Aaron Gordon Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Injury Notes: Lowry, Westbrook, Magic, Porzingis, Rondo

August 24th, 2020 at 10:50am CST by Luke Adams

A foot injury suffered by Raptors point guard Kyle Lowry was the only blemish on Toronto’s blowout win of Brooklyn on Sunday, as the team completed its sweep and advanced to the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

According to Andrew Lopez of ESPN, Lowry was scheduled to undergo an MRI on the arch of his left foot after turning his ankle early in the Raptors’ win on Sunday. Michael Grange of Sportsnet.ca tweets that Lowry had that MRI last night and the team is expected to provide an update on his status at some point on Monday.

The Raptors’ second-round series against Boston is scheduled to get underway this Thursday, so if Lowry’s injury is considered a day-to-day issue, he’ll have some time to get ready for Game 1. The Raptors had no issue beating the Nets without Lowry on Sunday, but will need him back in the lineup to increase their chances of getting past Boston and returning to the Eastern Finals.

[UPDATE: Kyle Lowry Has Ankle Sprain, No Timeline Provided For Return]

Here are more injury updates from around the NBA:

Rockets guard Russell Westbrook, who is on the shelf with a quad strain, stepped up his workouts on Sunday, but has been ruled out for Game 4 on Monday, writes Jonathan Feigen of The Houston Chronicle. Westbrook did on-court work, including quick stops and starts, yesterday, per Feigen.
Aaron Gordon (hamstring) and Michael Carter-Williams (foot) will remain sidelined for the Magic in Game 4 against Milwaukee this afternoon, the team announced (via Twitter). Neither player has been active for a playoff game so far.
Mavericks big man Kristaps Porzingis was set to undergo an MRI on his right knee on Sunday, per head coach Rick Carlisle. As Tim MaMahon of ESPN tweets, Porzingis’ status for Game 5 on Tuesday remains up in the air.
Lakers point guard Rajon Rondo is ready to return from his thumb injury, but has been nagged by back spasms in recent days. After being scratched for Game 3, Rondo is listed as doubtful for Game 4 on Monday, per the NBA’s official injury report.

Gordon, Carter-Williams To Miss Game 3

August 22nd, 2020 at 12:02pm CST by marksuleymanov

Aaron Gordon and Michael Carter-Williams will miss the Magic’s Game 3 contest against the Bucks on Saturday, Iliana Limón Romero of the Orlando Sentinel writes.

Gordon (strained left hamstring) and Carter-Williams (strained tendon, left foot) have both been sidelined since early August with their respective ailments. As Orlando tries to upset the Bucks, the East’s No. 1 seed, the return of Gordon and Carter-Williams in the series would help matters.

Orlando is hopeful that Gordon, who has been out since Aug. 5, can return for Game 4.

“He’s doing a lot better. He just wouldn’t be able to get up and down the floor, frankly,” Magic head coach Steve Clifford. “He’s made good progress and he’ll do his work today and tomorrow and then we’re hoping maybe there’s a chance (he can play) by Monday.”

Meanwhile, Carter-Williams has not played since Aug. 4 and Clifford indicated he’s further behind Gordon in recovery.

“I would say (Carter-Williams) is definitely behind Aaron still,” Clifford. “Mike hasn’t even been able to do more on the floor than just shoot spot-ups. So he’s doing a little bit more, but for sure, Aaron’s closer than Mike is.”

Injury Updates: Dort, Harris, Beverley, Magic, Rondo, Hayward

August 20th, 2020 at 1:32pm CST by Luke Adams

After initially being ruled out for Game 2 vs. Houston, Thunder wing Luguentz Dort was updated to questionable and is now being considered available, head coach Billy Donovan confirmed today (Twitter link via Royce Young of ESPN). One of Oklahoma City’s top defenders, Dort will look to help slow James Harden.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

Nuggets guard Gary Harris will remain sidelined for Game 3 against Utah, but head coach Michael Malone believes Harris is moving in the right direction, tweets Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. While he acknowledged that it’d be great to have Harris back during Denver’s first-round series if possible, Malone added that the team doesn’t want to put pressure on him by setting a specific timetable.
Clippers head coach Doc Rivers said he doesn’t have a sense of the severity of Patrick Beverley‘s calf injury, which caused him to miss Game 2 vs. Dallas on Wednesday. “Obviously it is something that has lingered,” Rivers said, per Youngmisuk. “But I have no sense whether he plays next game or if this is one of those things that takes a week or so. I just don’t know.” Beverley will likely be a game-time decision on Friday, according to Rivers (Twitter link via Youngmisuk).
Aaron Gordon (hamstring) and Michael Carter-Williams (foot) will be on the shelf again for the Magic in Game 2 vs. Milwaukee today, according to the team (Twitter link). Neither player has been active since early August.
Lakers point guard Rajon Rondo, who hasn’t played this summer due to a fractured thumb, is listed as questionable for Game 2 vs. Portland on Thursday night, tweets Tania Ganguli of The Los Angeles Times.
The Celtics are “aggressively treating” Gordon Hayward‘s ankle sprain, head coach Brad Stevens said on Wednesday (Twitter link). The club should have a better idea within the next few days of what the next steps for Hayward’s rehab will be. The veteran forward is expected to miss about four weeks.

Eastern Notes: Gordon, Heat, Pistons, Knicks

August 19th, 2020 at 9:25pm CST by Jovan Alford

Magic head coach Steve Clifford told reporters on Wednesday that forward Aaron Gordon played 2-on-2 after practice, per Josh Robbins of The Athletic (Twitter link). Clifford also mentioned that Gordon’s availability for Game 2 against the Bucks will be determined by how his hamstring is feeling on Thursday.

The 24-year-old Gordon missed Game 1 on Tuesday with a left strained hamstring, which he suffered back on August 5. This season, the Magic forward is averaging 14.4 PPG, 7.7 RPG, and 3.7 APG.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra answered questions on Wednesday about the benchings of center Meyers Leonard and rookie point guard Kendrick Nunn. Both players received DNP’s for Monday’s Game 1 against the Pacers. “Everybody’s all in on that, the purpose of what we’re trying to get accomplished here,” Spoelstra said (h/t South Florida Sun-Sentinel). “We’ll need everybody. … It’s something that we talked about as a team. And it’s Game 1 … Obviously, Kendrick is a major part of our team. We will need to get into our depth at some point.” Leonard, who was the team’s starting center, fell out of the rotation when the seeding games begin. Nunn, however, started in five games in the bubble. In those contests, he averaged 10.8 PPG, 2.4 RPG, and 2.0 APG.
Pistons head coach Dwane Casey said on Wednesday that he does not expect Derrick Rose or Blake Griffin to participate in the team’s voluntary camp next month, though both players could attend if they want to, per James Edwards III of The Athletic (Twitter link). However, Casey hopes young players view it as mandatory.
Marc Berman of the New York Post writes about the Knicks‘ odds of landing standout point guard LaMelo Ball. According to the Post, Ball’s preference is to go to New York. However, the Knicks only have a 27.6% chance of landing a top-three selection in the 2020 NBA Draft. In fact, New York has a 62.8% chance of getting a pick between 6-10. If that happens, Ball will likely be off the board, and the team could opt to draft former UNC point guard Cole Anthony.

Gordon, Carter-Williams Remain Sidelined For Magic

August 18th, 2020 at 10:57am CST by Luke Adams

The Magic will be without a pair of key rotation players when their playoff series with the Bucks opens this afternoon, having announced today that Aaron Gordon (strained left hamstring) and Michael Carter-Williams (strained left foot tendon) are both out (Twitter link).

Gordon, who suffered his hamstring injury on August 5 vs. Toronto, missed Orlando’s last four seeding games. He had initially been listed as questionable, and there’s still optimism that he’ll return at some point during the series, but he won’t play on Tuesday.

As for Carter-Williams, he has been on the shelf since August 4 due to his foot injury. His absence doesn’t come as a surprise, as he was previously listed as doubtful.

The Magic are also missing Jonathan Isaac (torn ACL), Al-Farouq Aminu (knee surgery), and Mohamed Bamba (COVID-19 complications), leaving the East’s No. 8 seed awfully shorthanded in the first game of what could be a brief series against the Bucks, who owned the NBA’s best record in 2019/20.

With Gordon unavailable, Gary Clark will start for the Magic and will get the first crack at guarding Giannis Antetokounmpo, head coach Steve Clifford said today (Twitter link via Josh Robbins of The Athletic). The hope is that Gordon will be able to return for Game 2, Clifford added (Twitter link via Robbins).

Injury Updates: Gordon, Simmons, Butler

August 6th, 2020 at 9:35am CST by Luke Adams

Magic forward Aaron Gordon, who left Wednesday’s game due to a left hamstring injury, doesn’t appear to have suffered a serious injury, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Sources tell Charania that tests on the hamstring showed no significant damage, and Gordon is expected to be re-evaluated in “several days.”

Although Gordon’s recovery timeline is unclear, it sounds like he’ll at least miss Friday’s game against Philadelphia. He has been listed as doubtful for that contest, according to the team, which tweets that the forward’s injury is being called a hamstring strain and he’ll be day-to-day after Friday. The Magic’s remaining seeding games are against Boston (Sunday), Brooklyn (Tuesday), and New Orleans (next Thursday).

One more Magic win or one more Wizards loss would secure Orlando a playoff berth, so the team will likely play it safe with Gordon in the hopes of having him back for the start of the postseason. Still, the Magic will be motivated to finish strong, since they’re currently a half-game back of the Nets for the No. 7 seed in the East.

Here are a few more injury updates from around the NBA:

Ben Simmons left the Sixers‘ win over Washington on Wednesday with a left knee injury. According to Shams Charania (via Twitter), an MRI on Simmons’ knee came back clean and he’s considered day-to-day. Philadelphia continues to jockey for positioning in the playoff race but is guaranteed to finish no lower than sixth in the East, so they won’t rush Simmons back.
[RELATED: Update on Simmons’ knee injury]
Jimmy Butler (right foot soreness) is listed as out for the Heat‘s game on Thursday vs. Milwaukee, tweets Eric Woodyard of ESPN. Butler also missed Tuesday’s game, the second of a back-to-back set, but his ailment isn’t believed to be serious.
In case you missed it, we passed along word on Wednesday night that Clippers guard Patrick Beverley (calf) will miss Thursday’s game and that Nets guard Jamal Crawford (hamstring) will be sidelined for “a few” games.

Pacific Notes: Beverley, Rondo, Warriors, Ayton

August 5th, 2020 at 9:27pm CST by Jovan Alford

The Clippers announced on Wednesday that starting point guard Patrick Beverley is out with a left calf injury for Thursday’s game against the Mavericks (Twitter link). In addition to Beverley, forward Montrezl Harrell is still away from the team.

Beverley suffered the injury in the first quarter against the Suns on Tuesday afternoon. The defensive-minded point guard’s injury isn’t considered serious, however, which is good news for the Clippers, who have championship aspirations.

Without Beverley, Reggie Jackson could be inserted into the Clippers’ starting lineup, with Lou Williams and Landry Shamet also handling point guard duties.

Here’s more from around the Pacific Division:

Lakers head coach Frank Vogel told reporters on Wednesday that Rajon Rondo has begun daily coronavirus testing after returning to Florida to rehab, per ESPN’s Dave McMenamin (Twitter link). Assuming Rondo tests negative for seven consecutive days before re-entering the NBA’s campus, he’ll have to do a four-day quarantine upon returning. That means he could theoretically rejoin the Lakers by the time the postseason begins, though he may not be ready to play by then.
Anthony Slater of The Athletic examines how the Warriors could use their $17.2MM traded player exception to acquire a bridge player and ultimately flip him in a second deal to upgrade the roster. Slater brings up Myles Turner and Aaron Gordon as potential targets who make more than the TPE.
After missing 35 games earlier this season, Suns center Deandre Ayton welcomes the opportunity to compete down in the bubble, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. The 22-year-old big man says that he’s matured and is confident in his abilities. “I can say I’ve grown up in a way to where I’m just not being a robot running the play,” he said. “I’m the playmaker when I got the ball, for real, and just me seeing the type of dominance and the type of effect I have on both sides of the floor. Affects the whole game and the whole team has bought in.” Through three games in the bubble, Ayton is averaging 16.6 PPG and 9.0 RPG.

And-Ones: A. Gordon, OTAs, Draft, Avdija

July 28th, 2020 at 4:09pm CST by Luke Adams

With teams around the NBA preparing for the possibility that the 2020 offseason could be significantly truncated, one league executive tells Sean Deveney of Forbes that “there are already a lot of conversations” going on about possible offseason trades.

“If you want to get something done, you need to make sure you have the framework in place, that you know where you stand on everything because there just won’t be time to pull the trigger on these things,” the exec said.

With that in mind, Deveney spoke to a pair of executives about potential offseason trade candidates, including Magic forward Aaron Gordon. An Eastern Conference exec suggested that Gordon, who was shopped by Orlando before the February deadline, is “probably the most likely big name to be traded.”

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

As the NBA continues to work on a plan for allowing its bottom eight teams to conduct offseason workouts, Steve Popper of Newsday (Twitter links) hears that the league may approve of up to three weeks of OTAs for those clubs. In that scenario, there likely wouldn’t be a separate campus created for the bottom eight teams, as had been previously explored, Popper notes.
The NBA hopes to create a platform called “Combine HQ” that would help provide teams with profiles, stats, and interviews for the 105 draft-eligible prospects who received the most votes to be invited to the combine, a source tells Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated (Twitter link). It remains to be seen if such a tool would supplement an actual combine or be used in place of one.
Lottery prospect Deni Avdija has been named the Most Valuable Player of the Israeli Basketball League, making him the youngest player ever to win the award (Twitter link). The promising young forward currently ranks fifth overall on ESPN’s 2020 big board.

Southeast Notes: Hornets, Kulboka, Magic, Gordon, Heat

May 29th, 2020 at 12:44pm CST by Luke Adams

Lithuanian forward Arnoldas Kulboka is remaining with Spanish club Bilbao Basket for next season after receiving interest from Zalgiris Kaunas in his home country, according to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando. The 22-year-old was selected by the Hornets with the No. 55 overall pick in the 2018 draft, but has yet to sign an NBA contract.

According to Donatas Urbonas (Twitter link), Kulboka’s agent Tadas Bulotas said that if not for the coronavirus pandemic, his client was planning to join the Hornets this year. As leagues take different approaches to COVID-19, the NBA offseason will no longer necessarily line up with the offseason for European leagues, complicating decisions for players looking to make the jump one way or the other.

Kulboka could potentially revisit the possibility of joining the Hornets in 2021.

Here’s more from around the Southeast:

NBA scouts believe Magic forward Aaron Gordon is best suited to play power forward and also feel as if he tries to do more than he should in Orlando, according to Josh Robbins of The Athletic. “I think the thing for him is he just has to realize that he has to accept that he is going to be a high-level role player — a borderline All-Star if he plays his role really well,” one scout told The Athletic. “I think in his mind there are times when he sees himself in the same vein as some of the superstars, and I think sometimes that can get in his way.”
In a separate mailbag article for The Athletic, Robbins examines the Magic‘s free agency outlook and discusses whether it would make sense for the team to experiment with playing Nikola Vucevic and Mohamed Bamba alongside one another.
After spending most of the NBA’s hiatus in California, Heat forward Andre Iguodala has returned to South Florida, writes Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel. In Miami, Iguodala will be able to take advantage of the team’s reopened practice facility for individual workouts. Jimmy Butler and Solomon Hill are now the club’s only players not in town, Winderman notes.

Suns Pursued Gordon, Mavs Went After Gallinari At Deadline

March 6th, 2020 at 12:19pm CST by Luke Adams

Within his latest Inside Pass column for The Athletic, Shams Charania passes along details on several deals that were pursued but didn’t get done at the 2020 trade deadline, a month ago today.

According to Charania, the Suns made a “late push” for Magic forward Aaron Gordon, while the Mavericks did the same for Thunder forward Danilo Gallinari. Gallinari is on an expiring contract, but Gordon is under team control for two more years beyond this season and is expected to receive interest from multiple teams this offseason if Orlando is willing to move him, Charania says.

Elsewhere in the Western Conference, the Nuggets attempted to make a “major trade” just before the deadline, sources tell The Athletic. Charania notes that Jrue Holiday was a player of significant interest for Denver, though it’s not clear if he was the player the Nuggets were pushing for at the deadline. The Pelicans never showed any interest in moving Holiday, per Charania.

Finally, while we’ve previously heard that the Lakers made an offer for point guard Derrick Rose, Charania provides some additional details on that offer, writing that it included fan favorite Alex Caruso and draft compensation. The Lakers would have needed to include at least one more player in that package for salary-matching purposes. In any case, the Pistons weren’t interested in moving Rose.

Although nothing materialized on any of these fronts, there’s value in knowing which teams pursued which players, since many of them remain under contract beyond this season and could become trade targets again down the road. Someone like Gallinari, meanwhile, could be on Dallas’ wish list in free agency, assuming the Mavs didn’t simply view him as a rental.