With 108.4 points conceded over 100 possessions since the start of the season, the Wolves have widely the best defense in the NBA. Largely because there are 2.2 points conceded per 100 possessions apart from the second best defense, the Celtics (110.6). Or the gap that we find between Boston and the 10th defense, the Grizzlies…
The contribution of Rudy Gobert is of course huge in the field, but the pivot salutes the work of his teammates.
“We have guys who can defend” repeated the Frenchman at The Athletic after the victory against the Clippers. “We have guys who move well and who are ready to accept challenges. »
Facing Kawhi Leonard and his gang, who love one-on-one, it's an essential element.
“It’s one of the best things in basketball, facing the Clippers” assured Anthony Edwards. “That's why I look forward to facing them every time, because no matter who's facing Kawhi, PG or James, they're going to try to attack him in isolation. So you have to show pride and try to resist them. »
Kawhi Leonard impressed
With all the same the Gobert safety mattress behind. Except that unlike the last seasons with the Jazz, where the Frenchman had to cover too many spaces behind Donovan Mitchell, Joe Ingles, Bojan Bogdanovic and Jordan Clarkson, because the latter had gotten into the habit of letting the pivot catch up too much, the Wolves do not abuse their safety mattress.
“I’m still here, I’m still here” laughs Rudy Gobert. “They see my face in the background. But they must already pass the first curtain first. »
The size, scope and physical impact of Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Kyle Anderson make his life easier. Against the Clippers, if he made up for his misses on free throws at the end, he above all countered Kawhi Leonard and displayed his ability to hold one-on-one duels wide.
“They are very long” confessed Kawhi Leonard, impressed by the opposing defense. “They help each other. They want you to shoot off the racket. This is not a team on which you can score after a pass. You have to move the ball, try to create open shots, for everyone. »
| Shots | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Players | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | L.F. | Off | Def | Early | Pd | Bp | Int | Ct | Party | Pts |
| Anthony Edwards | 36 | 34.7 | 46.3 | 38.5 | 84.6 | 0.7 | 4.7 | 5.4 | 4.9 | 3.4 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 1.8 | 26.0 |
| Karl Anthony Towns | 38 | 33.0 | 51.2 | 41.9 | 89.3 | 1.5 | 7.4 | 8.9 | 3.1 | 2.8 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 3.4 | 21.7 |
| Rudy Gobert | 38 | 32.5 | 63.6 | 0.0 | 62.2 | 3.5 | 8.8 | 12.3 | 1.1 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 2.1 | 2.8 | 13.1 |
| Naz Reid | 39 | 22.5 | 50.5 | 40.3 | 81.4 | 1.1 | 3.7 | 4.8 | 1.1 | 1.3 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 2.0 | 12.7 |
| Mike Conley | 38 | 29.2 | 45.3 | 45.5 | 94.1 | 0.3 | 2.4 | 2.7 | 6.4 | 1.1 | 0.9 | 0.1 | 1.7 | 11.0 |
| Jaden Mcdaniels | 29 | 28.0 | 51.2 | 35.9 | 73.9 | 0.6 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 3.3 | 10.5 |
| Kyle Anderson | 39 | 22.9 | 47.4 | 15.4 | 68.4 | 0.7 | 2.9 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 1.4 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 1.6 | 6.7 |
| Nickeil Alexander-walker | 39 | 22.3 | 41.4 | 35.8 | 69.6 | 0.4 | 1.3 | 1.7 | 2.4 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 1.9 | 6.4 |
| Shake Milton | 32 | 13.4 | 40.3 | 26.5 | 81.8 | 0.2 | 1.2 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 1.3 | 5.0 |
| Troy Brown, Jr. | 33 | 11.9 | 44.2 | 37.0 | 86.4 | 0.4 | 1.7 | 2.1 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 4.5 |
| Leonard Miller | 5 | 3.7 | 66.7 | 33.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.8 | 1.8 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 2.6 |
| Jordan McLaughlin | 18 | 8.4 | 40.0 | 33.3 | 75.0 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 0.8 | 1.8 | 0.2 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 2.4 |
| Luka Garza | 7 | 3.1 | 31.3 | 0.0 | 62.5 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 2.1 |
| Josh Minott | 15 | 3.1 | 44.4 | 0.0 | 83.3 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 1.7 |
| Daishen Nix | 6 | 3.5 | 37.5 | 40.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.3 |
| Wendell Moore, Jr. | 9 | 3.3 | 60.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 0.7 |
