NBA giant Rudy Gobert will sign a five-year, $ 205 million contract extension with the Utah Jazz, he told ESPN after agreeing the biggest contract for a center in league history.
“It means they believe in me,” Gobert told ESPN. “They believe in what we’ve been building over the years with this whole organization, with the coach [Quin Snyder] and all the boys. For me, it’s an amazing blessing. It is a very motivating feeling to know that we all share the same vision and we all share this goal for this state and for this franchise. “
Gobert, 28, was eligible for a $ 228 million supermax extension, identical to the deal Giannis Antetokounmpo just signed with the Milwaukee Bucks, because he is twice Defensive Player of the Year and three times selected as All-NBA. Gobert said he did not request the full supermax because he wanted the Jazz to have the flexibility to continue building around him and Donovan Mitchell.
“My goal is always to win a championship,” said Gobert, who has a player option for the fifth season of the contract. “When we talked to my agent before the negotiations started, I decided I didn’t want to ask for the supermax. We didn’t want to start the negotiations asking about the supermax. For me, it was important to show the organization and the team that it wasn’t about money, it was about continuing to build and giving me the stability and peace of mind of not having to deal with negotiations later. “
“I want to win and I want to leave that money on the table for the team just to be able to have more talent around me and Donovan was really important. I want to win, I believe in this group and I believe in this organization. I was willing to leave that money on the table for them. “
Gobert’s contract is the third-largest deal in NBA history, behind Antetokounmpo’s recently signed five-year, $ 206,800,000 deal signed by Washington Wizards baseman Russell Westbrook. with the Oklahoma City Thunder in 2017.
The Jazz closed its two cornerstones of the franchise with long-term extensions this offseason. Escort Donovan Mitchell, 24, signed a five-year maximum extension of his rookie contract for a guaranteed value of $ 163 million, with a 30% escalator clause that would increase the total value of the $ 195 million deal if he is selected for an All-NB team this season.
There was well-documented tension between Gobert and Mitchell that arose during the NBA break earlier this year, but the two players expressed confidence that they could continue to form a productive professional partnership after discussing their problems before the resumption of the league. This belief was reaffirmed by his chemistry in the bubble.
“After all the things that happened within our team, I really wanted to get back into the bubble and see how things were going,” Gobert said. “After the bubble, I really felt like I could win a championship with Donovan. I think we’ve both grown a lot and will continue to grow. I’m very excited to be able to continue this journey together.”
Gobert has become one of the most dominant big men in the NBA during his seven seasons in Utah, who switched to No. 27 pick in the 2013 draft to select the 7-foot-1 Frenchman and assigned him to the which was then called the League d for most of its rookie season.
“Seeing Rudy evolve as a player on the track through his competitiveness, his tireless work ethic and his passion and dedication to improving has been terrible,” Snyder wrote in a text message to ESPN. “He is an elite player and impacts our team in many ways with his unique skills, let alone his pure will to win. He also has great faith in his teammates and in what they achieve. I am even more proud of how Rudy has grown and the impact it has had on our community and around the world. It has been very gratifying to see his commitment to youth and others and I know he will continue to leave his mark significantly. ” .
Gobert, who is entering the final season of a four-year, $ 102 million contract, has been an All-NBA national team player for three of the last four seasons and was named Defensive Player of the Year in the league. 2017-18 and 2018 -19.
He has averaged 14.7 points, 12.6 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game during Jazz’s four-consecutive streak with posts in the postseason, having been a mainstay of the franchise’s transformation of a 25-win team in the his rookie year to a perennial playoff team.
“Utah is my home,” said Gobert, who launched his Rudy’s Kids Foundation in 2017 to help underprivileged children in Salt Lake City, every other NBA city, and his hometown of Saint-Quentin , France. “I see myself as a loyal person. A lot of people have said to me, ‘Why don’t you go to a bigger market?’ I always tell people that winning a championship in Utah and creating our arrival here would mean so much more.
The Saint-Quentin boy stays at SLC ❤️ pic.twitter.com/z6gtZrb5yv
– utahjazz (@utahjazz) December 20, 2020
❤️🙏🏽 https://t.co/4pJMjx1j64
– Rudy Gobert (@ rudygobert27) December 20, 2020
“I think Donovan is thinking the same way, Coach Q is thinking the same way, [el nuevo propietario del Jazz] Ryan Smith he is thinking the same way. We really want to build and create our way. We want to do something that has never happened before, and for me, that’s also the exciting part. I think we’re going to win a championship in Utah. “
Bobby Marks of ESPN contributed to this report.