One transformation + two finals, Gordon of the Three Conqueres everyone

"I know the risks very well, but I want to give my team in a life-and-death battle. And when I stand on the court, I will do my best."

With a second-degree hamstring strain, Aaron Gordon only took less than 3 days to appear in the Western Conference semi-final tiebreak.

Alon Gordon's injury-back did not achieve the ending of the hero's return, but all Nuggets fans, even hostile Thunder fans, will also pay tribute to the resolute man who took off his hat.

And in this season of internal and external troubles, Aaron Gordon is one of the few comforts for Denver fans - he is probably the most reassuring player in the Nuggets except Jokic.

Michael Malone, who led the Nuggets to win the first championship in team history, once made the conclusion that "If it weren't for the spirit of team-first in Aaron Gordon, we would not have achieved the current results."

Adelman, who succeeded Malone, did not overturn this conclusion. He continued Malone's high evaluation of Gordon and used the description of "Champion puzzle" to outline the Aaron Gordon in his heart.

But it's interesting that no one has used such a word to describe Aaron Gordon before coming to Denver. At that time, everyone thought that Aaron Gordon was just an inefficient big ball-holder who was "not terrible". Many people thought that he was just a poor version of Blake Griffin: although he was big, he was not a style of play in the inside, but he was not delicate enough on the outside... He was even called "Cummingga of the Magic." The turning point of Gordon's career is March 2022. The Magic wanted him to be the second Blake Griffin, but Tim Connery, who was still in the Nuggets at the time, saw Gordon's plasticity as the "Champion puzzle".

And Jokic took the initiative to convince Gordon to believe this. The Serbian made Gordon realize that if he could reduce unnecessary ball holding and move more in the bottom line area, Gordon's strong body and gentle feel could make a huge contribution to the team. And take his basketball to a new level.

After joining the Nuggets, Gordon's assist rate hovered from less than 60% to around 65%. The "round usage rate" of data that represents participation in the offense has also risen. This shows that although the Nuggets reduce Gordon's possession, they use another way to integrate him into the team.

Gordon's countdown to the Clippers' countdown that made the final hit by the Clippers may be the best proof of the correct theory.

"In short, it is to fight simply."

In 2016, Jeff Green had already told Gordon the tricks to be the gold medal Green Leaf in Orlando, and the Magic had the veteran who was Gordon's mentor at the time, learning to find a balance between personal aggressiveness and teamwork.

This seed planted in Orlando sprouted in Denver 7 years later, and in 2023 they won the championship in the Nuggets together. After achieving the phased goal of winning the championship, Gordon did not stop his growth, and he was still working hard to improve his quality as a "champion puzzle".

In the regular season, he polished the three-pointers that have been criticized to hit a 43.6% shooting percentage, which is a new high in his career, and he can still maintain a 37.9% stability in the playoffs. In the first match of the Western Conference semi-finals, Gordon used his new weapon to defeat the No. 1 Thunder in the Western Conference, helping the Nuggets complete a 14-point comeback.

If we disassemble the word "decisive kill", it is actually that the player appears in the most correct position at the most critical moment, makes the most correct decision, and achieves the most satisfactory result.

And we didn't really associate it with Gordon before. But as Gordon is increasingly able to make the right decisions on the court, the incident of shooting key balls has become increasingly close to him.

In the 14 playoff games that the Nuggets participated in this year, Gordon completed two finals, one was a three-pointer against the Thunder G1, and the other was a countdown of G4 against the Clippers in the first round.

"He doesn't need to be in the focus, he just needs to be in the right position to change the game. Even if he doesn't score, he is terrifying than any scorer." This passage is Garnett's evaluation of Robert Horry. Although Horry only averaged 7 points per game in his career, he has a 7 championship ring that he doesn't even wear even his palm.

Klay Thompson once studied Horry's game video and got a lot of inspiration from his off-ball run. Bam Adebayo also believes that modern fourth position should learn from Horry, "He not only shoots, but also defends, passes, and never ruthless at critical moments. This is exactly the comprehensiveness that modern basketball needs, which is much more important than blindly brushing data."

Now Gordon is beginning to smell more and more like Horry. Although he currently has "only" one championship ring, his comprehensive skills and influence in the game are increasing day by day.

Gordon joined Denver in March 2021, and until today the team has a total of 110 wins and 58 losses in the regular season, although the winning rate has only increased from the original 61.4% to 65.4%. But there is always a saying, "80 points to 90 points is always more difficult than 50 points to 80 points."

2023, also the first full season after Gordon joined the team, the Nuggets and Jokic won the championship trophy.

And, in Orlando, people call him "Air Gordon". But in Denver, everyone thinks he is called "Mr. Nugget".

This is enough to tell the problem, right?

The best partner for teachers: on and off the court

In 2017, the Nuggets finally realized that they should regard Jokic as the core.. And they once racked their brains on "Who is using to partner Jokic in the interior": at first they tried the two towers of Nurkic and Jokic, but the two insiders of the Balkans could not coexist harmoniously at the tactical level.

Then they changed their thinking and partnered with Jokic with better space, from Wilson Chandler to the old Paul Millsap, but until Aaron Gordon, who was both offensive and defensive, came, Jokic met the man who was most suitable for him to match.

Michael Porter Jr. said that he could never find a fourth position that would be more suitable for Jokic than Gordon.

Former Nuggets coach Michael Malone, who personally trained the pair, said, "We are not just putting talented players together. The players must adapt to each other, and Aaron and Nikola are excellent complementarity."

"A player like Aaron who can defend from No. 1 to No. 5 can make everyone's work easier," said Ma Long.

In the Magic period, Gordon, who coached him at the time, saw his plasticity in defending multiple positions. This ability is well played in the Nuggets, allowing Jokic to not have to bear the challenges of his opponents on the defensive end.

In the second round of the 2023 playoffs, Gordon blocked Booker, who averaged 27.8 points per game at the time. A year later, Edwards, who had always been full of energy, said after facing Gordon in the Western Conference semi-finals: "Brother, I'm really fed up with Gordon."

In this year's Western Conference semi-finals, new All-Star Jaylen Williams made 6 of 19 shots in front of Gordon, while in the first round, All-Star Bell Norman Powell had only 3 of 11 shots.

Jokic said that he felt good with Gordon. In fact, as early as 2013, the story lines of the two had already intersected. At the U19 Men's Basketball World Cup held in Prague at that time, Jokic represented Serbia and joined the finals with the United States team represented by Gordon. From that day on, their destiny produced the first intersection.

The U19 in the United States defeated the Serbian U19 82-68. For the American team that still dominated the world basketball world at that time, these young people may be the top presence in the future basketball world pyramid. The US team won the gold medal, and Gordon, who performed the best, also won the MVP of the event.

10 years later, Jokic was the NBA MVP, and the U19 World Cup MVP became his best teammate, and even the best American with him. In the summer of 2022, Gordon, who had just joined the Nuggets, went to watch Jokic, who represented the Serbian national team in the European Cup. Coincidentally, the stadium of the game was the one he defeated Jokic back then.

Godor is willing to spend his spare time connecting with his teammates. After winning the championship in 2023, Gordon went on vacation to Malaga, Spain. Before participating in the China trip, he needed to return to the United States to rest and rectify, but on the way he decided to visit Jokic. Even if he has a completely different direction to Serbia and the United States, he still needs to transfer a plane in London, England, and he is still happy.

Gordon sang with Jokic at Novi Sad, which was where his teammates officially received basketball youth training. Gordon also rode his bike with Jokic through Songbor, the small town where the latter was born and raised. Gordon met Jokic's family and integrated into the lives of the locals. He also asked Jokic to buy him a horse and put it in his teammate's horse farm. He said, "This is almost an investment, right?" Gordon enjoyed his life in a small town in Serbia. He liked the vast fields there and looked forward to the simple folk customs there. He even wanted to follow Jokic's example and build a community for his family on the land his late brother once set foot on.

Drew Gordon played in the Belgrade guerrillas in the 2012-13 season. Aaron Gordon is the youngest child in the family, just like Jokic. Perhaps this same growth experience made Gordon and Jokic talk about everything and were particularly friendly.

When the Nuggets finished their holiday after winning the championship, they returned to the first day of the Pepsi Center training camp. On Jokic's storage tank is a huge saddle embroidered with the Serbian flag and Jokic surname. This is a gift Gordon carefully prepared for the Serbs. He hopes that the gift is a witness to the friendship between the two and hopes that it can become the inheritance of the Jokic family.

Godor once wanted to give Jokic a horse, because horse racing has always been the latter's biggest hobby. But Gordon, who didn't understand horses, still did not do this, "I didn't send him a real horse, but a modern horse" - it was a manual white Ford horse worth $90,000. In 2023, Jokic and Nike's sneaker contract expires. We all know that Nike, which has a large reserve of stars, cannot be too concerned about Jokic. They even misled Curry's name at the press conference, not taking the cross-ethnic kings seriously, let alone a Serbian center with a hostile ideology and is not easy to sell shoes?

But Gordon was very concerned about what shoes Jokic wore. In the locker room and daily training, Gordon showed Jokic his signature shoes 361 degrees. Jokic also said that because of his trust in Gordon, he chose to sign a contract with 361. Now, Jokic has his own signature shoes.

Gordon admitted: "Our relationship has long surpassed basketball. Even if I leave the basketball court, I will not disconnect from Nikola."

Jokic also said that Gordon is no longer just a colleague at work, but also a friend who tells each other's hearts in life.

"Reasonable thinking, emotional embrace"

In the 2017 NBA Slam Dunk Competition, Gordon incorporated the drone into his performance. But that was not the first time he had come into contact with emerging technologies.

San Jose, California, that's where Aaron Gordon was born. Growing up in Silicon Valley since childhood, his mother always brought home new things she had studied in the company. For example, when Gordon was very young, he could use a projector to watch "Slam Dunk" on the wall with a projector.. Under the influence of his eyes, he developed a sensitivity to technology and an open and inclusive mindset to new things very early.

This may help him transform calmly in the Nuggets, rather than resisting like many people, and then becoming a black sheep that disrupts the team culture.

Godden once said that if you want to play basketball well, physical fitness is not the most important thing. After all, everyone is athletic athlete in the NBA, so psychological quality is what distinguishes ordinary athletes from elite athletes. "It's like playing chess, I have to have a more rational understanding than others."

But at the same time, Gordon, who grew up in an intellectual family, inherited the body shape and culture of the Indians from his bloodline. His great-great-grandfather was an Osaiki Indian who was 2.13 meters tall, and Gordon, who had a sexy tendon flesh, was also called the "modern version of Lu Bu" by Chinese Internet fans.

Just like the Tai Chi tattoo on him fusion of Yin and Yang, the rational part of Gordon's body does not conceal his enthusiasm and sensibility. The Osage culture advocates tenacity and collectivism, although Gordon has completely deviated from the Native American lifestyle and has not sought roots like Kelly Irving. But at heart he still has the tribal spirit passed down by his ancestors.

He said he was willing to "go through fire and water" for Jokic. Every time he felt tired and wanted to be lazy in training, he would think of Jokic, Murray, and other brothers in the locker room. "For them, I must stick to it and do my best."

When a reporter spread rumors in the Nuggets locker room this year, someone was dissatisfied with Westbrook's style of playing to harm the team, Gordon supported his teammates with a very tough attitude, saying that it was just a reporter who "takes it out of context" and disrupts the morale of the army. On the night when he won the first championship in team history in 2023, after Aaron Gordon played champagne with his teammates in the locker room, he did not tell anyone in advance, walked on the streets of downtown Denver alone, joined the excited crowd shirtless, and enjoyed the joy of victory.

The time is beautiful at this moment and is worth more people. Now Gordon also wants his teammates to experience the feeling of champions. Just like he said in this year's playoffs, "I'm willing to give everything to help Westbrook win a championship ring." Even if the price is that a forced comeback with a second-degree hamstring strain may erode the athletic ability, he did not hesitate.

Although the result of a forced comeback was eliminated, Gordon does not have to blame himself. At least he has received respect from fans: in addition to the home team, there are also the visiting team.

and, the trust of two MVPs: former, and present.