Rudy Gobert lands in Minnesota: 'The goal is to win a championship' / News - Basketnews.com

Credit: AFP-Scanpix Credit AFP-Scanpix

The Minnesota Timberwolves officially presented their latest addition to the squad Rudy Gobert.

Free throws this season

78%18,3Points made:18,3Accuracy:77,8%Place in standings:3Record max:35Record min:5Most made FTs:Karl-Anthony TownsTeamNBAStatisticsSchedule

Timberwolves acquired the Frenchman from the Utah Jazz via the trade in exchange for guards Patrick Beverley, Malik Beasley, Leandro Bolmaro, and forward Jarred Vanderbilt, along with the draft rights to center Walker Kessler and Minnesota's 2023, 2025, 2027, and 2029 first-round picks and a 2026 first-round pick swap.

The 30-year-old Gobert will pair up with one of the best big men in the league and All-NBA performer Karl-Anthony Towns on Minnesota's frontcourt line.

"He doesn't inhibit anything we have presently," Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly said. "He makes it better. He augments what we have presently. So, when we look at fit, it's not just about talent. It's about kind of developing the team He's going to make it better."

No team in the Western Conference has won more regular-season games over the last six seasons than Gobert's former team, Utah Jazz, but the success never carried over into the postseason.

Utah has made six straight playoff appearances. Nevertheless, the last time they made the Conference Finals was in 1998.

"The window for winning is not always big," Gobert said. "For us in Utah, that's kind of what happened. I think the organization felt like that. We had maybe passed that window that we had over the last few years.

I think it's still going to be a very competitive team. It just felt like with all the assets that they could get for me, it was better for them to go that way."

On the other end, the Timberwolves haven't seen the second round in nearly two decades. They believe that a mighty foursome of Towns, Gobert, Anthony Edwards, and D'Angelo Russell can become a core to reshape history.

Rudy Gobert

Team:Utah JazzPosition:CAge:30Height:216 cmWeight:111 kgBirth place:FranceProfileNewsStatistics

"The goal is to win a championship," Gobert was straightforward aiming to bring Minnesota its 1st NBA title. "I came here for that. I didn't come here just to be a good team. I came here to try to take this team to the finals and accomplish that.

"It's just a very unique core of young guys and a really good coach [Chris Finch] that complained about my screens all the time," Gobert said to laughter. "So, now we're on the same side. I'm excited."

Rudy Gobert has appeared in 611 regular-season games (519 starts) in nine NBA seasons with the Jazz, averaging 12.4 points on 65.3% shooting, 11.7 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game.

The 2.16-meter (7 ft 1 in) center played in 66 matches (all starts) last season, registering 15.6 points on a career-high 71.3% shooting, a career-best 14.7 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game.

The Saint-Quentin native is a four-time All-NBA selection, a three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, a three-time NBA All-Star, and a six-time All-Defensive First Team selection.

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