The Denver Nuggets matched up against the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night, and despite being winless at 0-4, the Pelicans are capable of putting up a good fight. However, that did not look to be the case against the Nuggets.
Denver pulled out a dominant 122-88 win, highlighted by a third quarter in which the Nuggets outscored the Pelicans 39-11. The Pelicans have a few very talented guys on their roster, headlined by star forward Zion Williamson, although he was practically a non-factor in Wednesday’s game.
Williamson finished the game with 11 points, zero rebounds, two assists, and three turnovers on 4-8 shooting from the field. Who can be credited for holding Williamson to his worst game of the season? Aaron Gordon.
Aaron Gordon is such a good Zion defender pic.twitter.com/paeX0YOCoP
— Matt Brooks (@MattBrooksNBA) October 30, 2025
Gordon, a 6-foot-8 athletic beast, is the ideal defensive matchup against Williamson. The Pelicans star is one of the most physically gifted athletes in the NBA, and showed it with back-to-back 27-point outings to start his season, but Gordon completely shut him down using his size and physicality.
Plenty of fans noticed Gordon’s defense on Williamson throughout the game, but Nuggets head coach David Adelman had the most praise for his standout forward after Wednesday’s win.
“Aaron Gordon did such a great job. Zion is a load, man. There’s only a few human beings walking around who can deal with Zion Williamson, and Aaron is one of them,” Adelman said. “We’re so blessed to have him in those situations.”
Mr. Nugget is a BEAST 😤 pic.twitter.com/HyFaOnhBtC
— DNVR Nuggets (@DNVR_Nuggets) October 30, 2025
Of course, nearly the entire Pelicans roster struggled, with rookie guard Jeremiah Fears being the exception. Trey Murphy III shot just 1-8 from the field, while Jordan Poole was just 2-11 and 1-7 from three-point range. The Pelicans had a rough night all around, but Gordon shutting down Williamson was certainly the nail in the coffin.
Sure, Gordon may never be selected to an All-Star Game, but his impact mimics that of a star. Not only is Gordon able to go out there and lock down the opposing team’s best player, but he can also be lights out on offense.
Of course, nobody has forgotten about Gordon’s 50-point explosion to start the season. While he has not come close to matching that output in three games since, he proved that he is capable of that type of outburst. Also, the Nuggets have not needed an offensive explosion from him in their three dominant wins since, but they certainly know he is there, ready to light things on fire when needed.
