The time is now for Aaron Gordon to carry the Orlando Magic

When the Orlando Magic drafted Aaron Gordon, he was met with boos. It has been a long journey to become the face of the franchise and maybe its savior.

With the No. 4 overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, the Orlando Magic selected Aaron Gordon.

The majority of fans at the Amway Center that night booed when the Magic surprised the world with the selection. They appeared to favor taking fan-favorite point guard Dante Exum or Rob Hennigan-favorite (at least from the year before) Marcus Smart or the more proven commodity in Julius Randle.

Gordon was a supreme athlete, sure. But he did not have a defined skill set and would promise to need several years of development to turn into. . . . something.

It has been a long journey to get from that moment to where he is today.

It has been quite the ride for Gordon, but he seems ready to get over that hump and become the star the Magic envisioned when they drafted him fourth overall in 2014.

With a new contract in tow, Gordon is building off a career year with more expectations placed on him than ever before. He has put behind him all the doubts from year’s past.

Amazingly, this has become his team. Or it should be.

The journey for Gordon to get here is quite an amazing one.

At the time of the draft, Orlando needed a point guard badly (they would trade for Elfrid Payton later on in the night). But they also needed another athletic big to play alongside center Nikola Vucevic. Gordon was seen as a tweener with no defined position and minimal offensive skills. Hennigan took the podium later in the night and said Gordon was simply a “forward” when asked to describe his position.

What some failed to realize at the time is the Magic got perhaps the most athletic player in the draft and someone who might be the most marketable. They had a future star if they could develop him right and have the patience to wait him out.

Aaron Gordon has Blake Griffin like athletic ability and out of this world hops. The two were an easy comparison.

The Orlando Magic front office at the time was surely thinking Gordon could one day be the face of the franchise. That draft was built to be the one that would save the team — several teams coveted a top three pick in that draft for several years.

He quickly displayed his affectionate personality in his introductory press conference. When explaining why he choose the number double zero, Gordon said, “The double-zero represent how wide I want the fans eyes to be when they see all of us play. So, that’s how I want all the fans to look like when they’re watching us play.”

Magic fans have been wide-eyed watching Gordon dunk over defenders and make incredible defensive stops. His dunking skills were on full display in the 2016 NBA Slam Dunk Contest.

Gordon jumped over his mascot and took a seat in mid-air, reversed the ball to his right hand,  before flushing down a dunk. He also grabbed the ball form his mascot spinning on a hoverboard and completed an insane 360 dunk.

It was his veritable coming out party while still seeking his role on a struggling Magic team.

Gordon introduced himself to the world as an elite dunker and was crowned the people’s Slam Dunk Champion.

Fast forward two years and Gordon is starting to show the world that he is more than just a dunker.

Last season, he averaged 17.6 points and 7.9 rebounds per game while shooting 33 percent from three, all career highs. He cracked the 40-point mark twice last season with thrilling performances against the Brooklyn Nets and the Oklahoma City Thunder.

And Gordon did not lose any steam this past offseason.

He starred in the blockbuster summer movie Uncle Drew alongside Shaquille O’Neal, Kyrie Irving, Chris Webber and Reggie Miller. The Magic also inked Gordon to a four-year deal worth $76 million, making him the highest paid player on the team.

It cemented Gordon as the face of the franchise. As president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman put it, the Magic were investing in Gordon the person as much as the player. And they believe on what he can become for the team.

The time is now for him to lead the Magic into the playoffs. It is Gordon’s team and his to lose.

The Magic have traded away budding stars like Victor Oladipo and Tobias Harris in the past. They have let go of top 10 draft picks in Elfrid Payton and Mario Hezonja. Gordon is the last remaining player drafted under Hennigan. And one of the last hopes to make this year’s team special.

Orlando Magic

Gordon showed last year he could take over for the team. He nearly led the team in scoring and showed with those 40-point games just what he could become. With his youth and seemingly supernatural talent, the Magic have put a lot of hope in his development.

As many players said, the last piece missing in his All-Star candidacy is the team pulling together some wins and competing for the Playoffs. Gordon will have to learn how to lead the team to that promised land.

Improvement feels inevitable — especially considering his age and his career trajectory. Gordon has improved every year since Orlando drafted him.

Every year he adds a new wrinkle to his game. Gordon is a gym rat and constantly puts in work. When he has had healthy summers, his game has rocketed to new heights.

Now, Orlando needs a core group to turn around the rebuild. Gordon is the most advanced of those potential players that could transform the team.

With all things put into consideration, Gordon is poised for a breakout year. He will have the ball in his hands and the opportunity to create magic (no pun intended). He can become the playmaker that he has always envisioned himself as.

Gordon has the green light to become a superstar. And the Magic will need him to become one to make this next phase of their growth work.