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Roy Hibbert was just playing the percentages, giving his man plenty of space out near the 3-point line. But when the Lakers center took another couple steps back toward the basket, Rudy Gobert, a 7-footer standing 19 feet away from the hoop, decided he had to pull the trigger.
Bang. A breakthrough.
The Jazzman's jumper against the Lakers this week was his first bucket of his career outside of 10 feet.
"The only thing for me was just making it in the game," he said. "I've been working on it all my career, but [especially] the last three years every day. I realize it's easy. You make it, you realize it's easy. It's automatic. The only thing was to kind of break the barrier. That was more mental."
Gobert is now 1-for-8 from beyond 10 feet this season, including a pair of air balls, and 1-for-19 for his three-year career. So while you shouldn't expect Gobert to exactly have a green light from distance these days, the Jazz will still try to reward that confidence, knowing their young center's offensive development will be a key piece to the team's long term success.
"I'd still prefer Gordon [Hayward] to take that shot than Rudy is what it comes down to," Jazz coach Quin Snyder said. "But Rudy, I'm going to encourage him being aggressive offensively. If we have to live with some mistakes, I believe in that philosophically just for a guy who does so much else, so many other things to help the team."
This season, Gobert's third in the NBA, hasn't gone exactly as planned. The center missed more than a month with a knee injury and — probably a result the injury and natural regression — has put together some up-and-down performances for the 37-38 Jazz.
"There have been some tough games," said Gobert, who is averaging only 5.8 points over his last 10 contests.
And when those tough games come, Gobert hears about them from his detractors as he scrolls through fans' remarks online.
"It motivates me when I look on Twitter and see some things," Gobert said. "I just stay confident. Most important, is I believe in myself and my teammates believe in me and my coach believes in me."
And as much as the Jazz believe in Gobert's shot blocking and defense, they want to eventually believe in his ability to score the ball too.
"The long term plan is for his skill level just to increase," Snyder said. "Part of that is to be able to shoot the ball from midrange to having more of an impact on the way people guard him."
Gobert is averaging 9.2 points and 11.1 rebounds a game this season, with put-backs and lobs accounting for his most effective means of scoring. But for Gobert, the more involved he is in the offense, the better.
"Every player, when you have fun it's always easier to play and when you get rewarded it's always more motivating on defense," he said.
Gobert and the Jazz understand that will be a process. The 23-year-old Frenchman does not yet have a refined post game. And he'll want to improve his strength and hands to become a better pick-and-roll player; the Jazz have used forward Derrick Favors as the roll man in nearly twice as many pick-and-rolls, according to NBA.com's statisticians.
And, of course, Gobert will be looking to knock down the open jumper, too.
"The thing about Rudy is he sees things," Snyder said. "He's got good vision and he recognizes situations. His skill level, his footwork, his ball skills, have to get to a point where he's able to actually execute on what he sees. The good thing is there's a hunger in him. Sometimes almost too much. Rudy sometimes wants to prove something."
The Jazz believe he'll make his case in time.
Twitter: @tribjazz —
Jazz vs. Timberwolves
At Vivint Arena
Tipoff • Friday, 7 p.m.
TV • ROOT
Radio • 1280 AM, 97.5 FM
Last meeting • Jazz 93, Wolves 84 (March 26)
About the Jazz • After a heartbreaking overtime loss to the Golden State Warriors, the Jazz find themselves in a three-way tie with the Rockets and Mavericks at the bottom of the West's playoff picture. … Forward Derrick Favor's status for the game is unclear after he left Wednesday's contest with a knee injury. … Utah's defense is rounding into form, but turnovers have still been a major source of trouble. The Jazz rank dead last in turnover ratio since the all-star break.
About the Wolves • They own a 1-2 record against the Jazz this season, including a 93-84 defeat last week in Minnesota. … Center Karl-Anthony Towns is on his way to a rookie of the year award, averaging 18.3 points and 10. 3 rebounds a game. … The Wolves' 16 3-point attempts a game are fewer than every NBA team except Milwaukee. —
Gobert by the numbers
Rudy Gobert's monthly scoring and rebounding averages this season:
Month Points (FG%) Rebounds
October 7.7 (52.9%) 13.3
November 9.6 points (56.7%) 10.2
December Injured
January 10.0 (62.2%) 10.1
February 11.5 (54.9%) 10.5
March 6.7 (47.5%) 12.6