THE Los Angeles Clippers fell to Rudy Gobert and the Minnesota Timberwolves Wednesday night. It was the Wolves’ first match on the model new Intuit Dome, which opened in August 2024.
Gobert, who acquired his first take a look at the Clippers’ new area, got here away very impressed with what he noticed.
Timberwolves’ Rudy Gobert on first impression of Clippers’ Intuit Dome
Of their first recreation on the model new Intuit Dome, dwelling of the LA Clippers, the Minnesota Timberwolves scored a powerful 108-80 victory. The Wolves took a 20-point lead early within the second quarter and noticed that lead balloon to as a lot as 41 factors within the second half.
Rudy Gobert completed the competitors with eight factors, 9 rebounds, seven assists, 5 steals and one block in 29 minutes of motion. The Wolves had been led by Julius Randle’s 20 factors and 4 assists and Anthony Edwards’ 16 factors, six rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals.
Clippers followers shortly realized that it simply wasn’t their workforce’s night time, however The Wall caught to its method of distracting the opposition. Minnesota shot 10 of 18 from the free throw line – 55.6 p.c – persevering with its success by limiting opponents to only 75 p.c taking pictures from the road, which is third-best within the NBA.
After the sport, Gobert was requested about his ideas on the brand new area. As an enormous fan of the film Gladiator, Gobert in contrast the Inuit Dome to a Roman Colosseum and felt like Russell Crowe. Nicely, Russell Crowe with out the sword.
“It’s fairly cool,” Gobert instructed a gaggle of media members. “This morning I used to be wanting round me. It jogged my memory a little bit of a Colosseum. Just like the film Gladiator. It is one in all my favourite movies. I felt like a gladiator. I am unable to wait to see him within the playoffs, all of the seats are full, I feel it may be fairly spectacular.
Gobert, who completed the sport with a career-high 5 interceptions, was later requested if that was a purpose for his success within the passing lanes that night time.
“In order that’s why you probably did all these thefts?” Since you felt like a gladiator? » requested a journalist.
“Yeah, possibly,” Gobert smiled. “Possibly I channeled that.” I simply did not have my sword.
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With this victory, the Timberwolves received the season sequence in opposition to the Clippers. They lead 2-0 with one recreation remaining, which is able to happen in Minnesota later this season.
For the Clippers, the hardest stretch of the season so far is now over. They had been the one workforce within the NBA to not have a single two-day break within the month of November, which head coach Tyronn Lue believes took its toll on them.
“I feel taking part in on daily basis or taking part in each different day for the entire month of November was [hard]”, Lue stated. “It was a troublesome schedule. However our guys fought. How are we, 14-10, 24 video games in 43 days, I assumed our guys actually rose to the problem each night time and that was the one recreation that basically acquired away from us from begin to end. And it occurs. I instructed our guys at halftime, ‘We’ll have dangerous video games.’ It’s going to occur, but it surely’s simply the best way we cope with it, not placing our arms up each time somebody scores, not placing our heads down, simply preserve taking part in all through the sport,” and I assumed. that within the second half we did it.
The Clippers will now have only one recreation over the following eight days, with three days off on Thursday, Friday and Saturday earlier than going through the Houston Rockets on Sunday. They’ll then have Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday off earlier than flying to Denver to face the Nuggets on Friday night time.
In all, the Clippers will play simply three video games of their subsequent 14 days, together with two on the Intuit Dome.
