Rudy Gobert is one of the best rim protectors in the league, and he is also an athletic lob threat who is an efficient player on the offensive end. He averaged 15.6 PPG, 14.7 RPG, and 1.1 APG while shooting 71.3% from the field.
Despite his elite efficiency, Rudy Gobert’s offensive game is generally considered limited. A lot of his shots are assisted, and despite his size, he has a relatively poor interior scoring game.
Tracy McGrady has recently called out Rudy Gobert rhetorically asking “what the f*ck are you doing in the offseason”, and recalling an instance where Rudy Gobert was unable to score against Chris Paul in the post. Generally, a big center like Gobert should be able to punish the mismatch when being guarded by a small point guard. (2:25):
This is what I’ve been wondering. What the f*ck are you doing in the offseason? Straight up… like what is your workout? Listen. I was so mad at Rudy, when they were playing against the Rockets one year, and Chris Paul was guarding him in the post. I was mad as s*it. He couldn’t do nothing. Nothing. Bro you 7’2, and a point guard is guarding you. He had no moves.
There is no doubt that Rudy Gobert has developed a reputation as a player who can’t score as much in the playoffs. Jason Kidd notably took a shot at him after the Mavericks beat the Jazz, claiming that the Mavericks have centers that can put the ball in the basket, unlike Rudy Gobert.
It remains to be seen if Rudy Gobert’s offensive game improves in the future. There is no doubt that he is good at what he does, but every player has room to improve. For Rudy Gobert, that improvement is going to be in diversifying his offensive game, and we’ll see if he is able to do so.
