Aaron Gordon defied expectations to start in the Denver Nuggets decider against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Game 7 is when you leave it all on the line, with no regrets. Aaron Gordon lived up to this, simply by stepping onto the court.
Gordon sustained a hamstring injury during Game 6 of the Denver Nuggets series with the Oklahoma City Thunder, and was not expected to play.
Yet after coming through warmups, Gordon miraculously started for the Nuggets and played 35 minutes in an individually heroic effort, clearly limited physically in his actions.
Sadly Aaron Gordon’s efforts were in vain, the Nuggets were blown out 125-93 by the West’s number one seed.
Aaron Gordon opened the series as the Denver Nuggets hero with a spectacular game winning shot to steal a win in OKC in Game 1.
The late three-pointer capped a 22-point performance that he matched in Game 3. Injuries meant he was not the same dynamic player in Game 7.
Gordon was playing with heavy strapping on his left leg, and was not as impactful as he would normally have been.
Yet he still managed to contribute in the box score, adding 8 points and leading the Nuggets with 11 rebounds.
Gordon’s 11 rebounds was the joint-highest on the court, matched by 11 from OKC’s Chet Holmgren.
Denver sat him late on with the game lost, yet he can be proud of his 25 minutes played, with head coach David Adelman describing it as ‘one of the most incredible things he has ever seen’.
Aaron Gordon’s performance in Game 7 might have been unspectacular, yet in the context of his injury it was mightily impressive.
And there is another layer to it too. It totally embarrasses the contribution made by Jaxson Hayes during the LA Lakers series with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Hayes started the first four games before being benched for the fifth. Coach JJ Redick was unconvinced by him, limiting his playing time to 30 minutes across the four.
And yet across these four games, in more minutes than an injured Gordon managed in Game 7, Hayes was less impactful.
Hayes scored only 7 points in total, one fewer than Gordon managed.
He managed to grab 8 rebounds, three fewer than the 11 Gordon snatched during the Nuggets series’ decider.
The numbers are a credit to Gordon and his efforts, his mental and physical toughness.
While they also prove to underline JJ Redick’s concerns with Jaxson Hayes, who he chose not to play for a single minute of their Game 5 loss.
