![]() It was a referendum on what you value in a player. It always seemed like more than a basketball game when Towns and Gobert faced each other. That’s why I don’t really pay attention to external opinions anymore.” It’s in general, the guy that scores the fewer points is always going to be the average fan is going to look at that number and say, ‘Oh he scores more points so he’s better,'” Gobert said. And they are now leaning on each other to deliver the team success that will bring the validation of their individual games. They have opened their eyes to the people behind the jerseys and started to bond over long talks on the bench and in practice. Now they are united in Minnesota and have begun the process of breaking down the scar tissue built up from years of collisions. It led to a rivalry that was really strong.” Just wanting to compete, be the best, show who is better than the other. Not only that, I think we both knew there were financial implications to the rivalry as well. “We were for sure battling,” Towns said, a mischievous grin creeping across his face as he reminisced on the head-butting, both literal and figurative, with one of his nemeses. They say that styles make fights, and the contrasting approaches from Towns and Gobert made for intriguing theater. Rudy also was on the second team in 2016-17. Since 2017-18, Towns or Gobert has been the third team center, with KAT doing it twice (including last season) and Gobert three times. They are polar opposite players, Towns the offensive revelation and long-distance shooter. Jokić and Embiid led the way, generally leaving one spot open on the All-NBA roster. They were part of a wave of players, along with Denver’s Nikola Jokić and Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid, who were determined to make the center a viable part of the NBA again after small ball started to take over the league and threatened to render the big man irrelevant. The frequency of their clashes coupled with the fundamental differences in their games and the stakes on the line to bring a palpable tension to the matchups. ![]() But for the previous seven years, there was no laughing allowed when Towns and Gobert squared off.įor so long they were enemies, going toe-to-toe at least three times per season in the Northwest Division. Now that they are riding together in Minnesota as part of an oversized frontcourt and stand at the center of a leaguewide debate on the value of the big man in the modern game, they can smile about it. “I owe him a little dinner,” Gobert deadpanned. Towns isn’t starving because of it, but $30 million is $30 million. Because Gobert got the distinction, the value of the deal dropped to $158 million. ![]() Had Towns been voted All-NBA, it would have triggered extra incentives that raised the value of his contract to $190 million over five years. ![]()
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