The Wolves Have Become In-Tuned Offensively With Rudy Gobert

Remember the vibe around the Minnesota Timberwolves right before they traded for Mike Conley midway through Rudy Gobert’s first season with the team?

They had a 30-28 record. Gobert’s defense wasn’t up to his Defensive Player of the Year standards, and offensively, he looked out of place. D’Angelo Russell, whom the Wolves dealt to acquire Conley, was historically at his best playing next to a lob threat. But Russell and Gobert never were able to get on the same page.

Insert the veteran Conley, who played with Gobert in Utah. Immediately, Conley unlocked Gobert’s offense when nobody else on the Wolves could. Eventually, Kyle Anderson and Karl-Anthony Towns found ways to utilize Gobert’s rim-running abilities.

But with Anderson or Towns on new teams last season, Conley’s two-man game with Gobert reverted to being more important than it should have been. As a result, Gobert averaged 12 points per game, his lowest since the 2015-16 season, his third year in the NBA.

Collectively, the Timberwolves have never been able to consistently maximize Gobert’s offensive capabilities, further limiting a player who is already very limited on that side of the floor. But on Friday, in a game where Mike Conley and Anthony Edwards didn’t play, Gobert finished with 24 points on 11 of 13 shooting in a 127-120 win over Stephen Curry, who dropped 39 points, and the Golden State Warriors.

Minnesota was down its two lead pick-and-roll ball handlers, and Gobert still dominated. That probably wouldn’t have happened last season. This Wolves team is starting to look increasingly more in tune with Gobert.

“I feel like our chemistry is getting better and better,” Gobert told reporters postgame on Friday. “Especially Jaden and Julius are doing a better job of finding me. I am trying to really finish those plays for them.”

The Warriors were without Draymond Green and Al Horford, who undoubtedly would have made Gobert’s shots around the rim much more difficult. Regardless, the force with which Gobert used to score was emphatic.

Of his 11 field goal makes, eight of them were dunks. Gobert’s poster over Quinten Post with 3:40 left in the fourth earned him the highest “dunk score” in the NBA that day.

Gobert established himself as the bigger, stronger, and taller force that he was. We’ve seen him do just that against favorable matchups plenty of times, especially during his strong finish to last season. It’s the type of mindset you would like to see him bottle up against good teams and challenging matchups. However, because most of Gobert’s field goal attempts come off of assists, his offensive success — regardless of how forceful he plays — is at the mercy of his teammates.

That’s why it’s so important to have players who have a good connection with Gobert on the floor, and why his fit in the offense looks so clunky when there isn’t. Conley’s partnership with Gobert was crucial in 2023 and 2024. But as both of them have aged, their once lethal and reliable two-man game isn’t at the same level.

The empty-side pick-and-roll that Conley and Gobert loved to run used to be one of the most reliable plays that Chris Finch had in his pocket. However, since last season and continuing this season, that play has been nowhere near as effective as it used to be.

Therein lies a big reason why last season Gobert averaged his fewest points per game in just under a decade. So far this season, Gobert is averaging 11.6 points per game on 6.4 field goal attempts, also his fewest since 2015-16. The surface-level stats indicate that Gobert continues to become less of a factor in Minnesota’s offense. But dig a little deeper, and you will see that Gobert’s connection with this version of the Wolves is actually trending in a positive direction.

Jaden McDaniels assisted to Gobert 18 total times last season. They played in 72 regular-season games together, sharing the floor for 582 minutes, and they never had any sort of two-man connection. And when McDaniels did pass to Gobert, Rudy shot 18 of 41 (43.9%). Through the 24 complete games they’ve shared the floor together this season, McDaniels has already assisted to Gobert 18 times, the second most by any of Rudy’s teammates. Gobert is also shooting 18 of 24 (75%) when McDaniels passes to him.

With Conley now coming off the bench, McDaniels’ sudden chemistry with Gobert is that much more important. Finch is running more pick-and-rolls with McDaniels as the ball handler and Gobert as the roller, and it is working nicely. Jaden’s near 7-foot frame allows him to see over defenses and make passes in motion accordingly.

Last season, Conley assisted to Gobert 49 times, the second-most on the team. But so far this season, Conley has assisted to Gobert eight times, fifth most on the team.

Via NBA.com

The Timberwolves, as a unit, are beginning to figure out how to play with Gobert without relying on Conley to spam pick-and-rolls. The Wolves are keeping an eye on Gobert in the dunker’s spot when they attack the rim and are repeatedly making smart passes to Gobert when the time is right to do so. Edwards is also becoming a better lob thrower, which has always been a weakness of his.

Against the Warriors, McDaniels assisted to Gobert four times, Terrence Shannon Jr. assisted to him twice, and Randle, Naz Reid, and Donte DiVincenzo all assisted to Gobert once.

“When we are able to do that, I think it puts a lot of pressure on the defense,” Gobert further explained to the media on Friday. “It really takes us to another level because the teams have to adjust, and then it opens up the three-point line, and it opens up a lot of other things for the team.”

On Sunday against the Sacramento Kings, Gobert left early in the third quarter after the team ruled him out for personal reasons, and as of Monday morning, we still do not know the reason. In 20 minutes of action, Gobert scored seven points on 3 of 4 shooting.

He was not nearly as involved in the offense as he was against the Warriors, but that was largely because the Kings were packing the paint when Minnesota attacked the rim. I thought the Wolves missed some entry passes to Gobert. But at the same time, they didn’t try to force passes to Gobert — a subtle sign that this team further understands there is a right and wrong time to pass Gobert the ball.

Minnesota’s passing, its offensive success, and Gobert’s success have been connected this season. Excluding Sunday’s game, the Wolves are 12-3 when they record more than 25 assists. In those games, Gobert averages 13.8 points on 7.3 field goal attempts and 79.1% shooting. When the Wolves recorded 25 or fewer assists, they were 4-6, and Gobert averages 8.4 points on 5.1 field goal attempts and 64.7% shooting.

This isn’t anything new — the key to unlocking Gobert’s offense is by finding him in ways that set the 7-foot-1 Frenchman up for success. But now, Conley isn’t the only one who has the key and can turn the tumblers. The Timberwolves as a collective group are in tune with Gobert, which can only mean positive things for the team’s offensive success and the frequency at which Gobert positively impacts the offense.