Rudy Gobert Punches Kyle Anderson in a Timeout, Gets Sent Home Early
Photo by Bally Sports North
MINNEAPOLIS (PSF) - Emotions flared on the Timberwolves sideline Sunday night as center Rudy Gobert punched teammate Kyle Anderson during a timeout in the second quarter. Gobert and Anderson got into an argument soon before the punch was thrown as Anderson first told Gobert,
“Hey, why don’t you block some shots?”
Gobert responded,
“Why don’t you grab a rebound?”
Anderson then told him,
“Shut the f—— up, bitch.” That led to Gobert punching him and the two had to be separated. Gobert was escorted to the locker room after this incident and was told not to come back for the rest of the game.
Despite the Timberwolves being without one of their best players and defensive presences on the court, they defeated the Pelicans 113-108 to clinch the number 8 seed in the Play-in tournament. You always hate to see teammates fighting with each other. They’re on the same team, working towards a common goal, so one would think that they get along with each other. However, instances like these tell you that this is not always the case.
"We made the decision to send Rudy Gobert home after the incident in the second quarter," Timberwolves president Tim Connelly said in a statement. "His behavior on the bench was unacceptable and we will handle the situation internally."
Rudy Gobert apologized in the team’s group chat and also sent out a statement on Twitter.
Adrian Wojnarowski reported Monday afternoon that Minnesota suspended their center for the play-in game against the Lakers on Tuesday. This does not help their chances against a hot Lakers team who have won six of their last seven, including a 123-111 win against the Timberwolves on March 31st. This is only a one game suspension for Gobert, so if the team loses on Tuesday, he will be available against the winner of the Pelicans-Thunder matchup. It is not a devastating loss for Minnesota but it could matter seeding wise.
The Timberwolves will also be without forward Jaden McDaniels because he also let out some anger in the Target Center on Sunday. Instead of punching another person, he punched a wall going into the locker room at halftime. McDaniels fractured his hand as a result of this. It was overall just a crazy night for the Timberwolves and they can’t be feeling too good going into the play-in game against the Lakers.