Short answers, pulled from the story.
Rudy Gobert has won the NBA Defensive Player of the Year award four times, tying Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace for the most in NBA history. He won the award in 2018, 2019-2021, and for the fourth time with the Minnesota Timberwolves, making him the first player in that franchise's history to claim the honor.
On the 11th of March, 2020, Rudy Gobert tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, becoming the first confirmed NBA player with COVID-19. The NBA suspended the 2019-20 season indefinitely that night; it eventually resumed on the 30th of July, 2020. Just two days before his diagnosis, Gobert had facetiously touched microphones at a press conference addressing the Jazz's virus response, which he later publicly apologized for.
Rudy Gobert was born on the 26th of June, 1992, in Saint-Quentin, Aisne, in northern France. He began playing organized basketball in 2003 for the JSC St-Quentin club, later joined Saint-Quentin BB, and in 2007 entered Cholet Basket's cadet categories training center.
At the 2013 NBA Draft Combine, Gobert set records for both wingspan and standing reach. His standing reach measured 9 feet 7 inches. These measurements earned him the nickname the Stifle Tower, though the wingspan record was broken the following year by Walter Tavares.
On the 6th of July, 2022, the Utah Jazz traded Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Patrick Beverley, Malik Beasley, Jarred Vanderbilt, Leandro Bolmaro, the draft rights to Walker Kessler, four first-round picks, and a 2026 first-round pick swap.
Gobert won silver medals with France at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and at the 2024 Paris Olympics. He also won bronze medals at the 2014 FIBA World Cup and the 2019 FIBA World Cup, and a silver medal at EuroBasket 2022, where he was named to the All-Tournament Team.