Utah Jazz: 5 goals for Rudy Gobert in 2017-18

The dominant seven-foot center isn’t being phased out by the Utah Jazz, instead, Rudy Gobert is now expected to carry the franchise on his massive shoulders.

The rest of the NBA has scoured the globe for franchise players capable of playing multiple positions, moving seamlessly on both ends of the floor and being able to launch a shot

Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert is far from the modern prototype of a basketball superstar. Each night, Gobert predictably takes his 7’1″ frame, anchors himself in front of the rim and dares the opposition attack the rim.

During the 2016-17 campaign, Gobert was challenged 10.2 times at the basket, surrendering just 4.5 makes a game. Opponents shot just 43.8 percent at the rim when challenging Gobert, while having their shots sent back a total of 214 times — more than any other player in the league produced.

Advanced statistics reflected just how dominant the 25-year-old center was last year, as he posted the highest defensive win share total (6.0) and ranked atop the league in block percentage at 6.4 percent.

When Gobert was on the floor, Utah had an offensive rating of 129 and a defensive rating of 99. As a result, the Jazz were simply dominant on defense. Utah allowed 96.8 points per game, the lowest mark in the NBA, and posted a defensive rating of 105.5, third-best in the league.

The performance enabled Gobert to be selected to the All-NBA Second Team and he was also the center for the All-NBA Defensive First Team.

Following the departure of Gordon Hayward in free agency, the Jazz will rely even more on their franchise center. Here are five goals for Gobert to make 2017-18 an even more successful year.