Aaron Gordon’s clutch 3-pointer lifts Nuggets over Thunder in Game 1
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OKLAHOMA CITY — When the Denver Nuggets acquired Aaron Gordon during the 2021 season, they saw his physical rebounding, post scoring, and explosive dunks as the perfect complement to Nikola Jokić and Jamal Murray. His outside shot was a secondary consideration at best.
But in recent years, Gordon committed to transforming that weakness. He moved into a converted warehouse in Denver — part home, part gym — where he worked relentlessly on his jump shot at all hours. That dedication paid off Monday night. With under four seconds left, Russell Westbrook found Gordon on the wing, and he calmly buried his second game-winner of these playoffs in Denver’s 121-119 comeback win over the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal.
“When I shot it, did I know it was in?” Gordon smiled, sitting alongside his nephews, Zayne and Brody. “I knew it wasn’t a miss.”
This kind of spotlight isn’t typically Gordon’s role — nor is it one he seeks — but he’s delivered twice this postseason. On April 26, he grabbed an airball from Jokić and dunked in the first buzzer-beating game-winner in NBA playoff history to clinch Game 4 against the Clippers.
On Monday, he did it from deep, capping a 14-point Nuggets comeback at Paycom Center.
“He lives in a gym — literally,” teammate Christian Braun said of Gordon’s warehouse, which features a half-court where he shoots late at night or early in the morning. “When you can roll out of bed and shoot, that helps a little bit.”
The results show. Gordon shot a career-high 43.6% from three this season, a massive leap from his career average of 33.1%.
Yet on most nights, Jokić is still the story. Despite battling foul trouble and the rugged OKC frontline of Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein, Jokić poured in 42 points and grabbed 22 rebounds. He scored 18 in the fourth quarter, willing Denver back from a nine-point deficit in the final three minutes. He hit 10 of 13 free throws, including two clutch shots with 12.2 seconds left, as the Nuggets closed on a 15-4 run — the first team to erase a nine-point deficit in the last three minutes of a playoff game since 2015.
“He is the soul of this team,” Jokić said of Gordon. “He probably doesn’t get as much respect as he deserves. But I think he doesn’t need it.”
Said Gordon: “We’ve been through a lot with this group. We’ve come from behind in plenty of games. It’s not what we want to do, but we know how to stay poised. We’ve got a lot of grit.”