Villanueva: Gobert Better Offensively Than Rodman
Ex-NBA forward Charlie Villanueva defended Rudy Gobert's offensive game against Raymond Felton's criticism, citing his scoring numbers versus Dennis Rodman's career.
Charlie Villanueva has waded into an old debate, telling the To The Baha podcast that Rudy Gobert is a better offensive player than Dennis Rodman and that critics owe the Minnesota centre more credit.
The exchange came in a dispute with fellow former NBA player Raymond Felton, who had dismissed Gobert's value on offence.
"Enough with this disrespect! People have gone too far in their criticism of Rudy Gobert. Yes, he doesn't have the finesse and scoring flair of Nikola Jokic, who can put up 30 points without breaking a sweat. But Rudy is an elite roller. His ability to run pick-and-rolls, attack the rim and finish in transition brings huge value. Because of the holes in his game it has become too fashionable to write him off completely," Villanueva said.
Turning to the comparison with the 1990s legend, Villanueva added: "If we're judging offence specifically, then Gobert is a better attacking player than Rodman. Look at the numbers — Rudy has consistently scored more than 10 points a game for a decade, and in his best years he was putting up 15. Rodman, across his entire 14-year career, had only one season in double figures. Anyone who won't admit that is simply being disrespectful."
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