Rudy Gobert Says 'I Trigger a Lot of' NBA Players After Being Voted Most Overrated

Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert is the most overrated player in the NBA according to his peers.

The soon-to-be four-time Defensive Player of the Year is unbothered by the distinction.

"In their eyes, I'm more like the odd guy from France that's winning a lot of awards, and it can bother people," Gobert told Tim MacMahon of ESPN. "I impact the games in a very unique way. It's maybe not as cool or not as flashy as some other guys, so it's sometimes harder for them to respect that."I just think I'm just mostly misunderstood. I think I trigger a lot of these guys."

The Athletic released a poll of NBA players who voted Gobert as the league's most overrated player Monday. Ironically, the same poll also overwhelmingly touted Gobert as the league's Defensive Player of the year.

It seems it's the offensive end of the floor where Gobert falls short according to his peers. Gobert is essentially a dunker on the offensive end who offers little in the way of footwork in the paint and doesn't stretch the floor at all. Given the proliferation of big men who can stretch beyond the three-point arc in the modern game, Gobert's limitations stand out.

Gobert's teams have also struggled to advance deep in the playoffs. Opposing teams have regularly limited his effectiveness protecting the rim by putting him in an array of pick-and-rolls, beating him off the dribble on switches and shooting over him when he plays drop coverage. While Gobert is a regular-season menace over 82 games, teams tend to find way to better exploit him when given time to scheme

That said, there is likely at least some truth to Gobert's claim that personality plays a factor. He's had multiple scrapes with other players over the course of his career, including an incident last season where he threw a punch at teammate Kyle Anderson.