Rudy Gobert Praises SGA, Thunder's 'Mindset,' Says T-Wolves Have to 'Lift Each Other Up'
Even though the Minnesota Timberwolves were able to snap their three-game losing streak with a win over the Golden State Warriors, Rudy Gobert started looking ahead to the next game against the Oklahoma City Thunder and what his team can do to get up to the level of the reigning NBA champs.
Speaking to reporters after Friday's victory, Gobert praised Oklahoma City's "mindset" on the court:
"It's a great, great challenge for us, a great opportunity. I think OKC is actually a great example of what we want to be in terms of their mindset. I'm not talking about talent. I'm just talking about their mindset of just giving yourself away to the team, and just letting the game take care of itself. They're a team that plays hard every night, regardless of who is on the floor, and for 48 minutes. And I think this is exactly the test that we need, so I'm excited about that."
Gobert went on to say the Timberwolves need "to lift each other up" because there are times when they haven't had the same type of mentality as a team like the Thunder:
"Tonight, it was good, except the third quarter. I thought (in) the first half, we came out and we played the right way on both ends. But when we feel that thing creeping in, we have to lift each other up. It starts individually, and then it becomes collective. So we just got to help each other out, and hold each other accountable. We have a lot of love for each other, a lot of respect for each other, and we're trying to play for a championship, so there is no reason why we shouldn't be able to do that."
This is the second time in just over a month that Gobert has questioned the team in public. He called them out for a lack of effort, accountability and urgency following a loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Feb. 6.
Despite Gobert's tendency to do this in a public forum, it's not unwarranted for the 2025-26 Timberwolves because they have been one of the most frustrating and difficult teams to figure out in the entire NBA.
There have been stretches when the Wolves look like one of the best teams in the league. They went 13-4 from Jan. 26-March 5, a stretch highlighted by wins over the Thunder and Nuggets.
However, their four losses during that period were against the Pelicans, Memphis Grizzlies, Los Angeles Clippers and Philadelphia 76ers.
The Clippers' loss doesn't look as bad now that they have climbed their way over the .500 mark, but the Pelicans and Grizzlies have been in the bottom five of the West standings for most of the season.
Prior to Friday night, Minnesota had lost three straight games to the Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers from March 7-11. The average scoring margin in those games was 22 points.
Wednesday's loss to the Clippers saw the Timberwolves allow a season-high 153 points.
As a result of this recent downward trend, the Timberwolves (41-26) have fallen to sixth in the Western Conference standings. They are technically tied with No. 5 Denver, which owns the regular-season tiebreaker, and are only two games ahead of the seventh-seeded Phoenix Suns.
Minnesota's next two games are against Oklahoma City at Paycom Center on Sunday and at home against the Suns on Tuesday.
The Thunder are the measuring stick game for every contender in the West, so Sunday's contest will go a long way toward showing if the Timberwolves as currently constructed are a threat to make another deep playoff run coming off back-to-back conference finals appearances.
