These 3 Houston Rockets need to start mixing in more mid-range shots

2. Eric Gordon

This season has been pretty rough for Eric Gordon. After looking fine in the preseason, he started off the regular season by struggling in just about every aspect of the game. Once it was announced he needed surgery on his knee, his struggles started to make more sense.

Since the procedure, however, Gordon hasn’t quite looked like himself. Save for his 50-point outburst against the Utah Jazz, he’s struggled shooting the ball all season long, averaging season lows in both field goal percentage (37.1) and 3-point percentage (32.3).

Still, someone with such a pure shot doesn’t just forget how to shoot (although it might seem like it sometimes). The former NBA 3-Point Contest champion is always a threat from the outside, and he’s one of a handful of players in the league that can hit the even-deeper three with ease.

The threat Gordon poses outside often leaves him with an opportunity to blow by his man and take the ball to the rack or kick out to an open guy, but with how some defenses are collapsing the middle against Houston lately, one good option for him would be to pull up from mid range.

Admittedly, his 1-of-8 figure from mid-range this season doesn’t look great, but nine shots isn’t exactly a decent sample size. E-Money has been the definition of streaky all season long, but the hope is his nagging injury has been playing a big part in that.

When it comes down to it, sometimes the best option for a shooter like Gordon is to fake the three and step inside for an easier and more-open shot. Forcing something inside can be dangerous with the quickness of guards in the West, as well as the height of some of its’ interior defenders.

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