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Rudy Gobert seethed at his locker room stall late Thursday in the moments following the Jazz's Game 2 loss to the Golden State Warriors.
The player some call the best center in the NBA did his part to keep the Jazz within striking distance of the Warriors, scoring 16 points and grabbing 16 rebounds. He blocked a shot and shot 8 of 12 from the field, before fouling out.
But Gobert still muttered obscenities to himself, upset he didn't do more for a Utah team playing without its starting point guard. The Warriors have been effective against him by being physical. And Gobert, who is intensely competitive, feels he hasn't met that challenge.
"I have to go through them," Gobert said. "Nobody is going to give me anything."
Gobert is finding out what it's like to be a marked man. Through two games, he is clearly at the top of Golden State's scouting report, and the Warriors are doing their best to manhandle him. Whenever Zaza Pachulia guards him, he bodies Gobert, elbows him, pokes at him, whatever he can do to throw him off stride. When Draymond Green grabs a rebound over him, he lets off a primal scream, many times in Gobert's direction. Stephen Curry was particularly rude, turning Gobert into an internet meme with a few crossovers that threw him off balance in the series opener.
The Jazz center's two games at Oracle Arena have come as a rude welcome. And Gobert admits he hasn't always handled the extra attention well. But he looked more comfortable in Game 2, and is focused on improving for Saturday night's Game 3 at Vivint Smart Home Arena.
"I'm feeling better physically," Gobert said. "And that's important. I had two injuries in the last series. But I'm also playing better. You kind of get used to it. You're used to playing with these guys. So every game we try to get better, and I feel like I'm getting better every game."
Gobert says he's feeling less pain in his knee and ankle with each passing day. But he also settled down in Game 2, found a comfort zone and simply played better basketball.
Golden State wasn't challenged in Game 1, but the Jazz were competitive on Thursday, pulling to within six points and putting a potential 3-pointer in the air that could've gotten them within three points late in the contest.
Gobert is a big reason Utah forced the Warriors to play hard minutes down the stretch. Defensively, he was his old self at the rim, deterring Golden State in the paint. Offensively, he threw down several dunks and became a factor Utah's pick- and-roll game.
"I thought he played well," Jazz forward Boris Diaw said. "He rebounded well, he scored, he defended. He looked good out there tonight."
It isn't easy for someone like Gobert to get comfortable against this Warriors team. Golden State's defense attacks like like a pack of wolves. Often, the Warriors play small, but they are quick, they switch well, they rebound in a group and they get out on the fast break. Often, Golden State can play a big man like Gobert right off the floor.
He struggled with that in Game 1, and struggled with how physically the Warriors played him. Gobert plays a lot in the high post, and was surprised Golden State challenged his catches there. Their big men have made it a priority to run the floor in an effort to tire Gobert, and they've gotten multiple transition dunks as a result. The Warriors have challenged him, and he's had to adjust.
Gobert and the Jazz feel they've figured some things out. At the same time, they are still down 2-0 heading into Saturday, facing a must-win if they want to extend their series with Golden State and create a little momentum.
To do so, the Jazz know they have to play with confidence and swagger, the kind of confidence the Warriors have adopted through what has been a historic three-year run. That may not be enough. But through two games, Golden State's bravado has rattled Gobert and the Jazz. Only Gordon Hayward has truly broken through, scoring 33 points in Game 2.
Gobert and the rest of the Jazz have to follow.
"We play with attitude when we get down," Gobert said. "But we need to have that from the beginning. You know, they have a lot of confidence and they make big runs, and we need to stop these runs. We need to play angry from the first minute."
Twitter: @tribjazz —
Jazz-Warriors update
• Golden State, which leads Utah 2-0 in the series, is unbeaten (6-0) in the postseason.
• Two games in, the Jazz are still looking for their first lead in the series.
• Despite lingering knee and ankle injuries, Rudy Gobert is averaging 14.5 points and 12 rebounds per game vs. the Warriors.
• The Jazz were outrebounded by the smaller Warriors 47-39 in Game 2.
• Utah has yet to have a player record at least five assists in a game during the series.