The Miami Heat keyed on Nikola Jokic early in Game 1. A different Nuggets big man made them pay.
"TOO LITTLE!"
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) June 2, 2023
Aaron Gordon feelin' it early #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/n8qZRBnMAa
Aaron Gordon made his presence felt offensively early in Denver, scoring 12 points in the first eight minutes — only two fewer than the Miami Heat did as a team. Normally a defense-first player, Gordon was extremely aggressive on offense early, taking advantage of the undersized Heat frontcourt.
Aaron Gordon has 6 dunks/layups. That is the most in any quarter in his entire career. @ESPNStatsInfo
— Kirk Goldsberry (@kirkgoldsberry) June 2, 2023
Caleb Martin is a strong defender, but he's also 6-foot-5 and 205 pounds. Gordon is 6-foot-8 and 235 pounds, and he's strong, period. He put Martin under the basket on one play with sheer force, and when 6-foot-3 Gabe Vincent ended up guarding Gordon on a cross match, he was helpless to stop him.
Denver's transition attack is a big part of what they do but watch how they attack cross matches. Gordon has Vincent, dives right to the post and goes to work. pic.twitter.com/dncu7MLkc5
— Steve Jones Jr. (@stevejones20) June 2, 2023
Eventually Miami was forced to go with the bigger Haywood Highsmith, who played nearly half the game. Highsmith did well, finishing with 18 points, but Gordon's performance clearly took Miami out of its game plan. Meanwhile, Martin and Max Strus combined to shoot 1-17, possibly because they were so shook by Gordon's intensity on both ends.
After the Nuggets' unheralded defense held the Heat to 93 points, their lowest-scoring game of the playoffs, coach Michael Malone gave Gordon the "DPOG Chain" awarded to Denver's Defensive Player of the Game.
"Our goal wasn't to win 1 game in the Finals, our goal was to win 3 more."
— NBA (@NBA) June 2, 2023
Coach Malone praises his team's effort in the Game 1 win and gives Aaron Gordon the DPOG chain #NBAFinals presented by @YouTubeTV pic.twitter.com/i7PTqs8uov
Gordon was humble after his spectacular effort, telling reporters, "I'm not here for the credit. I'm here for the wins."
Aaron Gordon:
— Ryan Blackburn (@NBABlackburn) June 2, 2023
“I’m not here for the credit. I’m here for the wins.”
“I don’t care if I scored 50 or zero. As long as I’m impacting the game and we win it.” pic.twitter.com/NdnWWUV1E5
The Heat will certainly adjust for Game 2, but until they find an answer for the Nuggets' size — including 6-foot-10 small forward Michael Porter Jr. — Gordon is going to be there for a bunch of wins.
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