Look, let's be real. If you’ve been watching the Denver Nuggets lately, you know the vibe is... different. Nikola Jokic is out with a knee issue. The roster looks like a rotating door of "who’s available?" and yet, somehow, they are still grinding out wins. At the center of this weird, gritty stretch is Aaron Gordon.
Actually, scratch that—he’s literally playing center.
Over the Aaron Gordon last 5 games, we haven’t just seen him play; we’ve seen him save a season from a mid-winter tailspin. After missing 19 games with a Grade 2 hamstring strain, AG didn’t just come back; he’s basically carrying the frontcourt on his back while everyone else is in the trainer's room. People keep asking if he's "back to normal," but if you look at the tape, he’s actually playing a more aggressive, varied game than he did before the injury.
The Raw Data: Aaron Gordon Last 5 Games Breakdown
When you look at the numbers from January 7 to January 14, 2026, the volume is what hits you. This isn't just a "glue guy" performance anymore.
On January 14 against Dallas, Gordon dropped 22 points, grabbed 6 boards, and dished 3 assists in about 30 minutes of action. He shot 66.7% from the field and went 3-for-5 from deep. Let that sink in. A guy known for dunking is now a legitimate floor-spacer when the Nuggets need it most.
The night before, on the front end of a back-to-back in New Orleans, he put up 16 points and 7 rebounds. That followed a massive 23-point performance against Milwaukee where he moved into the starting lineup as a small-ball center. He even knocked down the clutch free throws to ice that game. Then you have the outlier—a 14-point, 9-rebound game against Atlanta where the whole team looked gapped, and a 12-point tune-up in Boston.
His average over this span? About 17.4 points and 6.8 rebounds. In the Aaron Gordon last 5 games, he’s shooting significantly better from the charity stripe too, hitting roughly 75% of his attempts. For a guy who has historically struggled at the line, that’s huge.
Why the "Small-Ball Center" Experiment Matters
David Adelman, who's been steering the ship with the Nuggets sitting at 28-13, made a gutsy call against the Bucks. He benched the traditional bigs and told Gordon to man the five.
Honestly, it worked way better than it should have.
Gordon has always been a defensive chameleon, but playing center requires a different kind of verticality. He isn't just switching onto guards; he's wrestling with the Goliaths of the league. Because he’s so strong, he doesn’t get pushed around, and on the other end, his speed makes traditional centers look like they’re running in sand.
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The versatility is wild. One play he’s blocking a shot, the next he’s pushing the break like a point forward. This isn't just "filling in." It’s a total reimagining of what the Nuggets can do when Jokic isn't on the floor.
The Health Question: Is the Hamstring Holding Up?
The elephant in the room is that right hamstring.
A Grade 2 strain is no joke. It’s the kind of injury that lingers, snapping back just when you think you’re 100%. Throughout these five games, Gordon has been listed as "probable" or "questionable" almost every single night.
You can tell he’s playing through some stiffness. In the Atlanta game, his minutes were capped at 24. He looked a bit heavy-footed on some defensive rotations. But by the Dallas game on the 14th, the "bounce" seemed to be back. That 360 alley-oop attempt? That's not a guy worried about his leg.
But there's a risk here. The Nuggets are short-handed. Cameron Johnson is out. Jonas Valanciunas is out. Christian Braun has missed 26 games. The temptation to overwork AG is real. If he goes down again because they pushed him 32 minutes a night in January, the playoff run is effectively over.
Efficiency Beyond the Dunk
What most people get wrong about AG is thinking he’s just a "dunker."
In the 2024-25 season, he actually shot a career-high 43.6% from three. This year, in the Aaron Gordon last 5 games, he’s maintaining that trend, hitting 41% from deep. When he’s hitting that corner three, the Nuggets' offense becomes impossible to guard. It forces the defense to pull their rim protector away from the paint, leaving lanes wide open for Jamal Murray.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Analysts
If you're tracking Gordon for fantasy or just following the Nuggets' push for the top seed, keep these things in mind:
- Watch the Back-to-Backs: The Nuggets have been cautious, but Gordon played both ends of the NOLA/Dallas set. If he starts sitting one half of future back-to-backs, don't panic—it’s smart load management.
- The "Jokic Effect" in Reverse: Gordon's assists usually go up when Jokic is playing because of their chemistry. Without Jokic, Gordon’s scoring volume goes up, but his playmaking is more localized to the rim.
- Free Throw Stability: If he keeps hitting over 70% from the line, his value as a late-game option skyrockets. Teams can't "Hack-a-Gordon" anymore.
- Lineup Flexibility: Expect to see more of the "Gordon at Center" lineups even when Jokic returns. It’s a deadly change-of-pace look that confuses opposing coaches.
The Nuggets host the Wizards next. With a three-game homestand coming up, look for Gordon to finally shed the "probable" tag. He’s proven he can handle the load, but the real test will be maintaining this efficiency as the league starts scouting his new role as the de facto defensive anchor.
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To get the most out of following AG's progress, track his field goal attempts in the restricted area versus his three-point attempts; when those numbers are balanced (about 4:1), he’s usually at his most effective. Monitor the NBA's official daily injury reports roughly two hours before tip-off to see if his hamstring status changes from "probable" to "available," as this has been the trend during this recent stretch.