Could Rudy Gobert be making a comeback Friday night? The odds just improved.
On Thursday evening, the Utah Jazz (18-26) upgraded the 7-foot-1 center to probable for the 8:30 p.m. tip against the New York Knicks at Vivint Smart Home Arena. The new status increases anticipation that Gobert, the shot-blocking centerpiece of Utah’s defense and an all-NBA performer last year, could finally return to the court after missing most of the season to injury.
It would mark Gobert’s first action since Dec. 15 against the Boston Celtics, when teammate Derrick Favors accidentally rolled into his left leg, causing a PCL sprain and bone bruise that have kept him out of the last 14 Jazz games. It’s his second bone bruise of the season, after one in his right leg that kept him sidelined for 11 games between November and December.
Gobert led the league in blocks last season. While his numbers this year (11.6 ppg, 9.6 rpg, 2.3 bpg) haven’t reached some of the highs of 2016-17, the Jazz have missed his intimidating presence on defense and his hard screening on offense.
He returned to non-contact basketball activities last week while on the team’s road trip, and has been seen pregame working out to return to form.
The Jazz are looking for a return to health in the second half of the season. While the team has been only 7-11 with Gobert in the lineup, the most recent stretch without him has been brutal: The Jazz are 4-10 since Gobert’s last injury.
The Jazz also updated the condition of big man Jonas Jerebko, who is listed as questionable with back spasms.
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