Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert made his return to Utah on Friday night and while the former Utah Jazz big man was greeted with cheers from the fans, his last-second layup angered Malik Beasley.
The incident happened in the final seconds of Minnesota’s 118-108 victory on Friday night. With the game secured, Kyle Anderson was dribbling out the clock when he passed the ball to Gobert, who casually scored with 2.4 seconds remaining.
The crowd booed, and once the horn sounded, Beasley confronted Gobert and seemed to be offended by the last-second score.
Rudy Gobert takes the last-second shot, Jazz fans + Malik Beasley have something to say about it pic.twitter.com/pDYRPl6Cw4
— Timberwolves Clips (@WolvesClips) December 10, 2022
Nothing came of the incident as Gobert and Beasley were separated before things got out of hand.
It’s somewhat of a hypocritical reaction from Beasley and the crowd, however, given Jarred Vanderbilt’s garbage time slam during the Jazz’s 132-126 victory in Minneapolis on Oct. 21.
‘There’s a code, just hold on to the ball and let the clock expire’ -Jazz announcer pic.twitter.com/4DoZQx0CaM
— Mason 🐺 (@Masonfrfr) December 10, 2022
Even if that was the case, Gobert’s layup wasn’t as emphatic as the 360 windmill dunk Zion Williamson threw down in the closing seconds of a 128-117 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Friday night.
Zion Williamson dunking at the end of a blowout game and not a man on the court WILL DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT. THE ULTIMATE ALPHA MALE! pic.twitter.com/qdjeRaIvsq
— Troydan (@Troydan) December 10, 2022
The Timberwolves’ rivalry with the Jazz figures to heat up in the coming years after Minnesota traded five players – including Beasley and Vanderbilt – and five first-round picks to acquire Gobert last summer. With Beasley also issuing a shimmy to his former team earlier in the game, this tension doesn’t figure to be going anywhere.
I love the timely 3-pointers by Malik Beasley and his shimmy/wiggle he does after. #TakeNote pic.twitter.com/E4gjlIwMPO
— James Chevalier (@jjchev) November 7, 2022
