Kawhi Leonard and the Toronto Raptors beat the Orlando Magic in the first round of the 2019 NBA Playoffs, showing where Aaron Gordon still has to improve.
Despite the 4-1 series loss to the eventual-NBA champion Toronto Raptors in the first round of the NBA Playoffs this year, the word on the street was that Aaron Gordon had a showing-out party of sorts. He received recognition for his defensive showing against Kawhi Leonard and might very well have been the best player on the team that series.
Aaron Gordon finished the five-game series averaging 15.2 points per game and shooting a healthy 53.2 percent effective field goal percentage. If anything, the Orlando Magic needed to turn to Gordon more offensively to try to relieve some pressure and simply could not.
His defensive matchup with Leonard was a key matchup for the series. If Gordon could somehow manage to shut or slow Leonard down, the thinking went, the Magic may have a fighting chance.
Instead, Leonard and the Raptors’ play resembled the basketball equivalent of a freight train after Game 1.
Leonard, who went on to be named the NBA Finals MVP, averaged 27.8 points per game and shot 55.6 percent from the floor. The Magic tried at various times throwing multiple defenders at Leonard, slowing him down in Game 3 although coach Nick Nurse said that was more because of an illness, but Leonard kept coming.
He did that to everyone, of course. Leonard averaged 30.5 points per game on a 54.5 percent effective field goal percentage for the playoffs. He turned in one of the best individual postseason performances in league history.
So, were we all right to applaud Gordon for his defensive prowess against one of the NBA’s elite players? Or did our eyes deceive us?
As the Magic prepare for the 2020 season, the team will again rely on its defense to anchor the team. Orlando finished eighth overall in defensive rating last year. To make the playoffs again, the Magic must continue to be one of the best defenses in the league.
And Gordon will have to lead them as the team’s best perimeter defender. There will have to be some key lessons taken from the team’s playoff performance.