensive capabilities. To show me you can defend, hold [Nikola Jokic] under 15 points,” O’Neal suggested. All those weak side blocks and blocking shots, while that might work against other teams like mine (me, Joker and Joel Embiid), won’t work against me.” Shaq thinks Bam Adebayo deserves to win Defensive Player of the Year over Rudy Gobert; do you agree?” EP 12 OF The Big Podcast with Shaq is Now Live | https://t.co/en2LcbqflC pic.twitter.com/BLS6eYAXKy Minnesota’s defensive rating rises from 106.3 to 110.3 with Gobert on the floor. Advanced analytics that illuminate Gobert’s impact, like his league-high 5.3 defensive win shares, likely won’t convince everyone of their significance; those doubting Gobert often point out his playoff exit as evidence against his defensive dominance being overstated. After starting their 2021 West semifinal series off strong against LA Clippers in Utah’s favor, their collapse after leading 2-0 is particularly telling. Los Angeles averaged an astonishing 125 point average while taking four wins to knockout Utah. By playing small-ball lineups which widened out Gobert as an offensive presence while simultaneously protecting their rim. Terance Mann was Gobert’s primary assignment because the Jazz were most comfortable sagging off him as Clippers starter in Game 6. In that contest he scored seven three-pointers and totaled 39 points – much of the blame fell upon Gobert himself but coaches from Utah are emphatic that their perimeter defense allowed Mann too many open looks while Gobert raced out onto corners to contest Mann’s shots. “One of the few players in the league whom one must consider when game planning for defense,” noted Nicolas Batum of the Clippers who started against Gobert’s French national team team during that series. “We knew he was Plan A and Plan B and C – so as long as we found some way of eliminating him, everything would go as planned. Unfortunately for me personally, as this series went on I could know my feelings but couldn’t show them.” “Gobert acknowledged being sensitive when taking criticism from his peers in the past; now however, he views public criticism as “a form of respect. “”But also, the entertainment game,” Gobert noted to explain his All-Star exclusion this season and promised during his Hall of Fame speech about all of the extra vacation days he received as compensation for not making All Star roster. Most people tend to follow what is considered trendy.” What causes people to laugh these days? Unfortunately in today’s generation it seems more about drawing attention than about being true, so yes I am content living with that now.”THE CHUCKLING ON THE VISITOR BENCH started after an offensive foul underneath the basket was called for and continued after each foul was called for or called out on that night. At an earlier meeting against the Clippers on Jan 14, Gobert was hit on his putback attempt, prompting a teammate to send him straight back out onto the court for free throws during the second quarter. Clippers’ reserves knew exactly what was coming next — and were eagerly awaiting an opportunity to playfully poke fun at Gobert, even before his initial shot had touched off the front rim. After Gobert barely missed, Westbrook, Tucker and Hyland all gave out loud yelps before leaping from their seats with excitement and rising from them as Gobert tried again for another attempt – to which Tucker, Westbrook and Hyland gave loud laughs of derision and stood. Injury Center Ivica Zubac, sitting between Tucker and Hyland, laughed out loud as he extended both arms out wide – possibly to restrain his teammates – when Gobert released his second attempt, Hyland and Zubac leant forward and leaped with excitement as Gobert shot at them again. As Hyland and Brandon Boston Jr. witnessed an imminent shot being fired towards them, Hyland locked arms and leapt up from their seats on the bench; quickly moving towards its endpoint as quickly as they could. “Westbrook even spun toward one fan recording on their phone to greet and cheer for him before holding up two fingers while holding up an air ball before it went viral on social media and was later deleted,” noted Westbrook at the end of bench seating section. Gobert later explained his reaction in more depth. “And I smiled,” Gobert noted afterward, recalling what had transpired: “That wasn’t the first or last free throw I airballed; in some ways it felt therapeutic – kind of what was needed that evening. Most of those laughing were non-playing players laughing alongside Russ who weren’t participating directly either in games themselves nor watching live television broadcasts of these matches. “That night, Gobert got his revenge. He scored 15 points and 18 rebounds to go along with 4 blocks as part of an offense-fueled victory of 109-105 over Clippers who laughed at his expense – while remaining quiet about their taunting gestures against him. “They’re having fun,” Gobert stated. “Ultimately it wasn’t that serious; it was simply an air ball with strange trajectory; my focus was solely on winning. “Gobert managed to dismiss similar laughing from injured star Ja Morant and Memphis Grizzlies bench members after air-balling a free throw during Minnesota Timberwolves’ Feb 28 win against Memphis Grizzlies. While such moments might have previously bothered or frustrated Gobert, now he remembers lessons he gained while participating in darkness retreat, where for long stretches his mind simply relaxed.” Gobert spoke of “Peace.” He emphasised its significance as being important when alone without music or noise: I consider inner peace essential and once achieved, you’ll likely have it wherever else life leads you. “Gobert has shown his resilience through all the chaos of an NBA season, even amid various high-profile controversies that he’s been embroiled in: fighting with Warriors players and money sign gesture and subsequent postgame comments on March 8 suggesting gambling had any influence over referee Scott Foster who whistled Gobert for six foul late in overtime loss against Cleveland Cavaliers. Conley who joined Timberwolves via trade deadline last season says he has never witnessed Gobert more secure with himself before now. “Gobert is delighted about awaiting the birth of his first child due in May, as well as celebrating Minnesota recording its most wins over 20 years. Gobert believes he has always felt peace within himself: confidence that runs deep inside “my core.” “I always had that pushback, but when people say things about you that are untrue it can be upsetting and unfair,” Gobert stated. Why would someone speak about me without having met them personally first. Gobert still hears, sees, and experiences disrespect from players on both teams; when this occurs a Hall-of-Famer disrespects him as often. Regardless, Gobert no longer lets himself dwell upon these incidents – nor allows himself to dwell upon their significance any further than necessary. As Gobert gets older and settles into life as an NBA player, he said he couldn’t be happier with who he is as an individual and leader. While not perfect — as every day brings new lessons — his identity as a leader, man and basketball player remains most significant to him. Any false narrative that may exist against him “is just noise”.