Rocco Zikarsky with T'wolves as Gobert suspended

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Rookie Australian centre Rocco Zikarsky has been recalled by the Minnesota Timberwolves just as Defensive Player of the Year centre Rudy Gobert was suspended by the NBA for a game.

Gobert was been suspended one game without pay for his seventh Flagrant Foul point of the 2025–26 regular season against the Dallas Mavericks.

Zikarsky is fourth on Minnesota's depth chart, but it's a positive sign for the Queenslander, who was taken 45th in the 2025 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls and traded to the Timberwolves, that he could make his NBA debut.

Zikarsky accelerated his NBA journey in Iowa with the G League Wolves, averaging 14.0 points and 8.4 rebounds while confidently stretching the floor as a 7-foot-3 player in 2025–26.

The 19-year-old centre anchors the paint for the Iowa Wolves, Minnesota's G League affiliate.

Zikarsky was rewarded for his dominant performances with the Iowa Wolves with a call-up to what is ultimately the G League's All-Star Game, named the Next Up Game in Los Angeles as part of NBA All-Star Weekend.

He's averaged 14.9 points, 9.4 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in 25.4 minutes, shooting 53.0% from the field and an impressive 87.9% at the free-throw line. His scoring, unsurprisingly, leans heavily on paint touches and rim finishes, but he also showed early stretch indicators, attempting nearly three threes per game.

Minnesota’s next 10 games (All dates and times are AEDT):

• Mon, 23 Feb – vs Philadelphia – 11AM
• Wed, 25 Feb – @ Portland – 2PM
• Fri, 27 Feb – @ LA – 2PM
• Mon, 2 Mar – @ Denver – 7:30AM
• Wed, 4 Mar – vs Memphis – 12PM
• Fri, 6 Mar – vs Toronto – 12PM
• Sun, 8 Mar – vs Orlando – 7AM
• Wed, 11 Mar – @ Los Angeles Lakers – 2PM

The NBA’s regular season Flagrant Foul point system appears below:

If the player’s regular season total exceeds 5 points, he will receive an automatic suspension following the game in which his point total exceeds 5 points and for each additional Flagrant Foul committed during that regular season, as follows:

1. Player at 4 points commits a Flagrant Foul 2: Automatic 1-game suspension
2. Player at 5 or 6 points commits a Flagrant Foul 1: Automatic 1-game suspension
3. Player at 5 or 6 points commits a Flagrant Foul 2: Automatic 2-game suspension
4. Player at 7 points or more commits a Flagrant Foul 1 or 2: Automatic 2-game suspension