Gobert anchoring Timberwolves' No. 1 defense: 'Best that I've been'

The first season of the Rudy Gobert-Minnesota Timberwolves marriage hardly went according to plan, but Year 2 has gotten off to a flying start.

Gobert leads the NBA in rebounding with 13.6 per game and ranks sixth in blocks at 2.1 a night. More importantly, the center is the anchor of the NBA's best defensive rating by a clear margin.

"I feel better than I've ever felt because I feel like I'm stronger than I've been," Gobert told The Athletic's Jon Krawczynski. "And I just see the experience that I have now, and you add that to the rest of the abilities that I have, I think that's the best that I've been."

Expectations were sky-high for the 2022-23 campaign after the Timberwolves traded a handful of young players and five first-round picks to the Utah Jazz for Gobert. Instead, the Frenchman put up his lowest blocked shots tally since his rookie year, and Minnesota stumbled to a 42-40 record, falling to the Denver Nuggets in five games in the first round of the playoffs.

This time around, the team's roles have been more defined. Guard Anthony Edwards is the clear lead on offense, with Karl-Anthony Towns as his sidekick. Meanwhile, Gobert is manning the middle on defense while scoring many of his points off of passes from his former Jazz point guard, Mike Conley, who came to Minnesota before last year's trade deadline.

The result of the improved play is a 5-2 record, including a 5-0 mark at home, and the NBA's No. 4 net rating. The Timberwolves will be tested on an upcoming five-game road trip, but Gobert says he feels confident in his team's attitude.

"We're hungry. We know it's early in the season, but we've been setting the tone," Gobert said. "I like the foundation that we're putting together right now, and we started (to build) since Day 1 of training camp."