NBA Referees Face Explosive Allegations; Timberwolves Center Rudy Gobert Alleges Bias

In a matchup of two top seeds, the Cleveland Cavaliers edged out the Minnesota Timberwolves. Both teams were missing heavyweights. The Cavs were without their leading scorer Donovan Mitchell and the Wolves are dealing with Karl-Anthony Towns’ indefinite absence. It was still a worthy clash. Both top defenses are on a hot streak and probably the most exciting young sides in the NBA.

The game was bound to be heated as their passion and competitive spirit overflowed. Tensions arose especially in regards to the officiating. Wolves assistant coach Micah Nori suggested both teams were “frustrated”. There were some cruel and unjust calls. A targetted victim seemed to be Rudy Gobert, the defensive juggernaut for Minnesota.

He was called for a loose ball foul when tangled up with Jarrett Allen during the end of regulation. The call was what many would call ‘soft’ considering it was his sixth foul. After the game, while Gobert apologized for his conduct, the French center suggested something unnatural about the NBA officials.

Rudy Gobert calls out NBA referees for favoring the bets?

Gobert, a three-time Defensive Player of The Year seemed to be on edge for most of the game. He was startled. The Wolves center air-balled a dunk, a shot he has made thousands of times. Later, he was assessed with a Flagrant-1 for elbowing Allen while performing a post-move. Finally, he was disqualified from the game trying to recover a loose ball with 27.8 seconds left and the Wolves up one.

That’s where Gobert’s fury escaped its vessel. He made money hand gestures towards Scott Foster, a referee who has been the center of the drama countless times in the past. Just ask Chris Paul.

After the game his frustration was evident. The Wolves had dropped a game after reclaiming the number one spot. Additionally, it was a cross-conference rival of equal power. Blinded by this, Gobert once again decided to become the “bad guy” and made some bewildering claims about the referees.

“Mistakes happen. Referees make mistakes, too,” said Gobert according to The Athletic. “Sometimes I think it’s more than mistakes. And I’m gonna stay at that. I think everyone that’s in this league knows. And I think it’s got to get better. I’ll bite the bullet again. I’ll be the bad guy again that speaks what I think is the truth. And hopefully the league — I mean they’re probably gonna fine me, and once again I’ll take the fine — but I think it’s hurting our game. We shouldn’t — I know the betting and all that is becoming bigger and bigger — but it shouldn’t feel that way,”. 

Gobert didn’t do so before apologizing for his actions after getting his sixth foul which was eventually turned into a technical. The Wolves admitted it was “immature” of him to react impulsively and it might have cost his team the game.  Even Nori said it was “unacceptable” for Gobert to react that way and accepted that his gesture was rightfully an automatic tech.

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Aside from that, this isn’t the first time Rudy Gobert has spoken up against the referees. Last season, he even raised fingers at the NBA for pushing big-market teams into the playoffs at the cost of smaller teams such as the Timberwolves after a hard loss to the Phoenix Suns.

Do you think there is any truth to what Gobert is claiming? Let us know in the comments below.