Aaron Gordon’s shooting improvement key to any Playoff hopes

The Orlando Magic are pinning their hopes in 2018 on Aaron Gordon‘s development. To be who they will need, Gordon must continue improving his shooting.

Aaron Gordon can consistently out jump you and defend at a high level. There is no questioning that raw athletic ability. At the bare minimum, he is good for a highlight or two in transition and some lock-down defense.

In Gordon’s three years in the league, he has shown that prodigious athletic ability. But he has yet to put all the pieces together. He has not taken that full step forward — whether it is the inability to develop in the offseason or playing out of position.

If Gordon is going to make good on his talent as the fourth overall pick from the 2014 NBA Draft, he will have to improve his shooting ability and become a more effective scorer.

Gordon is one of the most athletic players in the NBA. But his offensive game has failed to develop. It has largely to do with his inability to shoot consistently from the field and from beyond the arc.

Gordon averaged just 12.7 points per game last year (a career high) but shot a lowly 45.4 percent from the floor and an even-worse 28.8 percent from beyond the arc. Even with Gordon playing more power forward after the All-Star Break last year and his scoring average jumping to 16.4 points per game on 50.3 percent shooting from the floor, his 3-point percentage remained an icy 31.1 percent. Only a slight increase as his volume from the perimeter decreased.

With Gordon’s rookie contract set to expire, Gordon has to show some growth from the perimeter and expand his offensive game.

"“I try to stay in the present moment,” Gordon told Orlando Magic Daily at Media Day on Monday. “I had a couple 30s last year, a couple 20s. But really, just as a team, we need to play better. We need to play more focused and with more of a sense of urgency. I think scoring will come pretty naturally to me.”"

Gordon’s scoring increased last year. He had four games of 30 or more points and 12 games of 20 or more points. Clearly, he had the ability to put up some big games. Consistency is his issue. And there is only one way for him to achieve that.

Since Gordon was drafted in 2014, shooting has been his Achilles heel. This is the one part of his game that could transform his career from being a liability from the field to becoming an All-Star caliber player. If Gordon could improve on his shooting ability the Magic could become a legitimate threat in the watered-down Eastern Conference.

For instance, Gordon is 220 pounds of athleticism and stands 6-foot-9 inches. Last year he averaged 12.7 points per game and 5.1 rebounds per game, respectively. At this size he could do whatever he wants on defenders, a reliable shot would only enhance his ability to score.

But Gordon shot a miserable 27.1 percent from 3-point range last year. He has never shot 30 percent from beyond the arc in a single season since he entered the league.

He has shown the ability to drive past defenders and score at the rim, but he has not shown the ability to knock down the mid-range and 3-point jumpers consistently during his stint in the NBA. If he has developed a jumper during this offseason, the potential for him to grow would increase dramatically.

Last year, Gordon shot 36.1 percent on mid-range shots, according to NBA.com. Only 191 of his 865 field goal attempts came from this range. He certainly avoided this shot when he could. Still, outside of shots in the restricted area, it was his most-used shot in his arsenal.

At his height combined with his agility, Gordon has superstar potential. He showed that several times last year with scoring outbursts. Each time he had these scoring outbursts, it came because he was able to hit from mid-range.

Take his 32-point performance against the Boston Celtics. Much of his work in that game came from mid-range as he hit on 11 of 24 shots. That is still not an efficient performance.

Gordon is due for a jump in production this year. With a full and healthy summer to work on his jumper, the Magic may see it. If not, this will remain a problem for a Magic team looking for a young leader.

Shooting is the biggest hole in Gordon’s game. Some of the defenders in the NBA have caught on to his deficiencies on the offensive end already. Defenders know to stay off Gordon on the perimeter, clogging driving lanes for his teammates. Gordon really has to get better with his shot.

This has been an important missing piece to the offense. Now the paint gets clogged up with defenders and it takes away from not only Aaron Gordon attacking the basket but also from Nikola Vucevic consistently going one-on-one in the post. That’s why basketball is sometimes called a team game.

Right now Orlando’s best team offense seems to be when Aaron Gordon and Elfrid Payton run the fast break, which is not a good sign going forward.

Great offenses can score consistently using offensive sets. Fast break points are more of a luxury. And Elfrid Payton’s lack of a shooting touch only clogs up the paint even more.

If Gordon can improve on his outside shot, it would draw defenders outside of the paint and allow more fluidity in the Magic’s offense. It woudl greatly expand his offensive capabilities. It is the next logical step for Gordon’s game to grow.

If Gordon’s offense can show any signs of life this year the team may surprise analysts and pundits around the NBA.

Next: 2018 Orlando Magic Outlook

Philip Rossman-Reich contributed to this post.