Rudy Gobert became the punchline to a biting NBA joke. His status in the league, questioned. His four Defensive Player of the Year honors, discredited. His ability to thrive in the postseason, nearly universally rejected.

Rudy Gobert had playoff career highs of 27 points and 24 rebounds, Julius Randle added 23 points and the Minnesota Timberwolves advanced in the NBA playoffs with a 103-96 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5 of their first-round series.

Hall of Fame center Shaquille O'Neal has never been the biggest fan of Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert, but even he had to admit Gobert was "dominating" the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 5 of their first-round Western Conference playoff series Wednesday night at Crypto.