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Minnesota\u2019s Rudy Gobert has been a mentor to San Antonio\u2019s Victor Wembanyama. Now, the two will face off in the playoffs.<\/p>\n
Editor\u2019s Note: Read more NBA coverage from The Athletic\u00a0here<\/a>. The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA or its teams.\u00a0<\/p>\n MINNEAPOLIS \u2014 Eyes darting around the room, Rudy Gobert is racking his brain for a message for his protege. Gobert and his Minnesota Timberwolves had just defeated the San Antonio Spurs and his mentee, Victor Wembanyama, in January.<\/p>\n Gobert could have talked trash about the game. He also could have imparted some wisdom on getting his health back so his game could finally reach the next level.<\/p>\n But Gobert has been doing that for years already. He had a different challenge for Wembanyama instead.<\/p>\n \u201cAsk him if he can beat me at chess without the timer bailing him out,\u201d Gobert told\u00a0The Athletic\u00a0with a sly grin.<\/p>\n The relationship between the face of French basketball for the past decade and the NBA\u2019s new\u00a0enfant terrible\u00a0is rooted in a deeper journey. They challenge each other on the court, but they relish pushing each other off it.<\/p>\n Wembanyama laughed when he received Gobert\u2019s message a few minutes later, replying by saying he looks forward to another meeting of the minds in the future. Though he may be able to read the board faster, Gobert believes somewhere, deep in his heart, he could beat Wembanyama with enough time.<\/p>\n Now they have it. Seven games of it. Their chessboard has a 3-point line and four 12-minute quarters.<\/p>\n The NBA\u2019s reigning Defensive Player of the Year meeting the man who has won the most of them in league history. The 7-foot-4 prodigy who is reshaping the game against the 7-foot-1 veteran who has mastered the skill of containing it. A meeting of the player taking over the game and the big brother who prepared him for this moment.<\/p>\n \u201cI love trying to give him everything he needs, to answer all his questions,\u201d Gobert said. \u201c(I) try to be the best mentor I can be for him.\u201d<\/p>\n Wembanyama, the Spurs\u2019 22-year-old MVP candidate, hosts the 33-year-old Gobert and the Timberwolves in Game 1 of the second round of the NBA playoffs on Monday. Gobert has been the person most responsible for the Timberwolves\u2019 evolution into a defensive-minded team. From the moment he was acquired in 2022, he has served as the backbone of a team that has advanced to the second round for the third straight season and is gunning for its third consecutive Western Conference finals appearance.<\/p>\n Denver Nuggets star Nikola Joki\u0107 presented an immense test for Gobert in the first round, one he passed with flying colors. Now Gobert faces a different, but no less imposing, opponent he knows all too well.<\/p>\n \u201cWe faced a contender in the first round. Now we face another contender,\u201d Gobert told reporters. \u201cAs a competitor, what more can we ask for? That\u2019s what we sacrifice for, we work for every single day. That\u2019s what I\u2019ve prepared myself for since I\u2019m 12 years old.\u201d<\/p>\n Wembanyama knew his first title pursuit in the NBA might go through the man who helped him get here. \u201cIt\u2019s even more fun if we\u2019re playing against Rudy,\u201d he said. Gobert called it a moment that is \u201camazing for French basketball\u201d and a dream come true as the youth of France watched the game from afar.<\/p>\n They now have to ruin each other\u2019s current chapters in a story that is nearly 10 years in the making.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s completely free on the court, and he\u2019s really starting to master his craft, even though he still has a lot of growth upon him,\u201d Gobert said of Wembanyama. \u201cIt\u2019s pretty amazing to see that he\u2019s (22), but also, he\u2019s already mastering his craft. Obviously, I think a lot of the growth that he had is going to be physical. Keep getting stronger, keep being more resistant.\u201d<\/p>\n Gobert has a lot to do with that evolution. He remembered hosting a children\u2019s basketball tournament back in 2017 when their shared agent, J\u00e9r\u00e9my Medjana, introduced a young Victor and his mother, Elodie. At first, the Wolves center wasn\u2019t struck by the size of Wembanyama \u2014 then 5-foot-11 \u2014 but more captivated by Elodie, who stands 6-foot-3.<\/p>\n Then, Gobert found out Wembanyama was only 13 years old.<\/p>\n \u201cYou could tell he was a baby and would keep growing,\u201d Gobert said.<\/p>\n From that point, Gobert kept tabs on Wembanyama. He would check in with Medjana and co-agent Bouna Ndiaye for updates on the youngster. He wanted to get in the gym with Wembanyama when he was ready and show him the nuances of guarding the paint in the NBA. They reunited three years later for a two-on-two workout alongside French centers Vincent Poirier and Maxime Raynaud. By that point, the 16-year-old Wembanyama was already taller than the 7-foot-1 Gobert.<\/p>\n There are\u00a0videos of them shooting hoops<\/a>, but Wembanyama took away even more from Gobert when they hit the weight room afterwards. He wanted to see how Gobert managed to fill out his wiry, massive frame while staying nimble. Wembanyama was getting a hands-on education in longevity.<\/p>\n \u201cAfter that, we became friends, and I was paying very close attention to his development,\u201d Gobert said. \u201cI always thought he was a little different than the other guys. Not only because of his physical tools, but because of his mindset.\u201d<\/p>\n Wembanyama has long known he would not be well served bulking up to look like David Robinson or Joel Embiid. Gobert represented a path toward a sustainable training program that could withstand the rigors of the NBA. Gobert could teach him everything about pick-and-roll angles, shot altering and every aspect of defense.<\/p>\n But Wembanyama needed to learn how a veteran of playoff battles still plays 70-plus games a season after all these years.<\/p>\n \u201cAs a role model, there\u2019s lots of things that he\u2019s inspired me and I think should inspire more people,\u201d Wembanyama said this week. \u201cIn terms of taking care of your body, he should be a role model for all big men.\u201d<\/p>\n Gobert is known for his daily focus on yoga and meditation. He once went on a 64-hour darkness retreat in 2023 to focus on his mind-body connection, a journey that parallels Wembanyama\u2019s 10-day venture out to a Shaolin temple last summer. Both seek different perspectives on training while yearning to understand the connection between their career pursuits and their sense of self.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have so many conversations about how to maximize your physical potential, but it\u2019s much deeper than that,\u201d Gobert said. \u201cIt\u2019s (about) how to maximize our spiritual and mental potential, and Victor is a very curious kid.\u201d<\/p>\n To make a body of their size move with so much efficiency and fluidity, players like Gobert and Wembanyama need a deeper bond with their feet and core to help distribute effort more evenly throughout the body. Gobert helped Wembanyama embrace proprioception \u2014 the body\u2019s sense of orientation \u2014 which helps spread the strain of forceful moves and even hyperextensions. It\u2019s part of why Wembanyama can maintain balance even when he\u2019s low to the ground\u00a0and change direction in a way nobody near his size has ever achieved.<\/p>\n Gobert often speaks to Wembanyama about how to sharpen what he calls their \u201csuperpowers.\u201d They have a meticulous process of activation and recovery, doing various forms of meditation and stimulus training to make sure every element of their body is working in concert. Gobert praises Wembanyama\u2019s thirst for knowledge, which turned out to be quite literal.<\/p>\n \u201cA few weeks ago, he asked me what kind of filter I have in my house for water,\u201d Gobert told reporters last week. \u201cIt just tells you how his mind is. I try to talk to the young guys here about the food they eat and stuff like that. But I don\u2019t get\u00a0those\u00a0kind of questions.\u201d<\/p>\n He said, perhaps facetiously, that he is \u201cpraying\u201d for the day that Anthony Edwards asks him those kinds of questions, saying how these types of inquiries show how Wembanyama\u2019s desire to maximize his body is different.<\/p>\n \u201cHe has the extra discipline that the greats have, and he puts in the work,\u201d Gobert said. \u201cHe understands that, obviously, his body is the key, and his mind. He\u2019s really trying to master both.\u201d<\/p>\n When Wembanyama was\u00a0diagnosed with a blood clot in his shoulder\u00a0in February 2025, Gobert reached out to offer support and guidance. He could feel the devastation coming from Wembanyama to not be able to play or train. The path of his protege\u2019s life had been put on hold, creating a feeling of aimlessness in the immediate aftermath.<\/p>\n \u201cI remember him being very frustrated, not being able to play,\u201d Gobert said. \u201cBut he has grown so much from that experience, because it made him realize that nothing is granted in life.\u201d<\/p>\n Wembanyama emerged from that setback with a refreshed sense of purpose in his career and his role as a public persona. He has become outspoken on everything from gun violence to basketball ethics. He is open about his hopes and dreams and how he deals with his ups and downs. He stands on business when\u00a0he sheds a tear and doesn\u2019t hide behind the tough athlete tropes.<\/p>\n As they prepare for the longest battle of their friendship, Gobert is most proud of who his protege has become.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s pretty amazing to see that he\u2019s one of a kind \u2014 and not just physically. He\u2019s a special soul, a special person, and I really care about (him),\u201d Gobert said. \u201cI really try to be there for him and, obviously, it\u2019s way beyond basketball. I want him to be good, be well. It\u2019s something that I truly care about.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2014 Jon Krawczynski contributed to this story.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Jared Weiss<\/a> is a staff writer covering the San Antonio Spurs and Victor Wembanyama for The Athletic. He has covered the Celtics since 2011, co-founding CLNS Media Network while in college before covering the team for SB Nation\u2019s CelticsBlog and USA Today. Before coming to The Athletic, Weiss spent a decade working for the government, primarily as a compliance bank regulator. Follow Jared on X @JaredWeissNBA<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Minnesota\u2019s Rudy Gobert has been a mentor to San Antonio\u2019s Victor Wembanyama. 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