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.

Gobert has found a kinship with Randle, who was a career 34-percent shooter in the playoffs in his career before emerging as the offensive stabilizer in his first season in Minnesota. Randle averaged 22.6 points per game in the series and shot 48 percent from the field and 39 percent from 3.