The NBA released the 2017-18 All-Defensive teams on Wednesday and unsurprisingly, Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert found himself on the First Team. Although Gobert missed 26 games this season, his defensive impact was nothing less than staggering, particularly in the latter half of the year.
Following Gobert’s return from injury in late January, the Utah Jazz finished the year 30-8 to claw their way into the playoffs. During that stretch, the team also had the best defensive rating (97.5), the best net rating (10.8), the lowest opponent scoring average (97.4) and the lowest opponent field goal percentage (43.