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Rudy Gobert promises ‘justice’ for next ejection after getting tossed following elbow shot to his face

Rudy Gobert has always worn his heart on his sleeve. He was so distraught after missing out on an All-Star selection last season that he cried in front of reporters. When he was ejected from Tuesday’s game against the Toronto Raptors, he was similarly upset. 

It all happened in transition with only around 40 seconds remaining in the game. Raptors forward OG Anunoby appears to try to elbow the Utah Jazz center in the face. Preemptively, the officials then decide to eject both Anunoby and Gobert despite Gobert’s fairly minimal response to Anunoby’s elbow in the moment. 

After the game, though, Gobert let his anger out. He was not shy in suggesting that his ejection was not justified. 

“I don’t think it makes sense to me. But next time, I’ll do justice myself so the official can eject me for a reason,” Gobert said via ESPN.

While the Jazz would obviously prefer there not to be a “next time” when it comes to Gobert getting ejected, he went on to make a broader point about officiating. In his mind, what happened on Monday was tantamount to punishing the victim. 

“And the guy that’s getting paid to protect the other players didn’t do his job,” Gobert said, referring to the officials. “There was a little altercation, and we both got ejected when I didn’t do anything back, pretty much, which I don’t understand.”

The video seems to corroborate Gobert’s version of events. Anunoby is the initiator, and Gobert doesn’t reject particularly harshly. There was also less than a minute remaining in a close game. The odds of such a scuffle escalating into something more serious when critical free throws were on the line would have been minimal. The officials acted preemptively in this case, and Gobert took the fall for it. 

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EltasZone Sportswriters, Sports Analysts, Opinion columnists, editorials and op-eds. Analysis from The Zone Team
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