The vibes couldn’t be more opposite heading into this one. Denver’s cruising at 10-3, only slowed down by a weird stumble against a Bulls team running on double-OT fumes. Meanwhile, New Orleans? Still trying to remember what winning feels like at 2-12, now navigating the early chaos of James Borrego’s takeover after Willie Green’s exit. Two games in, the Pelicans are hunting for energy, identity, anything, and the defending champs are probably not the team you want knocking at your door during an existential crisis.

For a Pelicans squad desperate for any sliver of daylight, this might finally qualify. Aaron Gordon has been ruled out, the news dropping via Underdog NBA: “Aaron Gordon (injury management) ruled out Wednesday.” The veteran is sitting to manage a hamstring issue, and with him sidelined, Denver suddenly has to lean a little harder on its bench: Tim Hardaway Jr., Spencer Jones, maybe Hunter Tyson or Zeke Nnaji. 

His next chance to suit up comes Friday in Houston, but for now, the defending champs are walking into New Orleans without one of their most reliable engines. He’s already missed one night earlier this season, but this particular absence comes at a tricky time.

And it stings extra because Gordon hasn’t just been good: he’s been quietly elite. He’s averaging 20.3 points, ranking 36th, along with 6.3 rebounds (56th) and 1.4 assists (150+), all while shooting a crisp 53.6%, good for 23rd in the league. The Nuggets built their deepest roster yet around Nikola Jokic, but Gordon remains the irreplaceable matchup fixer. They’ve leaned on him heavily this season, and every time he sits, the ripple is obvious.

Especially against Zion Williamson. When these teams met earlier, Denver smothered him, just 11 points in a dominant Nuggets win. And the guy who made Zion look mortal? Gordon.

After that October 29 matchup, head coach David Adelman didn’t sugarcoat it: “Aaron Gordon did such a great job. Zion is a load, man.  There’s only a few human beings walking around who can deal with Zion Williamson, and Aaron is one of them. We’re so blessed to have him in those situations.”

This time, though, that safety net isn’t around. Zion, once questionable, is officially good to go and the Pelicans will try to make the most of Denver missing the one player built to keep him quiet.

With him out, the lineup suddenly reshapes itself like this:

 Aaron Gordon: The secret weapon of the Denver

Aaron Gordon has always been one of those players who looked solid on paper but somehow even better when you watched him work. Orlando saw flashes, 13 points, 6.4 rebounds a night, but it wasn’t until he landed in Denver in 2021 that everything snapped together. Playing next to Nikola Jokic unlocked a completely different version of him. He slid right into Denver’s system like he’d been built in a lab for it, becoming a cornerstone of their 2023 title run and proving he was much more than the highlights-from-Orlando guy people remembered.

And the league noticed. Draymond Green, never one to hand out free compliments, used his own mic on The Draymond Green Show to spell it out: “Aaron Gordon is so much better than people realise. He plays his role at a very high level…To me he is one of the more underrated guys in this league. I think people tend to forget he’s a top ten pick, you know, so we’ve always expected and known he has this talent. But, I just think he does not get half the credit of what Aaron Gordon should get.” And Denver felt that loss firsthand last postseason when Gordon’s hamstring betrayed him just enough for the Thunder to shove them out in Game 7.

This season, Denver came back breathing fire. They’ve upgraded the roster with Cam Johnson, Jonas Valanciunas, Tim Hardaway Jr., and welcomed Bruce Brown back like a long-lost cousin. The depth is ridiculous. But the reason this flexibility even works? Gordon. His spacing, his off-ball timing, his defense, and especially his suddenly dangerous three-point shooting have turned the Nuggets’ rotation from “built around Jokic and Murray” to “pick any trio and good things happen.” 

They no longer need to stagger their stars like before; Gordon’s growth lets them run multiple functional lineups without losing identity. That’s how important he has become.