Now is the time for Aaron Gordon to show up and show out

After the Orlando Magic traded Serge Ibaka to Toronto for Terrence Ross, Aaron Gordon now has every opportunity to finally morph into the player he intended to become.  

This a new day for Aaron Gordon.

Serge Ibaka is gone. He was traded for to the Toronto Raptors for Terrence Ross on Tuesday.

Gordon can finally return to the position that most experts think he will have the most success, power forward. A position that will be a welcoming sign for a young struggling team who is on the outside of the 2017 Playoff race.

Gordon took Ibaka’s addition well, stating he can pretty much play any position on the floor, like a LeBron James type of player. He repeated a line he has said throughout his career and especially this season. He will play anywhere.

Even facing a change of his role from primarily a small forward to a power forward, Gordon will play anywhere or do whatever the Magic ask of him.

“I have said from the beginning I’m a basketball player,” Gordon said after Tuesday’s practice. “I don’t care. I’m positionless. I’ll play 1, I’ll play 5. I’ll play 2, 3, 4. It does not matter. I will just play basketball. I welcome all challenges.”

The challenge right now is figuring out how to get the Magic back on a Playoff track — either for 2017 or soon after.

Gordon, Frank Vogel, Rob Hennigan and just about everyone in the organization promised the Orlando Magic would become a playoff team this season. So far they have failed miserably.

As of today, the Magic are the second-worst team in the Eastern Conference right above the Brooklyn Nets.

Not only has the team not resembled an Eastern Conference playoff team, the reconstruction of the starting lineup has arguably set some of its core players back. Especially Gordon, who had to learn a new position to fit on this new roster.

After the Orlando Magic traded Victor Oladipo for Serge Ibaka, Vogel told Zach Lowe of ESPN.com if Ibaka was not on the roster then Gordon would be his starting power forward.

With that being said, one would think Vogel will stay true to his word and start Gordon at power forward alongside Nikola Vucevic now that Ibaka is no longer in Central Florida.

It appears the Magic will consider experimenting more with Gordon at the 4 now. The opportunity is there to unleash Gordon once again.

“I think part of what we’ll experiment with is playing a little smaller and putting some different combinations on the floor that will help us matchup a little easier with teams that play smaller,” Hennigan said. “I think we’ll certainly look at that and try that. It will Frank’s decision. I think we’ll see Aaron slide to the 4 a little bit and see what that looks like. The adding scoring and shooting threat helps. We’re excited to see how it plays out.”

This has been a position Gordon played sparingly during the Scott Skiles era because Skiles brought him off of the bench in favor of Tobias Harris or Channing Frye for the most part. Two players who no longer play for Orlando.

According to 82Games.com, Gordon posted a 20.3 PER at power forward last year, by far his best individual output. This year playing almost entirely as a small forward he has a 13.0 PER.

It is clear by almost every metric — outside of points per game — Gordon has regressed offensively. Despite the occasional 30-point game or strong offensive game, he has not shown consistency on the perimeter.

Now is the time for the team to invest all of their chips in a player with star appeal written all over him, especially after he finished second in the 2016 Slam Dunk Contest. Especially after they have seen how the season has turned for the worse after experimenting with Ibaka instead of developing Gordon at his natural position.

Terrence Ross is another high-flying style of player who may complement Aaron Gordon.

Orlando Magic

Even without the statistics, Gordon has the make of a new-age power forward. He can dribble and run the floor with the best of the best power forwards in the league. Gordon can out jump any power forward in the NBA. And he is an improved defender on the wing to guard stretch four’s.

This year has not been all that bad for Gordon defensively. He has proven that he can guard the best players in the league this year, like LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony. This a good sign for a young player full of potential.

Gordon’s potential was on full display against Blake Griffin’s LA Clippers this season when he scored a career-high 33 points inside of the Amway Center.

Now with Ibaka in Toronto, Gordon’s shot attempts should increase from 10 to maybe 13 or 15 per game. And there should be more spacing on the floor playing with Terrence Ross on the wing. Not to mention, Gordon’s shot attempts could very well come closer to the basket.

Ross is shooting 37.5 percent from downtown and is a consistent threat to take defenders off of the dribble. Unlike Ibaka, Ross’ explosiveness to the basket should draw defenders to the paint area. That is where Gordon can potentially showcase his above the rim skills near the block and crashing the offensive glass.

The Ibaka trade specifically tells Gordon and the fans in Orlando the organization is looking to feature him more in the post and in the paint than they have before the trade deadline.

It also clears up a log-jam in the front court where Vogel had two power forwards. Now the featured power forward is clearly Aaron Gordon.

Next: Orlando Magic's trade for Terrence Ross opens up playing time

And that should mean Gordon is ready to take a big leap. The skills he learned at small forward will serve him well. But now it is time to return Gordon to his natural position.

Philip Rossman-Reich contributed to this report.