Rumor: Potential landing spots for Aaron Gordon in Free Agency
What's the story?
Sean Deveney of the Sporting News recently posted on Twitter some potential suitors for the 22-year old PF for the Orlando Magic, Aaron Gordon, in free agency this offseason.
In case you didn't know...
Gordon was selected fourth overall in the 2014 NBA Draft by the Orlando Magic, with only Andrew Wiggins, Jabari Parker, and Joel Embiid picked ahead of him. He played his college ball for the University of Arizona where he was First Team All Pac 12 in 2014.
The heart of the matter...
There is an expectation that the Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, and Indiana Pacers are looking to sign Gordon once the smoke clears from the major free agent signings of LeBron James and Paul George. Deveney mentioned that the focus will shift towards teams signing Gordon after that point, and more teams could potentially be interested in that point.
It's interesting to note that two of the three teams are currently in the cellar of the Western Conference; while the Indiana Pacers are having a bounce-back year sitting in 5th place in the Eastern Conference 8.5 games behind the first-place Toronto Raptors.
Gordon is having a great season with career highs in PPG (18.4), RPG (8.3), and APG (2.2), but it hasn't translated into a great season for the Orlando Magic as they currently are just one game out of the cellar in the Eastern Conference.
What's next?
Gordon and the Orlando Magic (18-39) look to get the second half of the season off to a better start than the first when they take on the New York Knicks (23-36) on Thursday evening when play in the NBA resumes.
Author's take...
It's interesting to see some of the lesser teams in the NBA rumored to target Gordon, but if he continues the way he's playing this season, other teams that are closer to contention could take notice. Gordon will be a major piece to fall this free agency.