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Jazz’s Rudy Gobert on 1st-quarter ejection: ‘I’ve got to be smarter’

rudy gobert

The Utah Jazz went down a starter quickly Thursday night against the Houston Rockets, as center Rudy Gobert was tossed at the 9:13 mark of the first quarter, logging less than three minutes in the game. Gobert was called for an offensive foul battling for position against James Harden — his second of the game — only to compound it by swiping out items on the scorers table, which earned him a quick ejection from the game:

Gobert repented pretty quickly after the matter, getting a chance to cool down after getting a quick workout in the facilities, then rejoining his team at halftime before watching the rest of the game from the weight room:

“I had a stupid reaction,” said Gobert, according to Aaron Falk of Jazz.com. “I think I can blame myself more than anything.

Gobert’s frustration stemmed from a very quick foul during the game’s opening tip, after grabbing Clint Capela’s arm during the tip-off, which the officials called promptly.

Jazz head coach Quin Snyder couldn’t risk Gobert picking up his third foul before the second quarter, forcing Gobert to the bench, which allowed for the aforementioned to ensue. Gobert has had his share of run-ins with officials, which didn’t help the matter much.

“I was kind of like, ‘Hopefully it’s just a technical,’” he said. “Just a stupid reaction.”

“Just frustration,” said Gobert, who was fined $15,000 by the NBA for publicly criticizing officials earlier this week. “I think a lot of frustration.”

Gobert concluded he let his team down by making the issue about himself, instead of putting his teammates and the game at hand as a priority.

“I’ve got to be smarter,” Gobert said. “It didn’t cost the team tonight, but it can cost the team. Losing me in the first quarter is not the smartest thing to do.”

The Jazz still managed a comfortable 118-91 win over the struggling Rockets, making this a lesson learned for the Frenchmen without many consequences.

The post Jazz’s Rudy Gobert on 1st-quarter ejection: ‘I’ve got to be smarter’ appeared first on ClutchPoints.

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