Rudy Gobert says he's the best center in the NBA, isn't far off

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Rudy Gobert has played like an All-Star this season. (Associated Press) The first few months of every NBA season bring plenty of opportunities to reshuffle the rankings of the best players in the league. Stars may dip with age, top prospects may make the leap, and others may emerge unexpectedly. And then we all get to argue about who deserves to make the All-Star Game.
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Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert has been on the cusp of that stardom ever since making his reputation as a top rim protector in the second half of the 2014-15 season. The big man has remained a very solid player and recently signed a deserved four-year extension that could be worth as much as $102 million. That new deal hasn’t kept Gobert from improving — in fact, he’s having what looks to be a breakthrough season.
So where does Gobert rank among the NBA’s centers? If you ask him, he’s already the best. From Tim MacMahon for ESPN.com:

Gobert has a pretty good idea of how well he has been playing for the sizzling Jazz, who have won 11 of 13 games despite playing without point guard George Hill for most of that stretch. If you don’t believe me, just ask Gobert who he believes is the best center in the NBA.

“To be honest, right now, I think it’s me,” Gobert told ESPN, before following up in a fashion his coach would approve of. “But it’s a long season. I just try to take every game as a challenge. The hardest thing is to do it [for] the full season.”
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During Utah’s 11-2 run, Gobert has averaged 15.1 points, 12.9 rebounds and 3.2 blocks while shooting 76.5 percent from the floor and 71 percent from the line. The Jazz have outscored opponents by 130 points with Gobert on the floor in those 13 games. […]
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Miami’s Hassan Whiteside, Atlanta’s Dwight Howard, Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns, Sacramento’s DeMarcus Cousins and Gasol have averaged 11.2 points on 30.1 percent shooting in their matchups with Gobert over the last month. Gobert’s numbers in those five games, four of which Utah won: averages of 14 points, 13.2 rebounds and 4.0 blocks, hitting 77.4 percent of his field goal attempts. Utah was plus-66 with him on the floor. […]
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Gobert leads the league in field goal percentage (69.4), because he has drastically improved his catching and finishing in traffic and accepts that almost all of his attempts should come around — and above — the rim. (His longest shot Sunday was a 5-footer.) He commands respect as a roll man who consistently opens driving lanes or creates wide-open 3s for his teammates.
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Enough players have declared themselves the best at their particular positions that Gobert’s statement should not come as much of a shock. As we have written many times over the years, these boasts reflect the confidence needed to succeed in the NBA and should not be assessed as the results of in-depth analysis.
In Gobert’s case, though, the sober view isn’t too far off from his own. Sure, Gobert isn’t yet on the level of Marc Gasol and other multiple-time All-NBA selections, because consistency and staying power count for a lot. There’s little reason to believe Gobert can’t keep up this form for Utah, but it’s also worth keeping him out of that top spot until he proves he can keep it up for at least a full season.
Still, we’re looking at a player who has added enough new facets to his game to join the conversation. Gobert’s defense has been elite for nearly two years now, but the impact of his rim protection and interior presence is perhaps underrated given that effective offense is easier both to measure and to recognize over the course of a game. Yet Gobert isn’t just better offensively than he’s ever been — he’s legitimately great at what he does. His ORtg of 132 ranked No. 1 in the NBA heading into Monday’s games, and his ability to finish pretty much anything around the rim has opened up new options for a Jazz offense that has previously been somewhat limited.
Gobert’s place among the league’s best big men will ultimately depend most on what he does over the entirety of the 2016-17 regular season and playoffs. But the early returns are excellent. With few centers serving as their teams’ dominant offensive forces, Gobert’s elite defense and finishing mark him out as one of the best around. He’s becoming a star, and everyone should recognize it.
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Eric Freeman is a writer for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!​

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