Pelicans' Gordon a game-time decision Monday after 6 weeks out
Eric Gordon returned to New Orleans Pelicans practice Sunday, as planned, and the shooting guard said he is a game-time decision for Monday's game against the Washington Wizards.
Gordon has been out of the lineup since separating his left shoulder and suffering a torn labrum on Nov. 22.
"I'm going to see how things go tomorrow and go from there," he said after Sunday's practice, as reported by Pelicans.com. "I'm still trying to get back into game shape and be ready. I feel like my confidence is there."
Gordon struggled to start the season, averaging a career-low 9.5 points on less than 40 percent shooting, but head coach Monty Williams is eager to get his two-guard back.
"I think the guys are ready for him to be back. I think if you talked to the guys on our team, they have an appreciation for Eric now that they didn't have before," Williams said. "He's a guy that's gotten a lot of flak from a lot of people. I've been steady in the fact that I know what he brings to the table. I think everybody can see what we've been missing," the coach added.
It's a small sample size, but the Pelicans' offense has performed much better when Gordon is on the court, despite his own shooting woes. New Orleans scores 104.8 points per 100 possessions when Gordon is on the bench, but scored at a 110.1 points per 100 possessions clip during the 372 early season minutes he logged, according to NBA.com.
At 17-16, the Pelicans sit one game behind the Western Conference's eighth seed and will need all the help they can get to stay in the unforgiving West playoff race.
Unfortunately, even if Gordon can help, he can't be counted on to stay on the court. Since suiting up for 78 games in his rookie season, Gordon has missed 182 games over the last six years with a variety of injuries.
Gordon has a player option remaining on his contract that would pay him more than $15.5 million next season.