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Timberwolves star Rudy Gobert has been voted the “most overrated player” in the NBA by 81 anonymous players who participated in a poll conducted by The Athletic
Gobert’s girlfriend, Julia Bonilla, has come to the defense of the three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
“My partner is the most dedicated, focused, hard-working person I have ever met,” Bonilla told TMZ on April 22. “He hasn’t stolen anything from anyone and deserves all the respect for his determination and commitment to his career.”
Bonilla, who is expecting a child with Gobert, said she felt compelled to speak out in favor of her partner.
“It’s hard for me to stay quiet in front of so much stupidity, disrespect and nonsense. I am so proud of the person he is — fair, a great teammate, with a good heart and a strong mind.”
Rudy Gobert & the Overrated Tag
The Athletic’s report on the survey outlined why many of Gobert’s peers don’t respect him the way a soon-to-be four-time Defensive Player of the Year should be.
“There’s just something about Gobert’s game that his peers don’t like. Maybe the skepticism stems from a lack of playoff success, as none of Gobert’s teams have advanced to the conference finals. Or maybe it all traces back to the bubble in 2020 when the Clippers’ Terance Mann buried all those 3s over Gobert in the West semifinals and sparked serious scrutiny about the perceived limitations of the big man’s game.”
The Athletic’s anonymous poll also asked players to vote for the best defender in the NBA. Amazingly, only 6% of the 132 participants voted for Gobert, who finished behind Victor Wembanyama, Jrue Holiday, Lu Dort, Herb Jones and even his Timberwolves teammate Jaden McDaniels.
The overrated tag has followed Gobert for several years.
On the April 2 episode of FS1’s “Undisputed,” Celtics legend Paul Pierce questioned Gobert’s toughness.
“I see a guy like Rudy Gobert get chocked by Draymond [Green]. You’re a Defensive Player of the Year, but that’s not intimidating nobody,” Pierce said of Gobert.
Others, including Shaquille O’Neal, DeMarcus Cousins and Green, have mocked Gobert’s legitimacy as a defensive stopper.
Chance to Prove Doubters Wrong
“You can’t have a potential four-time Defensive Player of the Year that doesn’t finish games,” Cousins told “Bully Ball Podcast” on April 15. “I’m never going to be OK with this. For me, I see things in black and white. If you’re the best defender on the best defensive team, you should never be off the floor. There should never be a scenario where you’re not able to fit into the scheme. That doesn’t make sense.”
Gobert himself has tried to defend himself from the narrative that he can’t guard the perimeter. The Frenchman’s inability to guard smaller players has been a problem for some of his teams in recent years, dating back to his stint with the Utah Jazz.
In the 2024 Western Conference playoffs, however, Gobert will have the opportunity to prove his detractors wrong. Gobert is anchoring the No. 1-ranked defense in the NBA while leading the league in defensive win-shares (0.164) for the 2023-24 season.
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