Aaron Gordon may need to watch some film on these three historical power forwards before he laces them up and goes back to work on Christmas Day.
Will the real Aaron Gordon please stand up?
Most fans in Central Florida still have hope for their 2014 first-round fourth overall selection. The hope is that Aaron Gordon can morph into an All-Star level player for the Orlando Magic and help the team get out of the first round of the 2021 NBA Playoffs.
That help is desperately needed at this point because the Magic have shown the ability to make it to the playoffs without him morphing into an All-Star, but Nikola Vucevic needed an All-Star level contributor alongside him in consecutive playoff appearances.
The Magic have understood that their best path forward is internal development. And Gordon has shown plenty of flashes of outright stardom — from his 40-point games in 2018 to his stellar defensive play in 2019 to his versatility and playmaking in 2020. He just has never put all these pieces together at the same time or consistently.
It is evident Gordon has some personal goals after he went to the dunk contest only to get robbed and be labeled the people’s champ of the competition. Gordon views himself as a star in a way — he is the only player on the team with a signature shoe signing with Chinese upstart 361 Degrees.
And as most top-five draft picks do, he probably has goals to win a championship for the team that selected him back in 2014. There is certainly pressure to achieve that goal with two years remaining on his contract and Jonathan Isaac waiting in the wings seemingly crowding him at power forward.
But how does Gordon get to those team goals he has set for himself?
It all starts and ends with what you give the game. They say it is better to give than to receive and Gordon has to give time to watch some of the best power forwards to play in order to begin to accomplish some of his goals.
Zach Lowe of ESPN named Gordon one of the players in the league that needs to have a better year. He has taken to saying Gordon’s game is a push and pull between his star instincts — he trained with Kobe Bryant last offseason and has gotten into trouble with his inefficient isolation and dribble pull-up game — and his defensive instincts. Most fans would compare Aaron Gordon to a player like Draymond Green or Shawn Marion.
Either way, his 2020 season was not anything that he wanted. His scoring dropped to 14.4 points per game although he still averaged 7.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. Gordon’s field goal percentage, more alarmingly, dropped to 43.7-percent overall and 30.3 -percent from beyond the arc.
Gordon still has a lot of pieces to put together.
If he wants to realize his potential, he has to model himself after some of the best players and find his niche that fits his skill set.
Shawn Kemp
Shawn Kemp was a first-round selection back in 1989 but was picked later in the draft than Aaron Gordon was as he was drafted 17th overall to the Seattle SuperSonics after going through a junior college rather than the traditional college route.
Kemp took the league by storm and became a fixture on one of the best teams of the 1990s.
The two power forwards share similarities as Kemp was extremely athletically gifted like Gordon. But Kemp was a more skilled scoring threat for his Sonics.
Orlando Magic
Now Kemp was never considered a dynamic 25-point-per-game scorer throughout his career but still managed to make six straight NBA All-Star appearances from 1992-98. He finished his 16.2 points per game and 9.6 rebounds per game in his eight seasons in Seattle. He only averaged 20 points per game once in his career — that was in 1999 with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
But Kemp was a must-see player. He was one of the best defenders in the league too. And while he played like a more traditional power forward, he is not too dissimilar to Gordon and how he plays.
The Magic organization is still waiting on Gordon to morph into an All-Star caliber player.
Gordon needs to watch film on the way Kemp competed as an offensive threat and how his athleticism demanded attention from defenders. Kemp had great footwork to work the post, leveraging that to use his athleticism. And he just loved to get out on the run and finish at the rim. This is an area the Magic could work to get Gordon more involved.
This is a skill set as well and can take the pressure off of players like Nikola Vucevic if Aaron Gordon was to use his skill set similar to how Kemp used his speed, quickness and jumping ability to translate to success in the 1990s.
Charles Barkley
Charles Barkley was also the fifth draft pick in the first round for the Philadelphia 76ers and was selected two picks after Michael Jordan.
Charles Barkley and Aaron Gordon share similarities in athleticism as well but we all know Gordon should not be mentioned in the same sentence as Barkley. Barkley was a workhorse, tracking down rebounds and using his athleticism and strength — or as he became known “Round Mound of Rebound” — to pester defenders. He played power forward in a tougher NBA while listed at 6-foot-6.
Barkley was a truly one of a kind player, averaging 22.1 points per game and 11.7 rebounds per game in his career. He 11-time All-Star and 11-time All-NBA player. He led the league in rebounds in 1987.
Gordon would only dream to reach Barkley’s levels.
But this is definitely a former player Gordon needs to reach out to for advice on how to take his talents to the next level.
Barkley was always considered one of the best, if not the best power forward in the game during his era and made his first All-Star appearance during his third year as a NBA player. Barkley made 11 straight All-Star appearances during his 16-year career and won a NBA MVP trophy in 1993 over Michael Jordan — Jordan got his revenge in the Finals though Barkley had a historic series, averaging 27.3 points, 13.0 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game in the six-game loss.
Gordon needs to watch film on Barkley’s skill set post moves and fakes to see how Barkley dominated the paint even though he was undersized as a power forward.
Draymond Green
Draymond Green was not a top-five first-round selection like Aaron Gordon. But he has developed into one of the best defensively gifted power forwards to ever play basketball.
Green has become the model for the modern power forward — able to initiate plays, defend every position and hit the occasional three. He gave the champion Golden State Warriors the toughness and tenacity it needed.
When Aaron Gordon entered the league, many pegged him as potentially a more athletic version of Draymond Green. He could be a potentially strong playmaker and all-defensive team player who could develop his outside shot. Many people see Gordon as less of a star and more of a do-it-all forward like Green.
Green and Gordon do not share a lot of similarities but the one similarity that jumps out is their selflessness and their willingness to be third options on their team.
Although Green has not averaged more than 14 points per game in a season for his career, he has been to three straight All-Star appearances and is a three-time world champion. He was the glue holding that team together.
Gordon needs to watch film on Green’s aggression on the defensive side of the ball and how he provides energy for his Warriors team and how that energy is a spark to the team even though he does not score consistently.
Gordon needs to do some extensive research on past and present players in the NBA.
There are other ways to impact the game if you are not as skilled of a scorer, Gordon has to be willing to embrace those attributes in order to get his maximum potential from this team.