Colorado University Athletics
Buffs' Gordon Developing Consistency In Game
December 09, 2015 | Men's Basketball, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — When the season began, Colorado basketball coach Tad Boyle called forward Wesley Gordon the Buffs' “x-factor.”
Gordon may be nearing the point that the “x” is removed from the equation. If the Buffs junior continues to play as he has in recent games, he'll simply be a factor — a very positive one — when CU enters Pac-12 play.
Throughout his career, Gordon has shown glimpses of his potential. He's had big games — a 16-point effort against Auburn a year ago and a 17-rebound game vs. Washington — but consistency has always eluded him. He averaged a respectable 6.6 points and 6.9 rebounds last year, but when the season began, Boyle and the CU staff challenged him to become more aggressive on offense and more consistent overall.
That consistency may just be starting to find a home. Gordon has recently put together one of the most productive three-game stretches of his career, one that's seen him average nearly 11 points and more than 12 rebounds per game. That includes a 15-point, 12-rebound effort in the Buffs' 88-77 win over Colorado State.
He'll have a chance to extend that stretch Saturday when the Buffs play host to Brigham Young in a 6 p.m. game at the Coors Events Center (Pac-12 Networks).
Gordon's recent numbers are just what Boyle was looking for at the beginning of the year, when he said he saw “no reason” Gordon couldn't average a double-double.
“We always talk about going from good to great,” Boyle said. “There are people in an organization — Wes is one of them in ours — where they have a chance to tip that scale. His aggressiveness against Colorado State was great.”
Gordon and fellow frontliner Josh Scott arrived in Boulder in the same recruiting class, but Gordon redshirted his first season. Since then, he has at times appeared content to play in Scott's shadow, satisfied with doing his job on the boards and then picking up the points inside that Scott didn't collect.
But that may no longer be the case. His double-double effort against CSU came at the same time Scott was scoring 21 points and grabbing 11 rebounds — the first time in their careers they recorded a double-double in the same game.
In fact, while Gordon's double-double Sunday was the sixth of his career, it was only the third time he recorded one with Scott in the lineup. Last year, he had three double-doubles when Scott was out with an injury.
For the season, Gordon is averaging 7.1 points and 8.3 rebounds, and he has 16 blocks, putting him in the top 10 in the Pac-12 in rebounds and blocks. It's not where Boyle wants Gordon's numbers to be, but it's getting closer.
“I'd like for them to go up a little faster, but it's slowly but surely coming,” Gordon said.
After the CSU game, Scott told the media that Gordon's numbers were what he's capable of producing every game. The soft-spoken Gordon, whose typical reaction to such talk is a wide grin, chuckled when he heard of Scott's comments.
“Yeah, that's what I've been hearing a lot in the locker room,” Gordon said. “I have to stay aggressive on offense and don't let missed shots affect me.”
Gordon also showed a side of his game in the win over CSU that fans haven't seen. He opened the second half with a 3-pointer, then added another minutes later as the Buffs opened the half with a 15-1 run that erased a 13-point halftime deficit.
The two 3-pointers were his first of the year, and only his second and third attempts of the season. Last season, he attempted 14 treys all year and connected on just four.
“Wesley can shoot,” Boyle said. “He shoots in practice all the time. Last year, I remember I had to yell at him, 'You have to shoot it. You can shoot,' and I think you are going to see a more aggressive Wesley this year in general. People will not be ready and that is going to work in our benefit.”
Gordon said he'll “probably” attempt to incorporate 3-point shooting more into his game.
“I like to work through the shot clock and get the ball moving around, but if my guy is playing off me, no matter what time's on the shot clock, I'm going to have to shoot it to make him respect me,” Gordon said. “If I keep shooting it, they'll have to respect it.”
That will be just fine with Boyle.
“He has the ability to make us go from a good team to a great team,” Boyle said. “He's super talented and it's what he is capable of, probably even more.”
XJ UPDATE: Boyle said he will meet sometime within the next two weeks with injured forward Xavier Johnson, along with team trainers, doctors and possibly Johnson's family members to discuss whether Johnson will attempt to return this year from an Achilles injury suffered last summer. Johnson has been rehabilitating the injury since surgery, and while he's made great improvement, Boyle said it's still too early to tell if Johnson will be able to return this season.
“In the next week or two, based on finals and doctors schedules, we'll have a sit-down meeting probably with doctors and trainers and XJ," Boyle said. "He's out shooting and he's working out. He's still doing his treadmill and rehab workout. He's certainly not ready to play yet, but he's getting closer. He looks fine, but the explosiveness and strength, that's something we want to make sure is there. As of today it's not, but hopefully in the next two weeks we'll have some sort of better gauge of the thought process.”
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
