Gordon set to pick up where he left off
Guard was having best game of year when he was injured six weeks ago
For the first time since Rockets guard Eric Gordon enjoyed his best game of the season, scoring 17 points in New Orleans on Nov. 11, he will return to the floor Sunday, picking up precisely where he left off.
Pelicans fans might not warmly welcome him back to the Rockets’ rotation with cheers in recognition of the more than six weeks of rehabilitation it took to be ready to return. But the sound of the customary boos every time he touches the ball when playing his former team in New Orleans might have never sounded better, if only because they would herald his return.
“It’s funny how that happens,” Gordon said of com
Record: 21-10. Today: Brooklyn at Toyota Center, 7 p.m. TV/radio: ATTSW; 740 AM, 790 AM, 850 AM (Spanish), 101.7 FM (Spanish).
ing back in New Orleans. “I’m just anxious to get back and get acclimated to the team. And hopefully, we continue to get better and better as the season goes on.”
Mostly, the timing of Gordon’s return was tied to having a practice day on Friday and a recovery day Saturday before he plays on the night Russell Westbrook sits out the second half of a back-to-back. Returning in New Orleans was a coincidence with Gordon’s rehabilitation complete at roughly the timetable set after his Nov. 13 surgery.
“We’re trying to base everything on how I feel,” Gordon said. “I feel it’s almost necessary to get back out there and play. Coming off surgery like this, you want to get to a point you feel comfortable in a game. There’s always going to be bumps down the road to where I might feel sore the next day. I thought it was a good point I can try at least to get going.
“I’m going to have some limitations for sure in the first game. See how I feel afterwards. I might play limited minutes for a few games.”
His return could be welltimed for an additional reason out of the Rockets’ control. Gordon spent Wednesday’s game against the Warriors watching the Rockets misfire shots left wide-open while the Warriors sent midcourt double teams at James Harden.
Gordon shot poorly to start the season while playing through knee pain, making just 30.9 percent of his shots and 28.4 percent of his 3s. But at full strength, he is just the sort of shooter with an ability to attack off the dribble needed against those sorts of defenses, making him particularly eager to take his share of the open shots the Rockets have been getting.
“For sure. You know it’s going to happen,” said Gordon, a career 37.2 percent 3-point shooter. “When I get back and get things going, hopefully we won’t have that problem. We can just go out there and play. But they’re going to do that, even if I’m out there sometimes because they don’t want James to be scoring like that.
“That’s where I come in and a lot of other guys come in. We just have to make plays for one another. That’s what we really have to get back to, making things easier for everybody. That’s what I do — knock down shots and you get another dimension where I can create my own shot, also. If they want to continue (defending that way) we’ll see what happens.”
With Gordon returning in the game Westbrook sits out and with center Clint Capela’s availability uncertain (he is doubtful to play on Saturday with a bruised right heel), the Rockets are far from whole again, potentially facing the Pelicans in the second half of a backto-back with two starters out. But the Rockets are close to getting their rotation together.
“It’s good to get him back,” D’Antoni said. “I’m looking forward to when we have everybody to see what we have. We haven’t played the whole complement of people in a long
time and even then, we weren’t playing well. We need to get him back in the fold and start working the rotation and everybody comfortable again with what’s happening.”
Some of the Rockets’ early-season struggles were tied to Gordon being unable to punish defenses for paying extra attention to Harden, especially while Westbrook was playing his way into shape while dealing with hand injuries. The Rockets could need some time to rework the rotation even at positions Gordon does not play, and to rebuild chemistry. But that does not seem to be a concern.
“It’s going to be a challenge,” Westbrook said. “I don’t think it’s that hard because we’ve been playing the same way for so many years and Eric is such a good player. He can adjust. And we got to adjust to his game.”
Gordon said before the surgery that he felt off balance and unable to play naturally. Even when he began shooting and drills less than two weeks ago, Gordon said he could feel the difference. New Orleans would seem a good, or at least interesting, place to test that.
“I’ve been playing with this injury for a while,” Gordon said. “It’s been irritating and nagging me for a while. I’m very anxious and excited to get out there and play again how I play. It’s going to be fun. It’s going to take me time to get to where I want. But at least it’s a good step to get back to playing.”