All Hail Air Gordon: The Secret Sauce Behind Denver's Dominance
A closer look at Aaron Gordon's All-Star caliber season for the Denver Nuggets.
With the Western conference up for grabs this season, the Denver Nuggets have taken advantage. Despite dropping three of their last five games, they still boast the second-best record in the league (35-16) and remain the top seed out West.
Nikola Jokic has a lot to do with that. His sheer presence on the basketball court will always put you in the conversation. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope — one of Denver’s coveted offseason additions — is leading the entire league in 3pt% (46.3%). (Of those with at least 4 attempts per game). Even Jamal Murray has regained most of his pre-injury juice back. He’s not 2020 Bubble Murray. But he’s close.
At the end of the day, Denver has lots of things to be excited about. But none has mattered more than the play of Aaron Gordon.
His averages of 16.8 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.7 assists aren’t eye-popping. But his efficiency is where the story begins. He’s hitting 57% of his shots from the field — a career-high by more than 5% — and making 63% of his 2s. That number is escalated due to his 72% at the rim. Basically, he’s been as automatic as they come from inside the paint.
Earlier in his career, Gordon was given the ball and asked to be a playmaker. That’s not really his forte. Midway through his third year in Michael Malone’s scheme, he’s figured out how to be a menace off the ball.
The fit with Jokic has been exemplary. Their two-man game looks like it was carefully sculpted by the world’s finest artist. Jokic trusts him. And that’s huge.
Whether slipping to the paint off down screens or simply cutting to the dunker spot when Jokic is doubled, he knows the ball will find him.
This added layer to Denver’s offense has caused fits for opposing teams. If you leave Jokic’s defender on an island, he’ll get manahandled. If you double, he’ll find Gordon in the paint. And with defenses now having to account for Gordon’s off-ball whereabouts, the Nuggets have three 40% 3pt shooters for Jokic to choose from. Pick your poison.
Perhaps the most infuriating snafu for opposing defenses to cover is when Gordon and Jokic screen for each other. If you ever want to laugh, flip on a Nuggets game and watch the defending frontcourt try and navigate this on the fly. Pure entertainment.
Most of their on-ball screens involve Jokic functioning as the primary ball handler with Gordon screening. If the defense switches, Gordon finds himself matched up with a center. Gordon is 6-foot-9 and one of the most athletic players in the league. The sight of a bigger, slower defender on him is BBQ chicken at this point in his career. The same can be said for Jokic, too. A switch only allows him to be matched up with a much smaller defender.
Doubling doesn’t offer much resistance either. All that does is free up one of the two. And Jokic is one of the best passers in NBA history. That doesn’t phase him at all.
This chaos is beautifully designed. And it’s exactly what Denver wants.
Of all two-man lineups that have played at least 800 minutes this season, Gordon and Jokic are tied for first with a 125.0 offensive rating. (Ironically, the other duo they are tied with is Jokic/Caldwell-Pope). Their NET rating of 15.4 during that span is first by half a point.
Gordon is having his best year defensively as well. Opposing players are shooting 41.8% with him as the primary defender, per Second Spectrum, and his 0.908 points per possession allowed ranks in the 91st percentile.
These numbers are more impressive when you view them through the lens that Gordon often guards the opposing teams best player. In Tuesday’s matchup against the Pelicans, Gordon held Brandon Ingram and C.J. McCollum to a combined 2-12 from the field (16%) and forced three turnovers.
According to a piece from The Athletic, Gordon credits his defensive improvement to the team getting more familiar with one another:
“We just started communicating with each other,” Gordon said. “I think that’s what it came down to. When you talk, it alleviates a lot of the confusion on the defensive end.”
The more that you peer into Gordon’s body of work, it becomes evident that he has a pretty substantial All-Star case. If Andrew Wiggins was named a starter last season, hasn’t Gordon at least earned a reserve spot? Denver hasn’t had multiple All-Stars since Chauncey Billups and Carmelo Anthony back in 2010.
Whichever way you slice it, Gordon is the engine behind Denver’s dominance throughout the first part of the season. As long as he’s on the floor with Jokic, they are legit title contenders. Just ask coach Malone:
“We wouldn’t be where we’re at at the halfway point without Aaron Gordon’s play, his attitude, and his team-first mentality,” Malone said”
All hail Air Gordon.