Aaron Gordon, the official board cleaner of the Denver Nuggets, may put himself in costly trouble in the future. The Mile-High City team, despite the unsettled run at the start of this season, seemed to have found their voice once again. But they aren’t completely back yet. Reason: the team’s champion forward hasn’t found his rhythm, as he continues to miss games. Now with only 30-odd games left in the season, Gordon hinted at risking his future following Ja Morant’s offer.

We all know what the Memphis Grizzlies star’s offer was. Just like every one of us, Mac McClung’s dunking showcase at All-Star Weekend left Morant spellbound. After four creative dunks, sweeping all of them with 50.0 points, the 26-year-old walked away with $105k prize money. It went to an extent where the dunks enticed Morant to give it a shot next season. Well, the 25-year-old isn’t a new customer around the rim and his natural bounce makes him a strong contender without a doubt. But, he didn’t stop at that.

Ja Morant asked if the two of greatest Slam Dunk participants of recent times, Zach LaVine and Aaron Gordon, cared to join him via his X post. While the Kings forward instantly gave it a nod, Gordon took some time and replied to Ja’s post, writing, “I Still Got Some S—.”  While we could take that as a ‘yes’, Gordon followed it up with some clarification.

Featuring in the latest interview of Run it Back, the Nuggets forward had a lot to say about the dunk contest. The 29-year-old, acknowledging that it was a “Young man’s game,” reflected on his X post reply, saying, “I do still have something in the tank.” 

But he followed it up with a concerning yet hopeful statement saying, “I got something in the back still, but you know, it’s a long season. If I’m healthy, maybe I’ll do it.”

Amid this equal parts worrying and promising update about his back, Gordon managed to crack a joke about a fan who trolled him on X, writing, “Are you really gonna crawl out,” taking a dig at his fitness. Jokes apart, the star forward hasn’t really had a great season so far, missing 22 games with a nagging calf injury. Anyway, more than the physical trauma, there’s a mental trauma as well. Let’s find out.

Aaron Gordon and his bad history slam dunk challenge

There’s a reason why I referred to LaVine and Gordon as two of the greatest Slam Dunk participants of recent times. Unlike the last few years, the NBA world did have an exciting All-Star weekend. Not to demean Mac McClang’s efforts, but apart from him, the 2025 Slam Dunk contest wasn’t really impressive. 

Dialing the clock back to 2016, Aaron Gordon and Zach LaVine faced each other in the final round of the event. It was a hard day for the judges. They had to use the microscope to point out flaws in their dunks. It would be a sin not to describe one famous dunk where LaVine took from the free-throw line and dunked. Gordon wasn’t anything less, as he used his explosive strength and athleticism to woo the judges. 

Anyway, at the end of the event, judges crowned the Kings forward as the greatest dunker of the night. While some were upset with the decision, LaVine did put up a lauding performance. A few years down the line, Gordon was once again at the same spot, this time taking on Derrick Jones Jr., and lost it once again in the 2020 contest.

Moreover, after this loss, Gordon spoke his mind, saying, “I definitely feel some type of way about it… I’m definitely kind of irritated a little bit and a little frustrated, as well… But it’s OK, it’s really OK…. We’ve got to move on because it’s over now. I think it will be talked about for years and years and years, which is really cool. But at the same time, it’s over.” It was very clear that he wasn’t impressed with the decision.

While he remained out of the contest for five years, will he now come back at the risk of hurting himself? Both physically and mentally? What do you think? Let us know in the comments.