Timberwolves president of operations Tim Connelly: We want to keep Rudy Gobert for long time

Moving on to the 2024 Olympic Games, Gobert earned a silver medal with France. Besides struggling to fit in the rotation of head coach Vincent Collet alongside Victor Wembanyama, he was dealing with an injury during the tournament between Lille and Paris. He ended up with 3.3 points and 4.0 rebounds per contest over five appearances. “I think Rudy is good. He had a finger injury but I think he is good to go,” added Connelly referring to the 2024 NBA Preseason. -via EuroHoops.net / September 3, 2024

One of those who parrot this notion is a former multiple-time DPOY in his own right, Dwight Howard, as he believes that Gobert did not deserve to win the prestigious award as many times as he has. “I don’t think he deserved those Defensive Player of the Years like he got them. I feel like he’s a great team defender but for what he did to get those Defensive Player of the Years, I don’t see it. I don’t see him being an elite defender,” Howard said in an appearance on Gil’s Arena. -via Clutch Points / August 30, 2024

“I see him as somebody who has the size. He’s 7’2″. So when you 7’2″ and you’re playing with athletic guys, you don’t have to do nothing but clean up their mistakes or just being big in the paint,” Howard added. -via Clutch Points / August 30, 2024

Paul George on Anthony Edwards’ take on Michael Jordan’s era: I thought it was a kind of disrespectful to the to the game. I thought it was a very immature comment. Obviously Anthony Edwards is super talented and is a huge talent going forward but just how much the game has grown and how far like you got to pay dues to those dudes that did it before us, and I think that’s just where the translation between that era and his era… They don’t really know you know too much of Magic Johnson and Larry Bird.. But I think his comment was more so geared towards like… Because obviously MJ is moving how guys move in this era today, so I think that was kind of like where he was going with it, as far as the movement and the explosiveness the athleticism and being able to contort your body. -via YouTube / September 3, 2024

Minnesota Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards may only be 23 years of age, but he is already tasting quite a bit of success. This offseason, Edwards experienced the peak of his career to this point. He played an important role for Team USA in the 2024 Paris Olympics and emerged out of it as a gold medalist — quite the feat for someone as young as Edwards is. It seems as though Edwards is only getting started. Perhaps the gold medal he bagged will spur him on to greater heights, especially as he looks to lead the Timberwolves even deeper into the playoffs a year after coming up short in the Western Conference Finals. This is what the 23-year-old guard brother, Antony, believes, as the gold medal could provide the springboard that the Timberwolves star needs to fulfill his full potential. “I think winning a gold medal is just gonna make him more hungry to win for the Minnesota Timberwolves,” Edwards’ older brother said in a video posted by the official Timberwolves account. -via Clutch Points / August 29, 2024

Nonetheless, for Jrue Holiday, there’s an even bigger yapper on the Team USA roster. Durant can be incisive with his trash talk, but for the Boston Celtics guard and two-time NBA champion, Anthony Edwards’ mouth runs even more loudly than that of Durant’s. “Anthony Edwards [is the biggest trash-talker on the team.] 100 percent. 100 percent. He’s a great player and you see him trash-talking for a very, very long time,” Holiday said in an interview with media members during Raising Cane’s “Golden Birthday”, via Justin Turpin of WEEI. -via Clutch Points / August 28, 2024