Timberwolves suspend Rudy Gobert for play-in game against Lakers

The Minnesota Timberwolves have suspended three-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert for Tuesday’s play-in tournament game against the Lakers.

The team announced the decision Monday, a day after Gobert punched teammate Kyle Anderson on the bench during a game against New Orleans on Sunday.

“The emotions overwhelmed me today,” Gobert tweeted on Sunday. “I shouldn’t have reacted like that, no matter what was said. I want to apologize to the fans, the (organization) and especially Kyle, who I truly love and respect as a teammate.”

Minnesota will also be without winger Jaden McDaniels after he broke his hand hitting a wall in the game against the Pelicans.

Remarkably, Minnesota came back from the Gobert and McDaniels incidents to beat the Pelicans and secure their spot in Tuesday’s play-in game against the Lakers.

Gobert averaged 13.4 points, 11.6 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in his first season with the Timberwolves.

McDaniels scored 12.1 points per game on 39.8% shooting from three-point range in his third season while developing into one of the NBA’s best defenders.

The winner of the Lakers-Timberwolves game will face No. 2 seed Memphis in the first round of the NBA playoffs starting Sunday. The loser will face the winner of New Orleans-Oklahoma City on Friday, while the winner will face No. 1 Denver in the playoffs.

This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.