Author: Vishwajit Sawant
The Minnesota Timberwolves announced on Monday that they have suspended their center Rudy Gobert. This means that he will miss the opening game of the AT&T Play-In Tournament against the Los Angeles Lakers. The Frenchman will serve a one-match suspension after getting involved in a fight in the game with teammate Kyle Anderson.
We reported this incident before
During the timeout in the second quarter of Sunday’s game against New Orleans, Gobert allegedly made a physical gesture towards teammate Kyle Anderson, raising his arm and appearing to hit him in the chest with his hand. The incident occurred during a team meeting, with coaches and players intervening to separate the two players. Afterwards, Gobert was taken to the dressing room.
After the incident, Anderson said he believed the argument was the result of intense emotions and didn’t foresee any long-term problems between him and Gobert.
According to Anderson, the team’s main focus is victories, and they will work together to achieve that goal. He also mentioned that he has been in similar situations in the past, indicating that he is not too worried about the incident.
Tim Connelly, the president of basketball operations, released a statement acknowledging that the Timberwolves decided to fire Rudy Gobert after the fight in the second quarter. Connelly said that Gobert’s conduct on the bench was inappropriate and will not be tolerated. The matter will be dealt with internally by the team.
By beating the Pelicans 113-108, the Timberwolves secured eighth place in the Western Conference standings, which allows them to advance to the play-in tournament. This win also allowed them to overtake the New Orleans Pelicans in the standings. As a result, the Timberwolves will now face the Los Angeles Lakers in the play-in tournament on April 11.