Jim Souhan: In the story of the series, Rudy Gobert was dominated by good friend Wemby

Jim Souhan, The Minnesota Star Tribune on May 16, 2026

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MINNEAPOLIS — Rudy Gobert has taught us an important lesson: Never be nice to children. They might be plotting your demise.

Gobert’s lifelong mentorship of a youngster named Victor Wembanyama boomeranged on him in the second round of the NBA playoffs.

Gobert had just helped the Minnesota Timberwolves dismiss a former MVP center, Nikola Jokic, in the first round. Against the San Antonio Spurs, he would be asked to use his wisdom and strength to control Wembanyama. Instead, Gobert went from the frying pan into the flambé.

Gobert, a four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, couldn’t stop — or stop fouling — Wembanyama. Wembanyama, the current Defensive Player of the Year, had no trouble stopping Gobert.

Gobert wasn’t assigned to defend his friend at the beginning of Game 6, a 139-109 loss at Target Center on Friday night. But when he was asked to, he usually failed, meaning that today, Gobert is the embodiment of the Timberwolves:

Accomplished, but erratic.

Likeable, but frustrating to watch.

Good, but not good enough to prevent this from being a disappointing season.

Under contract, but possibly a trade chip for a team that needs to get much better to be a championship contender in the top-heavy Western Conference.

And: Stuck, for now, in a conference that promises to be unforgiving for the foreseeable future.

Gobert is 33. He performed admirably for much of the regular season, and proved durable. He was often inspirational in the first round against the Nuggets.

That’s why the most telling quote of the postgame postmortem was this, from Wolves coach Chris Finch: “When you get to this level, you’re forced to look at your flaws. ... At this point in time, you pay for every breakdown that you have, and sometimes you pay because of great players or physical mismatches. You can’t have both things going on at the same time.”

Gobert had both things going on at the same time. What worked well for him so often during the regular season and against Denver’s softer-in-the-middle-than-a-jelly-donut defense had no chance of working against the great Wembanyama.

Gobert’s flaws — iffy hands and a lack of flexibility and agility — made him an easy matchup for Wembanyama, who presents the most daunting physical mismatch in the NBA since Shaquille O’Neal was shedding defenders like they were raindrops.

“It was a great battle,” Gobert said of Wembanyama. “It was a great challenge for me and for us as a team. I think he showed that he took another step. It was a big step, a big test for him, and he passed it. We were very physical with him and it affected him, but he still was able to impact the game like he can impact the game on both ends.”

Gobert finished Game 6 with zero points. He missed all four of his shots, did not get to the free-throw line and had only three rebounds and no assists in 21 minutes.

In Game 5, Gobert produced four points, five rebounds and zero assists in 23 minutes in another blowout loss.

In two key games, Wemby almost pitched a shutout against his friend. He’s like Monet — a talented French guy known for his work in paint.

“He’s put a lot of work in to be in that position,” Gobert said. “Even though he’s only 22, this is his first playoffs, so it’s a big test for him, in every sense. This is going to teach him a lot, and he’s going to get better going through these experiences.”

That sounds true and frightening. In 27 minutes on Friday night, Wembanyama produced 19 points, six rebounds, two assists and three blocked shots.

There was one play that was more telling than important. Wolves guard Ayo Dosunmu used a hesitation dribble to free himself along the baseline. As he was preparing to shoot, Wembanyama flicked his arm, and it seemed to extend as if made of elastic. He smacked the ball, and Dosunmu looked as if he had just had his wallet pickpocketed by someone on the other side of the street.

“Defensively, man, he’s incredible,” Wolves All-Star guard Anthony Edwards said. “He changes every shot at the rim. … It’s kind of tough to go to the rim against a guy that’s like 7-foot-6.“

And if you can’t go to the rim, you’re probably going to go home.

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