Timberwolves’ Rudy Gobert is ejected after drilling Mark Williams with a forearm mid-dunk in loss to the Suns
Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert was ejected from the 108-105 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Monday night after checking Mark Williams in the air with his forearm as he was about to dunk.
Midway through the third quarter of the game at Target Center, Williams crossed the lane and began rising for what should have been an easy dunk. He had a clear path to the basket, as Gobert was well away to his right.
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But once Williams was in the air, Gobert stepped in and drilled him hard in the ribs with his forearm, which sent Williams flying off the track and down onto the court.
Gobert seemed to know he had committed a foul, as he raised a finger to immediately take credit. But officials upgraded the foul to Flagrant 2 due to significant contact with Williams’ ribs, which led to Gobert’s ejection.
Gobert had 15 points and eight rebounds when he left the game. The 33-year-old entered Monday night averaging 11 points and 10.2 rebounds per game this season, his 12th in the league. He is in the first year of a new three-year, $109.5 million contract with the Timberwolves.
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Williams stayed in the game after initially being left shaken after the foul, and split his free throws. He also had a dunk right after the second free throw, which then gave the Suns a two-point lead.
The Timberwolves went on a 7-0 run and held the Suns scoreless for nearly three full minutes en route to narrowing the game to just one point, thanks to a short bucket by Anthony Edwards. But that happened with just 8.9 seconds left. The Suns later hit a pair of free throws and made one final stop to escape with the three-point win.
Williams led the Suns with 22 points and seven rebounds, and Collin Gillespie added 19 points. Dillon Brooks finished with 18 points. The win pushed the Suns to 14-10 on the season.
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Edwards had 40 points and shot 15 of 21 from the field to lead the Timberwolves. Julius Randle finished with 21 points and eight assists, and Bones Hyland added 14 points off the bench. The loss snapped a five-game winning streak for the Timberwolves, who now sit at 15-9 on the year.
Minnesota will return to action Friday night against the Golden State Warriors.