The San Antonio Spurs eliminated the Minnesota Timberwolves 139-109 in Game 6 of the Western Conference semifinals on Friday at Target Center, closing the series in six games and advancing to face the Oklahoma City Thunder. After the game, Rudy Gobert and Ayo Dosunmu addressed the media in a joint postgame press conference.
Gobert opened up about his outlook following an injury-affected season, saying, “I’m very excited. I’m very excited because I think this season it meant a lot to me because you know personally it was a season where I had to face a lot of adversity.” He also reflected on his health journey, adding, “Just being out here competing I never took that for granted… So I’m just excited that I was able to finish the season off healthy.”
He continued on gratitude and recovery, stating, “I’m just excited that I was able to finish the season off healthy. And then I’m also excited, you know, for my future.” Gobert later emphasized perspective after his shoulder surgery, saying, “That just gave me a sense of gratefulness… the ability to be healthy, the ability to walk, breathe.”
Dosunmu spoke about his first season with Minnesota after arriving midyear, saying, “They accepted me right away. The fans are amazing. The environment is amazing. I loved it.” He also noted his upcoming offseason, adding, “I’m excited also for free agency because… this is my first time being able to actually go through a free agency, unrestricted.”
Gobert also addressed the playoff experience, including matchups against elite opponents. He said, “I’m grateful for the opportunity to be in the postseason… going against Jokic, one of the greatest bigs of all time.” He added on the Spurs series, “It was a great battle… Victor Wembanyama… took another step.”
On team identity and consistency, Gobert acknowledged internal evaluation, stating, “We can definitely say that… we have an amazing group of resilient and very talented guys, but we had a lot of ups and downs and a lot of that I think was in our control.” He also addressed the championship goal, saying, “It’s always frustrating obviously falling short on your goal… but you always got to look at what are the lessons.”
Physical challenges also shaped his postseason, with Gobert revealing, “I definitely, you know, had to fight through nagging injuries with my calf and then after my calf, it was, you know, my heel.” He added, “Every time I was trying to go out for my foot when I hit the back of my shoe, I had a lot of pain.”
On facing San Antonio’s rising core led by Victor Wembanyama, Gobert said, “It was a great challenge… he showed that he took another step.” He also added, “I think he led his team… it’s going to be interesting to see how he’s ready to face that next challenge.”
Gobert also discussed Minnesota’s offensive structure, saying, “It was by committee… you got Ant, one of the best guards in the league.” He expanded on adjustments with Anthony Edwards, stating, “It’s better to get you in situations where you can just catch it… rather than having to bring the ball up and score.”
The Timberwolves now enter an offseason focused on refinement after a playoff run that ended against a deeper Spurs rotation, while Gobert reiterated his long-term mindset: “My goal is still the same, and it’s not going to change until I’m breathing and I step on the court.”
