Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green shared his take on Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch’s recent remarks about Rudy Gobert.
Speaking to Britt Robson of MinnPost last month, Finch discussed the loss of veterans Mike Conley, Joe Ingles and Kyle Anderson and how it might affect Gobert.
“My biggest concern is that Rudy lost a lot of allies,” Finch said. “Guys who understood him, knew how to talk to him, could help him help us. And as I go into the season I am just conscious to make sure that there are people on the team that can still ‘speak Rudy.'”
The four-time Defensive Player of the Year is the oldest player in the Timberwolves roster this season. He will have to be one of the vocal leaders in the team, alongside franchise superstar Anthony Edwards.
Green Reacts to Finch’s Gobert Comments
In a recent episode of The Draymond Green Show, the Warriors legend was a bit baffled by Chris Finch’s comments about Rudy Gobert.
Green knows a thing or two about being a leader and example for a young team, so he thought the coach’s remarks were “weird.”
“That’s a bit weird to me,” Green said. “I think there’s more to that, obviously, none of us will be able to dissect outside of being in their locker room. But that’s a bit weird, and I think the onus is going to end up being on Rudy to figure out how to talk and deal with the younger guys, not the guys figuring out how to talk to him. That’s just a little backwards to me.”
The four-time champion also argued that Gobert has enough NBA seasons under his belt to take a leadership role in Minnesota. Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball are just entering their sixth season, so The Stifle Tower will have to be more vocal.
Green just doesn’t like if the young guys are going to adjust to a veteran. He also has a history with Gobert, so it’s no surprise he’s calling out the Timberwolves big man.
Finch Happy With Gobert’s Leadership Efforts
One thing that wasn’t mentioned by Draymond Green on his podcast was Chris Finch’s additional context about Rudy Gobert.
Finch did express concern about Gobert, but he also mentioned the veteran’s initiative this offseason. The 34-year-old big man hosted a mini-training camp in Paris, France, welcoming the majority of his Timberwolves teammates.
“What happened in Paris this summer, I was most pleased about for Rudy,” Finch said. “Because it was organic. He had been trying to make something like that happen for a number of years and just couldn’t get the take-up. … Everybody ended up coming together. And that gives me great hope that we’ll figure out the Rudy piece within the team.”
The Timberwolves don’t have to be very worried about Gobert’s leadership, though NBA analyst Chris Vernon predicted that the Timberwolves’ big man could get traded this season.
Draymond Green Makes Blunt Rudy Gobert Statement After Chris Finch Remarks