Orlando Magic Daily
Fansided

5 Orlando Magic storylines to watch in the 2023 NBA Finals

By Philip Rossman-Reich

Nov 8, 2021; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon (50) controls the ball as Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (22) guards in the fourth quarter at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 8, 2021; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon (50) controls the ball as Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler (22) guards in the fourth quarter at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 6
Next
Aaron Gordon, Denver Nuggets
May 22, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon (50) and guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (5) celebrate winning against the Los Angeles Lakers in game four of the Western Conference Finals for the 2023 NBA playoffs at Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /

5 Orlando Magic storylines to watch in the 2023 NBA Finals

The Aaron Gordon Story

The Orlando Magic of course had a direct hand in making the Denver Nuggets what they are today.

The trade of Aaron Gordon (and Gary Clark, NEVER FORGET GARY CLARK) to the Nuggets for Gary Harris, R.J. Hampton and that coveted 2025 first-round pick was a move that took the Nuggets from a very good team to a potential championship team.

Gordon stepped in immediately in that 2021 season and turned the Nuggets into even more of an offensive juggernaut while giving them the switching wing defender that they missed when Jerami Grant left the team in free agency following their Western Conference Finals run in the 2020 Bubble.

They knew they needed a player like Gordon and went out and got him.

Of course, their ascendance to true title contenders got derailed. Jamal Murray’s ACL injury just 10 games after Aaron Gordon’s arrival slowed any of that positive momentum down. And it has taken this long for Murray to get all the way back.

Gordon has fit in perfectly with that team. This year has been one of his best seasons and probably his most efficient season.

Gordon averaged 16.3 points per game and 6.6 rebounds per game with shooting splits of 56.4/34.7/60.8. That does not look great but his 60.8 percent effective field goal percentage is a career-best.

For Magic fans, Gordon seems to have found the role that best fits all of his talents and will help him succeed.

He will still sometimes give into those star instincts he gained from Orlando, but he most fits in as a slasher catching passes from Nikola Jokic or crashing the glass. His main efforts are on defense where he will likely get the main matchup with Jimmy Butler for this series.

Gordon is central to everything the Nuggets do. He may not be their top scorer, but he plays a vital role that has helped transform the Nuggets into a championship team.

He obviously was not everything the Magic imagined when they picked him with the fourth pick in the 2014 NBA Draft. The Magic tried to groom him into their star and he was not up to the task — even after several early years wasted trying to figure out which role was best for him and swapping coaches seemingly every year.

Why Gordon did not work out perfectly in Orlando is a mixture of both the team’s poor development culture and Gordon’s lack of focus in the player he wanted to become — not to mention some bad-luck injuries early in his career.

But Aaron Gordon is here now. And he — along with Jeff Green and Ish Smith for the Nuggets and Victor Oladipo for the Heat (Oladipo will not play after suffering an injury) — are the Magic alums who have a shot at winning a title.