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| Aaron Gordon |
Aaron Gordon dislikes comparisons to other basketball players.
But even he felt encouraged when he learned Frank Vogel will position him at small forward and use him the same way Vogel used perennial All-Star Paul George with the Indiana Pacers. Vogel wants to put the ball in Gordon’s hands.
“It’s definitely a compliment,” Gordon said.
“I’m going to be myself and I’m going to play my game, and that’s ultimately going to be the most beneficial for us if I play how I play, not try and play like anybody else. I love the idea of being more of a playmaker and taking on a bigger scoring role. That’s something that I’m going to have to do for us to be successful and I’m ready for that.”
How well Gordon will handle his new, more demanding role is one of the most intriguing questions the Orlando Magic face. As one of the NBA’s most athletic players, he shouldn’t have many problems chasing opposing wings all over the court.
Whether he can produce offensively is up for debate, however. Skeptics cite the subpar outside shooting numbers of his first two seasons. He made only 27.1 percent of his 3-pointers as a rookie and just 29.6 percent of his 3s last season.
If the Magic had only one or two quality big men instead of Serge Ibaka and Nikola Vucevic and Bismack Biyombo, then Gordon probably would be playing a lot of power forward.
But with Ibaka and Biyombo joining Vucevic at the big-man spots, the best way to put Gordon on the floor is to play him at small forward. Vogel loves the frontcourt’s size with Gordon at the three.
“We’re going to ask him to do it all,” Vogel said. “We’re going to give him a lot of responsibility.”
“It’s going to be a process with him. He’s not used to playing the three, but that’s going to come. He’s got the skills and the ability to do it, or I wouldn’t be putting him in that spot. It’s going to be ugly at times. But, hopefully, more times than not it’s going to be pretty impressive. And I’m excited about that.”
Source:NBA.com
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