Much of Aaron Gordon’s final week of 2023 was spent recovering from a Christmas Day dog bite incident that resulted in lacerations to his face and hand.
The Denver Nuggets power forward missed two games following the holiday happenings but his 2024 got off to a much better start.
Gordon reflected on the mishap ahead of the team’s New Year’s Day home game against the Charlotte Hornets on Monday and later helped Denver to a victory by scoring 10 points.
Bennett Durando of The Denver Post wrote Monday that when Gordon’s teammates asked if would be “insensitive for them to continue barking” at the 28-year-old in “reaction to his stellar defense — as has been tradition” he “gave them his blessing.”
“That dude is special, honestly,” point guard Reggie Jackson said, per Durando. “You’ve seen the chain. You’ve seen how he takes everything in stride. Love the guy. Love his spirit.”
Only hours before suffering the injuries, Gordon had helped lead the Nuggets to a win over the Golden State Warriors with a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double. Gordon’s scored in double figures in 10 straight contests.
The 2014 fourth-overall pick and former longtime member of the Orlando Magic has averaged 13.4 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game across 29 contests this season. Gordon is second on the team behind only Nikola Jokic in offensive rebounds with a career-high 2.8 per game as well.
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