Despite persistent criticism and postseason struggles, the four-time Defensive Player of the Year holds a resume that mirrors basketball icons, positioning him as a near-lock for Springfield.
Rudy Gobert's basketball legacy has rarely been as straightforward as his résumé suggests it should be.
The former Utah Jazz star has been criticized, debated and occasionally reduced to his worst postseason moments despite collecting defensive hardware at a rate virtually unmatched in NBA history.
Eventually, Hall of Fame voters may have to decide which side matters more.
The Athletic's Mike Vorkunov released his annual Basketball Hall of Fame tiers Monday, placing Gobert among the league's "Near Locks" alongside Luka Dončić, Jayson Tatum, Kyrie Irving and Paul George.
"It makes sense that Gobert will be a controversial Hall of Fame candidate because he has been a controversial player," Vorkunov wrote.
But there's an awfully strong historical argument suggesting the debate shouldn't be particularly complicated.
Gobert has won four Defensive Player of the Year awards, tying Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace for the most since the award was introduced in 1982-83.
Both are already in Springfield.
Gobert won three of his four awards during nine seasons with Utah, where he developed from the No. 27 pick in the 2013 NBA Draft into the centerpiece of one of the league's most consistently successful defenses.
He also earned six consecutive All-Defensive First Team selections from 2017 through 2022 as a member of the Jazz.
"The identity of our team, if you compare it to two years ago or even last year earlier in the year, we play differently," then-Jazz coach Quin Snyder said in 2021. "The biggest constant is when you have Rudy, you have defense."
That portion of Gobert's résumé alone makes Utah central to his eventual Hall of Fame case.
But it isn't the entire argument.
Gobert has three NBA All-Star selections, has twice led the league in blocks and owns an extensive international résumé with France. He's won silver medals at the 2021 and 2024 Olympics, bronze medals at the 2014 and 2019 FIBA World Cups and medals at two EuroBaskets.
"With a resume like that, Gobert should likely get in, especially when you include his international accomplishments," Vorkunov wrote.
There's still one metric pushing in the opposite direction.
Basketball Reference's Hall of Fame Probability model currently places Gobert at just 31.8 percent, directly between John Wall and Jermaine O'Neal.
And that's where Gobert's case becomes fascinating.
A player can be criticized for particular playoff matchups without those moments erasing an entire career. Gobert's offensive limitations are well documented, and Utah never advanced beyond the second round during his tenure.
Neither changes the hardware.
Three of the four greatest defensive seasons of Gobert's career, at least according to the NBA's voters, came in a Jazz uniform. Six straight First Team All-Defense selections did, too.
Whether that ultimately makes Gobert a first-ballot selection is another question.
But if four Defensive Player of the Year awards, three All-Star appearances and a decorated international career aren't eventually enough for Springfield, Gobert would represent quite the historical exception.
For a player whose career has generated endless debate, his Hall of Fame résumé might ultimately leave considerably less to argue about.
