NUGGETS

Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon quietly leads the NBA in one key category

Nov 4, 2022, 11:23 AM

There are a lot of storylines with the Nuggets this year.

Can superstar Nikola Jokic win a third straight NBA MVP award? Will the return of Jamal Murray after 18 long months help Denver finally win a title? Can Michael Porter Jr. stay healthy and take another leap?

All are valid and important. Each player is going to have to be at his best for the team to win the whole thing.

But perhaps the Nuggets most under appreciated player is already making a huge impact on the season. That’s power forward Aaron Gordon, who is flying above the rim through eight games. Get this, he leads the NBA in dunks thus far. You can’t miss if you’re slamming the ball through the hoop.

Those 26 dunks translate to 52 easy points for the Nuggets. It’s a stat that gets lost in the shuffle, but it’s the most efficient way to score in the game. And in a 122-110 win over OKC on Thursday night, one in which Nikola Jokic passed Wilt Chamberlain on the all-time triple-doubles list, Gordon was once again dunking the basketball.

Man, those are fun to watch. Again, Jokic, Murray and Porter get all the headlines, but Gordon is Denver’s most athletic player. He’s also a lockdown defender, a key piece on a side of the court the Nuggets have historically struggled on.

Keep flying, AG. The Nuggets will need you to play like this all year.

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Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon quietly leads the NBA in one key category