Aaron Gordon is the key to Orlando Magic’s success . . . or failure

The Orlando Magic have big expectations for the coming season. They may all be tied to the development and growth of one player — Aaron Gordon.

Aaron Gordon heard the question about his 2017 season. He was asked about it almost everywhere he went.

How would he adjust to playing the 3 and working on the perimeter?

That was probably always the wrong question to ask Gordon. After all, it was the coach’s decision to move him to that spot. And Frank Vogel, trying to jumble a frontcourt with four very talented (and well compensated) players, was merely trying to put his best players on the floor at the same time. Management is the one who failed to recognize the poor fit of all the pieces.

Gordon was the good soldier, confident in his skills and willing to try whatever the coaches asked him without too much of a peep. He certainly seemed to thrive on the defensive end, gaining Vogel’s trust to defend the best perimeter player on almost every night.

And Gordon showed flashes, scoring 33 points against the LA Clippers and dominating the game offensively in one instant. But it was overtly clear the small forward experiment was not working. The Orlando Magic were not getting the most of Gordon. They were hardly getting the most of any of their four bigs. Everyone seemed out of place.

As the Orlando Magic shifted Aaron Gordon back to power forward after trading Serge Ibaka to the Toronto Raptors, they began to see more of the consistency and began to see Gordon blossom. Five of his 10 highest scoring games came after the All-Star Break. Better said, five of his highest scoring games the entire season came in the final 24 games, as opposed to the first 68.

That included a mesmerizing 32-point performance against the Boston Celtics when he worked the Celtics defense with his mid-range jumper, open-court athleticism (just ask Marcus Smart) and just general offensive game.

He averaged 11.2 points per game before the All-Star Break, only to see it jump to 16.4 points per game after the All-Star Break. That 16.4 points per game represented a bit more of what Gordon can be.

And that gets to the heart of the real question involving Aaron Gordon.

It was never truly about what position is he was best at — that seemed fairly self-evident, even if he left scant hints otherwise. The real question was how does the team unlock the most of Gordon’s talent? And, entering this critical season, the question becomes: What happens if the Magic fail to do so again?

There is no getting around it this time. Aaron Gordon is going to be the most important and critical player for the Magic this season.

If he can take that long-awaited next step, the Magic could potentially take the next step themselves. If he stays about the same, not only does the team’s future become much more in doubt, so too does Gordon’s future with the team. Let alone, what he will become in the NBA.

That confusion is evident in this week’s rankings-palooza. It seemed like no one know where to place him among the NBA’s promising young players or best players overall.

On one end, ESPN’s panel for #NBARank ranked Gordon as the No. 68 player in the league, noting his 18.4 PER in 25 starts at power forward last year, compared to 12.3 in his other starts.

That is the optimistic bend, seeing his growth from last season to end the year and projecting it to the future.

Then there is the other end. Sports Illustrated’s Top 100 rated Gordon as one of the biggest snubs from their list. Ben Golliver noted his inconsistency as the reason why he was left off the list.

"In his third year with Orlando, Gordon (12.7 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 1.9 APG) locked down a full-time starting gig but didn’t quite deliver a true breakout campaign. A freakishly athletic 21-year-old forward who famously (but unsuccessfully) unveiled the “Drone Dunk” at All-Star Weekend in New Orleans, Gordon was often pushed out to the wing by the Magic’s frontcourt logjam. While he has the tools to effectively defend multiple positions, Gordon is a much more natural offensive fit at the four due to his limited ball skills and lack of three-point shooting range. To no one’s great surprise, his numbers improved substantially following the midseason trade of power forward Serge Ibaka. Despite his bounciness and boundless energy, Gordon hasn’t yet consistently impacted games like a top-five pick should. He enters next season still needing to prove that he’s capable of being more than a glorified hustle guy."

That uncertainty is driving everything with Gordon — and the Magic. How Gordon answers that question will be central to how the Magic answer their questions for this season.

Because the reality from those lists was also true: There are no other players who seemingly fit the bill to grow into the star every team needs. Nikola Vucevic has seemingly hit his peak or is nearing it. And he has had several years in the spotlight to help take the team to the next step.

Evan Fournier is in a similar spot. But he showed last year how much he struggles at the top of the scouting report. Elfrid Payton has shortcomings that are pretty well known that could prevent him from being the breakout player the Magic need.

Gordon is the guy. He is the one with the limitless potential. The key draft pick that has not turned out as planned.

Facing restricted free agency this summer, the Magic or some team will put a dollar amount on Gordon and his talent. His 2018 season will help determine the future his career goes. The time for relying on potential is over, as I wrote for The Step Back about a month ago:

"Entering a contract year — he is contract-eligible this summer — Gordon still is a bundle of potential. He has shown flashes of how he can use his athleticism but has lacked the consistency to get there. The 2018 season is where Gordon has to prove what he is. Relying on potential ends now for him. Fortunately for him, it seems he is finally getting the stability and opportunity to take his game to another level."

Stability has been a big part that has been missing from his career. This year will be the first where he has had the same coach for consecutive years in his career. Additionally, he has not had a fully healthy summer or training camp since before his rookie year. Injuries seemed to constantly derail his development at key moments.

Those excuses appear gone for now. There are no reports of injury for Gordon. He seems on track (knocking furiously on wood) to have a healthy start to his season.

Gordon will have his chance to shine this season. The Magic have a gigantic talent gap to fill. that much has been made clear. And if Gordon can take steps to fill it, the Magic’s future looks a lot brighter.

The whole 2018 season seemingly rests on this question finally getting some resolution.

At 21 years old, there is still plenty of hope Gordon can turn the corner. He is far from his ceiling as a player.

But it is time for him to start producing and putting up some production to match that prodigious talent. It is time for some results to match that potential.

The Magic are depending on it.