Rudy Gobert has clearly won the respect of the NBA — after all, he is the two-time Defensive Player of the Year award winner.
But while Gobert still has a lot of career ahead of him, some are starting to think about Gobert’s position in the basketball pantheon of great defensive big men.
“I was thinking about it today. (Gobert’s) a guy that you’re talking about going into the all-time defensive centers, that’s where I’m at with it,” Brooklyn head coach Kenny Atkinson said. “He’s one of the best that I’ve seen. He’s fantastic. He not only can guard the rim, but now he’s going out on the perimeter and guarding guys.