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Andrew LopezESPN
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Timberwolves lost two starters before locking up the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference on Sunday with Rudy Gobert being sent home for swinging at teammate Kyle Anderson and Jaden McDaniels fracturing his right hand, sources told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Gobert was escorted to the locker room in the second quarter of Sunday’s 113-108 win over the New Orleans Pelicans after getting into an altercation with Anderson during a timeout.
Video of the incident showed Gobert and Anderson having words while standing on opposite ends of the Timberwolves’ huddle. The two continued to exchange words until Anderson said something Gobert took exception to. Gobert stepped over Timberwolves coach Chris Finch and then swung at Anderson, appearing to hit him in the chest.
Teammates went to separate the two, including Taurean Prince, who shoved Gobert back. Gobert was then escorted to the back and some teammates, including Austin Rivers, went to check on him while he was in the back.
Sources told ESPN’s Wojnarowski that the incident escalated after Anderson told Gober to “Shut the f— up, b—-.” The disagreement started with Anderson telling Gobert to block some shots and Gobert telling Anderson to grab a rebound.
“I think tempers just flared,” Anderson said after the game. “That’s all.”
Anderson said he didn’t think the two would have trouble getting along moving forward.
“We want to win games. It is what it is. It ain’t the first time someone has swung on me,” he said.
Mike Conley said Gobert had sent a text in the team’s group chat apologizing. “We’ll speak about it and move on,” Conley said. “We’re grown men.”
Timberwolves president of basketball operations Tim Connelly said the team decided to send Gobert home after the incident in a statement released after the game. “His behavior on the bench was unacceptable and we will handle the situation internally,” the statement read.
McDaniels exited the game late in the first quarter after injuring his right hand. Video caught McDaniels punching a wall while walking into the tunnel, though it’s unclear if that is what caused the injury.
The injury, which will have McDaniels sidelined indefinitely, is a huge loss for the Timberwolves as they head into a play-in matchup vs. the Los Angeles Lakers. McDaniels was one of six players to defend 2022-23 All-Stars at least 1,000 times this season, according to ESPN’s Stats & Information research.
The winner of the Wolves’ play-in game vs. the Lakers will face the No. 2 seed Memphis Grizzlies in the first round of the playoffs. The loser will play the winner of the second play-in matchup between the New Orleans Pelicans and the Oklahoma City Thunder for the right to play the No. 1 seed Denver Nuggets.