Rudy Gobert Suffered Racism As A Child From Family Members

In an essay published Monday by the Players’ Tribune, written by Rudy Gobert, the 31-year-old shared some traumatic stories from his childhood that he had to experience.

Sadly, when Gobert was a child, he experienced racism from his own family members. Due to his skin color, the family did not want his mother to bring the child around them – even for the holidays.

According to Gobert, his mother wouldn’t be welcomed to Christmas if she brought “that child.”

“After I was born, certain relatives made it very clear to her that she wasn’t welcome to come to Christmas dinner if she brought me along,” Gobert wrote.

“She could come on her own. But she couldn’t bring ‘that child.’ She couldn’t bring Rudy.”

He later explained how her side of the family gave her an ultimatum of either the family or her own child; Corinne Gobert chose her son and cut off contact with her family.

Gobert witnessed the sacrifices his mother made and made it his mission to repay her for everything; he had “an iron belief” that he would one day make his big dreams a reality.

In his essay, he said he had a burning passion for basketball by age 12, and the rest is history. Since becoming a basketball star, the Timberwolves veteran has been able to repay his mom and give her the life she never had.

“At the time, I had never even picked up a basketball yet. But I knew — I really knew — that somehow all of this was going to happen. I had an iron belief. Not necessarily that I was going to play in the NBA. But that I was going to be successful — whatever that meant for me. Science, law, accounting, whatever. It didn’t matter. I was going to make it. For us.”