How many DPOTY awards does Rudy Gobert have?

Minnesota Timberwolves star center Rudy Gobert has garnered a reputation among fans as one of the most overrated players in the NBA in recent seasons. Most of this stems from criticism surrounding Gobert’s limited offensive skillset and lack of versatility on the defensive end.

However, most would agree that Gobert has still proven to be one of the better traditional rim protectors in NBA history. During his time with the Utah Jazz, Gobert consistently ranked among the league’s top defenders in advanced metrics on very competitive Jazz teams. This was a big reason why the French star was able to win Defensive Player of the Year three times in just four seasons (2018, 2019, 2021).

Gobert’s three DPOTY wins are currently tied with former Orlando Magic superstar center Dwight Howard for second-most in NBA history. Gobert and Howard trail only legendary defenders Ben Wallace and Dikembe Mutombo, who won the award four times apiece.

Rudy Gobert on winning his third DPOTY award

Former Utah Jazz star center Rudy Gobert holding one of his DPOTY trophies

After winning his third DPOTY award with Utah in 2021, Rudy Gobert spoke about the historic accomplishment. Gobert said that it was hard to believe that he was only the fourth player ever to take home the trophy at least three times:

“It's unbelievable,” Gobert said.

“When I started basketball as a kid, if somebody would have told me that I was going to be DPOTY, I would have never believed them, let alone three times.

“It's hard to put into words the things that you can achieve when you just enjoy what you do, first of all, and when you have a group of people that believes in you and you put the work in every single day. I try to write my own story, try to enjoy my own journey, but just being one of only four guys that have won the award that many times, it's just amazing.”

Gobert then spoke about how he continuously worked on his game to overcome the stigma of being a traditional center in the modern NBA:

“For me, it's really been about getting better every single year and teams have been trying to negate my impact one way or another every single year,” Gobert said.

Gobert’s defense may have dropped off a bit last season. However, the 31-year-old still made a sizeable defensive impact in his first season with Minnesota.

Through 10 seasons with the Jazz and Wolves, Gobert is averaging 12.5 points, 11.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 2.1 blocks per game on 65.4% shooting.

Despite heavy criticisms, Gibert has been unbelievable throughout his journey and continues to add more accolades to his list. It will be interesting to see how far he reaches in his illustrious professional career.