Aaron Gordon is a defensive 3, at least

The Tape

Watching Aaron Gordon play defense is beautiful to watch. And no performance of his may have been as impressive as his game against James Harden and the Houston Rockets in early January.

Gordon helped hold Harden to 5-for-15 shooting and 0-for-8 from beyond the arc with just six free throw attempts. It was a team effort to keep Harden down (and the Magic lost anyway after they lost track of Ryan Anderson a few times). Gordon though set the tone with his defense as he has often throughout the season.

In the play above, Gordon chases Harden to the corner and does a good job keeping his feet and his hands from reaching to force Harden into a difficult step-back 3-pointer. It was like that for much of the night for Harden.

Gordon kept that pressure on him and on plenty others this year. He does this using his mix of athleticism, speed and discipline. Uncharacteristic discipline for a player so young.

In this play, Gordon is matched up with Damian Lillard. He is not pressing up, an advantage he can use because of his length and size over Lillard. He also has Nikola Vucevic in help side behind him. Gordon keeps good balance and stays on Lillard’s left hand, forcing Lillard to step back or move toward his help. Gordon then shows what makes him a special defender, closing that gap quickly and blocking the shot.

This is par for the course when it comes to Gordon. But it is also clear there are areas he can improve.

Gordon still struggles working around screens. He did a decent job staying on C.J. McCollum’s hip during that win over the Portland Trail Blazers, but McCollum got going eventually (scoring 26 points in that game).

Similarly, Gordon struggled against Kevin Durant. Then again, who does not?

Gordon could keep his position, but still can get undisciplined with his hands. Elite players like Durant know how to take advantage of those brief moments of imbalance. And while Gordon has sometimes gotten steals, his tendency to reach is perhaps his biggest weakness in his on-ball defense.

The potential is clearly there. Durant scored — and had plenty of points in that game — but Gordon never made anything easy. Gordon’s reputation is quickly growing.