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Just before the final year of his first four-year deal with the Rockets, Eric Gordon inked another deal that will keep him Houston for four more years.
But a lot has changed since the Rockets and Gordon agreed to the $75.6 million contract. Daryl Morey now calls Philadelphia home. Mike D’Antoni has made the move to Brooklyn to work alongside some of his other former players, Steve Nash and Amar’e Stoudemire.
More importantly, Gordon underwent knee surgery in the middle of 2019-20. He was able to return but battled knee soreness and ankle problems. He also wound up only shooting 31.7% from long-range.
Gordon’s drop in long-range shooting efficiency from 2018-19 (36%) to 20-19-20 was steep, but his average has been down since he left the Pelicans. In his final three years in New Orleans, he shot 40.9% from deep. Whereas his first three years in Houston, he shot 36.4% beyond the arc.
Gordon’s average in Houston drops to 35.7% when factoring in 2019-20 — which is only a tick below league average (35.8%) during that span.
He’s no Joe Harris, but Alex Schiffer and John Hollinger of The Athletic still feel Gordon is an option worth considering if Brooklyn’s preferred sharpshooter signs elsewhere.
In The Athletic’s proposed deal, the Nets would send Taurean Prince and Dzanan Musa to Houston.
“Gordon could help replace Harris’ shooting and would be a strong veteran presence to play alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving,” Schiffer said.
Hollinger also points out, “Gordon has a much better chance of carving out a role next to Irving and Durant than Prince does, and Prince’s contract is no prize either.”
Prince is set to make $12.5 million in 2020-21 and $13 million in 2021-22.
“This is another deal we’ll need to run by the money people, too, since it would increase the Nets’ luxury tax bill,” Hollinger notes. “But as a sixth man, Gordon would improve the second unit’s ceiling quite a bit.”
Gordon definitely isn’t the first player Brooklyn should look into if Harris moves on. But if he goes and Brooklyn is having second thoughts about Prince’s future, Gordon could help address two issues.
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