Aaron Gordon has a lot of heart and plays with a lot of passion. Gordon is only 18 years old and doesn't turn 19 until a month before the season starts. Despite his youth he is very mature for his age and is a leader on and off the court. He has a passion for the game that coaches want in every locker room.
Gordon is comparable to Blake Griffin, as they have a very similar body structure. Coming into the league, Blake Griffin, stood at 6 feet 8 inches with a wingspan of 6 feet 11 inches and a reach of 8 feet 9 inches. Gordon has exactly the same dimensions. The reasons I believe Gordon has more potential are because of his leaping ability and muscle mass. When Blake Griffin was coming into the NBA everyone was drooling over his superior leaping abilities. Gordon actually is a better jumper coming out of college than Griffin was with a max vertical of 39 inches, whereas Griffin's was 35 inches.
Another aspect of Gordon's game that has the Orlando Magic excited is his defensive ability. With Gordon's athletic talent he is able to close out, block shots, and defend players in the post. The Magic's defense ranked 13th in the NBA with their opponents shooting about 45.6% per game. This is a decent stat but Aaron Gordon's Wildcats were ranked 4th in the NCAA allowing their opponents to only shoot 38% per game. Aaron Gordon will be able to help the front court of Orlando with his athletic talents.
Probably the best part of Aaron Gordon's game is his ability to get up and down the court in the transition game. Here is an example of Gordon running the floor at Arizona.
Imagine a line up of Victor Oladipo, Elfrid Payton, and Tobias Harris running the floor with him. With all this talent and ability on this Magic roster we are going to see some great buckets scored in transition.
Although Aaron Gordon has tremendous upside he still needs to improve his game if he wants to become an elite player. He needs to develop a consistent jump shot and he really need to work on his free-throw shooting. NBA defenders are not going to give him easy buckets at the rim and if he is not consistent at the line he will see his minutes go down throughout the season.
This pick by the Orlando Magic was a great one. It gives them a player that will compliment the players they already have on their roster. Aaron Gordon and the rest of their young roster are going to make them contenders for the years to come. What do you think of Aaron Gordon? How do you think he will fare in the NBA? Here at SportsFansSpeak, David B, thinks he will be rookie of the year. Do you think he's right?
He is built and plays a lot like Griffin. Good comparison. I am eager to see what this guy does in his NBA career.
ReplyDeleteHe is very athletic, these Orlando Magic games should be very exciting.
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