A timeline of the beef between Rudy Gobert and Draymond Green

There's no shortage of juicy storylines in the Timberwolves' second-round playoff series against the Warriors, which begins on Tuesday night in Minneapolis. You've got Anthony Edwards looking to send home another all-time great and 2024 Olympic teammate in Steph Curry. You've got Jimmy Butler facing his old team and playing at Target Center for the first time in four years. The chess match between head coaches Chris Finch and Steve Kerr promises to be a good one.

And then there's Rudy Gobert and Draymond Green. This series will feature two of the greatest defenders of this generation, and it just so happens that neither guy likes the other very much. Ahead of this Western Conference semifinals series between Minnesota and Golden State, let's take a look back at the timeline of the beef between these two prideful players.

Green was drafted 35th overall in 2012. Gobert came into the NBA one year later as the 27th pick. Early in their careers, they established themselves as being among the league's elite defensive players — in different ways. Green was an instinctive switching menace and on-ball defender who was a key part of a Warriors core that became a dynasty in the mid-to-late 2010s. Gobert was the classic dominant rim protector who blocked lots of shots and deterred far more, but his Jazz teams didn't have the same postseason success.

2017: Green wins DPOY, bests Gobert in playoffs

2017 is the year where things maybe started to bubble a bit. Green won his first (and still only) defensive player of the year award to cap the 2016-17 season, with Gobert finishing second in the voting. Both players mentioned the other directly in comments to the media, though there was nothing too surly. In the playoffs, the peak Warriors swept the Jazz in the second round (they went 16-1 in the postseason that year and won the title).

2019: Green's first direct shot

This is where the first personal blow took place. After Gobert got emotional in a press conference when discussing not making the All-Star game, Green (who didn't make it either) threw this jab on social media.

I guess I should cry too... no Charlotte? 😢😢😢
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) February 1, 2019

A random user replied "Like u cried in the parking lot for KD?" to that tweet, referencing the rumor that Green called Kevin Durant after the Warriors lost the 2016 Finals, and Gobert liked the reply.

Gobert had won his first DPOY in 2018 and went on to win the award again in 2019 and 2021.

2022: Things heat up

After a couple seasons went by without further incident, this was the year that really set the stage for what would happen the following year. First, in the lead-up to the 2022 All-Star game, Green was part of TNT's coverage and once again called out Gobert for crying three years earlier. Gobert had made three straight All-Star teams since then. During the actual All-Star game a couple weeks later, Green was again on the broadcast and took offense to being compared to Gobert.

Gobert took the high road and said he didn't have any beef with Green when asked about it later that year. But then he couldn't quite resist chiming in when Green infamously punched teammate Jordan Poole in October.

Insecurity is always loud.
— Rudy Gobert (@rudygobert27) October 7, 2022

2023: Green fires back

Six months after Gobert's tweet, Green posted the exact same four-word message when Gobert threw a punch at teammate Kyle Anderson on the final day of the 2022-23 regular season.

Insecurity is always loud…
— Draymond Green (@Money23Green) April 9, 2023

Green then went on his podcast and discussed the incident, saying "I personally think Rudy Gobert is on the softer side" and that he actually gained some respect for Gobert because he stood up for himself against Anderson.

2023: The chokehold

Things finally bubbled over in the first meeting between the Wolves and Warriors during the 2023-24 season. Less than two minutes into the game, Jaden McDaniels and Klay Thompson started to get into a physical altercation. Gobert stepped in and grabbed Thompson, which prompted Green to run over and put him in a lengthy chokehold.

hes been waiting to do this forever pic.twitter.com/b5ZmWzgyWw
— Rob Perez (@WorldWideWob) November 15, 2023

Green served a five-game suspension for the act, which Gobert said was "clown behavior." Green later said he didn't regret coming to his teammate's defense.

A month later, Green was suspended indefinitely by the NBA after a separate incident. After that happened, Gobert said he had "empathy" for Green. "You see somebody that's not well inside and suffering," he said. "You take away the game and all that, and you want somebody to be well and be able to do what we do every night and compete and be happy."

2024: The embers continue to burn

In the aftermath of the chokehold, Green continued to throw jabs at Gobert, whether on his podcast or on national TV. During last year's playoffs, which the Warriors were not a participant in, Green appeared on TNT and used the platform to take several shots at Gobert during the Wolves' series against the Nuggets. Gobert had just won his fourth defensive player of the year award, which Green used as fodder to criticize him for his matchup against Nikola Jokic.

The Wolves came back from a 3-2 deficit to win that series in seven games, advancing to the Western Conference Finals. There, Green was in the building at Target Center with the TNT crew, where he said "Rudy sucks, not me" in response to Wolves fans chanting "Draymond sucks" at him. And after avoiding a sweep in Game 4 in Dallas, the Wolves collectively chose not to have any player participate in a postgame interview with TNT, out of solidarity with Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns for the attacks they'd received from Green.

2025: What's next?

Now, the stage is set for another clash between Gobert and Green. This will be just their second meeting in the postseason and their first in eight years. A spot in the Western Conference Finals is on the line.

Green, who hasn't changed much, picked up four technical fouls and two flagrant foul points over the course of Golden State's seven-game first-round win over the Rockets. Three more techs or two more flagrant points (they come with two levels, Flagrant 1 and Flagrant 2) would lead to a one-game suspension.

Even when Green says he'll "be locked in" and keep it calm against Minnesota, those words don't hold much weight. He'll have to prove it on the floor. Gobert will also have to try to resist the urge to physically retaliate if prodded by Green. It's going to be a fascinating subplot to a series with all kinds of storylines and drama.