Injured Rockets guard Eric Gordon is closer to a return, Houston coach Mike D’Antoni said before Monday’s home game versus San Antonio.
The news confirms a Friday report by The Athletic‘s Kelly Iko, who said Gordon recently told him that he was on schedule with his recovery.
Gordon underwent surgery on his right knee on Nov. 11, with the team announcing at the time that the 6-foot-3 guard was expected to miss about six weeks. Exactly six weeks from Gordon’s surgery date is Dec. 25, when the Rockets have a nationally televised matchup at Golden State on Christmas Day. That day is also Gordon’s 31st birthday.
While it’s unclear if that exact game on Christmas is the target date for his return, D’Antoni certainly didn’t rule it out Monday. However, he cautioned that Gordon would initially be on a minutes restriction.
Gordon was seen putting up shots pregame when the Rockets visited Orlando last Friday, and he expressed optimism about his status that same day to the Houston Chronicle‘s Jonathan Feigen.
The knee problem may have contributed to Gordon’s much worse than expected start to the 2019-20 NBA season. In nine games, the 6-foot-3 guard shot 30.9% overall and 28.4% from three-point range. Both figures are well below the 41.4% and 36.4% percentages logged over Gordon’s first three seasons in Houston, and his points per game average dipped from 16.8 over his initial three years to 10.9 this season.
Now in his fourth season with the Rockets, Gordon has averaged 16.6 points (36.1% on three-pointers) in 31.2 minutes per game with the franchise. He was the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award winner in the 2016-17 season, his first with the Rockets, and is expected to again be a spark plug off D’Antoni’s bench upon his return later this month.
Gordon signed a multi-year contract extension in September, which keeps him under contract with Houston through at least the 2022-23 season. The timing of that deal makes him ineligible to be traded this season.
