To beat the Warriors, Aaron Gordon has to be the best version of himself

SAN FRANCISCO — You probably don’t remember what transpired on a random Friday night back in November at Ball Arena. You probably allowed yourself to forget a tough 114-108 loss to the Chicago Bulls that was part of the Nuggets’ season-long six-game losing streak.

But let me jog your memory for a moment and remind you of Aaron Gordon’s most efficient game of the season. Gordon tallied 28 points on 10-12 shooting while laying the blueprint for the best version offensive game that night. He registered eight total drives vs. the Bulls and shot 4-5 from the floor on those possessions leading to 14 Nuggets points.

Throughout the 37 minutes he played that game, Michael Malone kept enforcing the same message to Gordon: “Don’t let them off the hook.”

That directive from Malone was simple. When Gordon uses his muscle, his athleticism, and makes it a priority to get to the rim, he’s nearly impossible to stop. He’s typically stronger than his matchup. He’s always more athletic. But when Gordon bails the defense out by settling for jumpers, he’s letting his defender and the opponent off the hook.

That attack-first mindset from Gordon was not on display Saturday night at Chase Center. Gordon finished with just eight points in the Nuggets’ 123-107 Game 1 loss. Four of Gordon’s 10 shots came on jumpers from outside the paint. He missed all four of those attempts. He played right into the Warriors’ game plan. He let Golden State off the hook.

“Aaron Gordon is at his best when he’s attacking,” Malone said following Game 1. “We don’t want to just settle for 3s as a team. We want to put pressure on the rim. We want to put pressure on the officials to get to the foul line. And I think Aaron, when he plays with that attack mindset, as you know, we all know, he’s a different player and he helps take this team to a different level.”

It wasn’t a secret coming into this series that the Nuggets were heavy underdogs. The Warriors have more talent, more depth, more experience, and a championship pedigree that the Nuggets are still searching for. It was always going to take a monumental effort from Denver, Nikola Jokic, who finished with 25 points on 12-25 shooting, 10 rebounds and 6 assists Saturday, and his supporting cast for the Nuggets to win their first-round series for a fourth-straight season.

Jokic was OK in Game 1. He wasn’t as efficient as he could have been and missed some shots that he normally makes. Draymond Green, the best defender in the NBA, along with Golden State’s defensive scheme that sent periodical double-teams Jokic’s way bothered him. Will Barton wasn’t good enough defensively but at least chipped in 24 points on 10-18 shooting. The rest of the Nuggets’ role players, including Gordon, didn’t show up.

This is what letting your defender off the hook looks like.

Gordon was matched up on Green here early in the first quarter, and it’s an example of when maybe he can’t out-physical his opponent. But he lets Green off the hook with this soft fadeaway.

Then late in the second quarter, Gordon kicks the ball out to Jokic who immediately gives it right back. Jokic recognizes Gordon has a mismatch on Andrew Wiggins, who’s someone he can definitely out-physical. With plenty of time left on the shot clock, Gordon pulls up for a jumper that barely grazed the iron. Just like that, Wiggins is off the hook.

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The Nuggets aren’t discouraged following their Game 1 loss. That’s the good news. As Jokic put it postgame, Denver has been here before.

“To be honest we lost every time, the first game. I think most of them we lost,” Jokic said (Jokic and the Nuggets have now lost 6 of 8 Game 1’s over the last four seasons). “Figure it out. Watch video. Try to be better. Hopefully it’s going to be a long series. We came here to steal one if we can of course. The pressure is not on us. We are underdogs here. But we need to act like dogs. We need to fight.”

Monte Morris, who finished with 10 points, 6 assists and was another role player who wasn’t quite good enough Saturday, echoed that same sentiment. The Nuggets’ goal is to win one of these first two games and earn a split in San Francisco. But without enough support from their role players, the Nuggets won’t win Game 2 and won’t make this a long series.

Gordon is the leader of Denver’s supporting cast. He’s been the Nuggets’ second-best player for the majority of this season and is Denver’s best all-around defender. He needs to be playing at an A-level for the Nuggets to push the Warriors deep in this series. He has to be much better than he was in Game 1 on both ends of the floor.