Gordon open to bench role in Nuggets shakeup with Westbrook

The Denver Nuggets have found a new gear in recent weeks since shifting their starting lineup due to Aaron Gordon’s injury, prompting questions about if these alterations should become permanent once the standout power forward is fully cleared from his calf issue.

In Gordon’s place is former NBA MVP Russell Westbrook, who has transformed the Nuggets from a slower, larger team into one featuring three guards that leads the league in fast-break points. Signed as a sixth man, Westbrook has been elevated into the starting lineup for several reasons. He has served as a more traditional point guard replacement for an injured Jamal Murray or played alongside Murray during Gordon’s absence. In Westbrook’s 22 starts the Nuggets are 17-5.

Gordon isn’t quite ready to play as a starter, only going for 22 minutes max thus far in his five games back from injury. So there’s no debate yet as to who the Nuggets starting five is. For now, it’s Westbrook, Murray, Christian Braun, Michael Porter Jr. and Nikola Jokic. That quintet is one of the best five-man lineups in the NBA this season among crews who have played at least 100 minutes together, out-scoring foes by 12.1 points per 100 possessions. That’s also over six points per 100 possessions better than the Nuggets ‘usual’ starting five with Gordon swapped in for Westbrook, though they’re twice as good in terms of net rating when both Westbrook and Gordon are in the lineup without Murray.

That last number hints that this isn’t a Gordon problem. The 29-year-old just signed a big contract extension and continues to do everything asked of him. He’s averaging 13.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game over his 22 contests, which is completely in line with his norm while shooting the best of his life at 43.5% from deep. Where Gordon’s numbers have come down is in playmaking which is understandable because there are only so many assists to be had in 48 minutes and Denver added a bunch to the team in Westbrook. The Nuggets, who easily lead the league in helpers, at 31.5 a game, are getting 6.6 a night from the 36-year-old guard. He’s chipped in 13 points and five rebounds a game too, all the while boasting some of the best shooting numbers of his Hall-of-Fame career.

The Nuggets are obviously not going to take Jokic out of the starting five and it seems highly unlikely that the highly-paid Murray or Porter exits the unit. Youngster Christian Braun could be a candidate, but the steady shooting guard has nearly doubled his averages from last season since joining the starting lineup and replacing the departed Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. With KCP, the Nuggets were known to have the best starting five in the league and they’re looking likely to recapture that magic. But the Jayhawk isn’t a like-for-like replacement of the Bulldog, which shifts responsibilities and goals of the entire unit. Braun has thrived by running, leading the NBA with 207 fastbreak points this season—a stark contrast to how KCP played as a spacing shooter. Braun is also a bit bulkier. So some of the things Braun does well and struggles with changes the other four guys’ approach, which begs the question, does Westbrook better pair with the Jayhawk around the big three or is it the Wildcat Gordon who is a better fit?

Simply said, the Nuggets don’t even have a real problem—they just have too many good players to be on the court at the same time and now it’s on Michael Malone to figure out who fits best with one another and how to best utilize his men. There is a lot of pride understandably in starting for players; it helps confidence and can help performance. Westbrook, who came here to come off the bench, might be the best to take the hit since that’s what he was signed to do. But the Nuggets see what’s happening and that’s led to a very selfless offer from a very unselfish person in Gordon.

“Before Aaron’s first game (back from injury) in Dallas, I talked to him about what his minutes restriction was going to be that night, as well as what would be moving forward, just to give him an idea so that he could wrap his head around that,” Malone said after the Nuggets win on Tuesday against Philly. “The first thing he said to me was, ‘Coach, we’re playing really well.’ He goes, ‘If you want to bring me off the bench, even when I’m healthy, bring me off the bench.’ And I’m not saying I’m going to do that, but I want everybody to know who Aaron Gordon is who is selfless to a T.”

“He’s just happy we’re winning. Aaron Gordon is happy that we’re winning. And if it’s best for us to bring him off the bench, then we’ll do that,” the coach explained further. “If it’s best for us to start Aaron Gordon, then we’ll do that. We’ll make that decision when we come to that point. But I just want everybody to know how special the person Aaron Gordon is, and how he views this, not about him, but about what’s best for the team. And I love that about him.”

Gordon has been this type of player since the Nuggets traded for him in 2021. He has adapted his playing style since starring for the Magic and, more importantly, has embraced various roles depending on Denver’s needs. One of the ways this has really shown out is in the last two playoffs where he’s shifted to being the backup center while still starting at the four.

“That’s what we do in the playoffs for the last six, seven years. Aaron’s our backup five, and we get him out, and he’s back on the floor with that unit. So it’s something that we’ve done for a lot of playoff games and that we’re really comfortable with, and we won a championship doing that,” Malone said. “Each team was a little bit different, but, yeah, you get them out there and you see what that group is, because now you have a bunch of playmakers and a bunch of guys that can facilitate, and then that’s what you love about Aaron, just the versatility and both ends of the floor.”

While Gordon’s absence cleared the Nuggets to find their current thriving starting five, it also allowed some more minutes for Peyton Watson to get hot. At the same time, now that Gordon is back and off the bench, he’s developing some chemistry with Julian Strawther, who is playing some of the best basketball of his young career. Additionally Gordon, with Watson and veteran DeAndre Jordan, has pushed the reserves into being a very strong defensive crew.

“So you know he’s (Gordon) not close to being back to being cleared for full minutes. So we still have time to figure out what is best for our team. moving forward,” Malone said. “But whether Aaron’s out there with starters with a bench unit. I think good things are going to happen because he’s just so damn talented.”

What’s next for the Nuggets lineup is unknown but for now—what’s not broken, don’t try to fix it.