Rudy Gobert’s performance against the OKC Thunder was a huge reason behind the Minnesota Timberwolves’ playoff exit.
For the second straight season, the Minnesota Timberwolves were eliminated from the playoffs in the Western Conference Finals.
Speaking of the 2025 conference finals, the Timberwolves were the underdogs, but fans still expected a better result than a 4-1 series defeat.
There were a plethora of reasons behind the Timberwolves losing in five games and Rudy Gobert’s disappearance was among them.
Photo by David Berding/Getty ImagesRudy Gobert’s stats vs OKC Thunder fade in comparison to what he did vs LA Lakers
For years, Gobert has been regarded as one of the top defenders in the league, at least during the regular season.
However, time after time, Gobert has disappeared when it comes to the postseason. Gobert looked in fine touch against the Los Angeles Lakers during the opening round of the 2025 playoffs.
After all, he dropped a 27-point and 24-rebound performance in the Game 5 win over the Lakers. But it feels like Gobert simply exploited the Lakers’ lack of an elite center.
Why? Well, Gobert struggled throughout the WCF vs the OKC Thunder. He posted just 29 points and 33 rebounds in five games.
Keeping that in mind, it’s no surprise that the Timberwolves were utterly outplayed by the Thunder as their top center had such an underwhelming performance.
Gobert’s stats in the 2025 playoffs
While the dynamic duo of Anthony Edwards and Julius Randle were tasked with handling the offensive duties for the Timberwolves, fans didn’t expect a disastrous playoff run from Gobert.
After all, Gobert is set to make $36.5 million annually as part of a three-year, $109.5 million deal with the Timberwolves.
Despite making this much money, Gobert averaged just 7.9 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 0.7 assists per game in 15 games this postseason.
Unless Gobert can show signs of major improvement next season, it wouldn’t be a surprise if the T-Wolves put him on the trading block.