The Nuggets are already struggling in this one and haven’t been able to get much going on the road outside of Nikola Jokic. Christian Braun, Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. have all struggled in various areas and now Gordon is sidelined. Without him in the game, look for a player like Peyton Watson to have to step up near the end of this one.
Losing Gordon would be a huge blow for the Nuggets. He isn’t one of their top scorers, but Gordon does so many different things for the Nuggets on the court, and his versatility makes him extremely valuable to the operation in Denver. Gordon is one of the Nuggets’ best defenders and is a very good rebounder. He plays well with Jokic in the two-man game and can serve as both a roller or a secondary ball handler.
The Nuggets could really use Gordon in this matchup to defend the much taller Kevin Durant. Watson can handle the Durant assignment if Gordon is out, but the young UCLA product lacks some of the physicality that Gordon brings to the floor.
Calf tightness is a worrying diagnosis for Gordon, who has already missed time this season due to a calf strain. Hopefully for Denver, this is just a precautionary move and Gordon didn’t re-injure his calf and will be good to go moving forward.
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