SALT LAKE CITY — It started with a dubious foul call on the opening tipoff of all things. Then less than three minutes later, Rudy Gobert was whistled with his second foul for pushing away James Harden near the Jazz basket.
As a frustrated Gobert exited the floor, he swiped a paper cup off the scorer’s table sending it flying onto the floor and was not only whistled for a technical foul but was ejected from the game.
Just like that, at the 9:13 mark of the opening quarter, the reigning NBA defensive player of the year was on his way to the showers.