UPDATE, July 29 2:46 p.m.: Eric Gordon is expected to miss approximately two weeks due to a left ankle sprain, according to Shams Charania.
UPDATE: Rockets coach Mike D’Antoni said after the scrimmage that Eric Gordon’s X-Rays were negative on the ankle and the shooting guard is expected to miss “a few days.” If that’s the case, Gordon could be good to go for the Rockets’ opener vs. the Mavericks on Friday.
Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni tells reporters that he expects Gordon to be out "a few days."
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 29, 2020
Reports came out late Tuesday night that Gordon may be out 1-2 weeks at best, so if that timeline holds true, the opener vs. the Mavericks is a no-go. Gordon has a few days to see if swelling goes down on his ankle, plus X-Rays were negative, which is good news.
Houston Rockets SG Eric Gordon needed to be helped off the court after sustaining an ankle injury during Tuesday’s scrimmage against the Boston Celtics. Gordon appeared to twist his ankle badly on a play before the end of the first half. Here’s a video courtesy of Mark Berman.
Eric Gordon had to be helped off the floor in Orlando after being injured in the first half against Boston with what may be an ankle injury. pic.twitter.com/6jQGyixG7Q
— Mark Berman (@MarkBermanFox26) July 29, 2020
Hopefully this isn’t as serious as it looked. The Rockets really can’t afford to lose anyone given their depth, especially someone with the scoring punch and floor spacing of Gordon. If Gordon is seriously hurt, he may be in danger of missing Friday’s game against the Dallas Mavericks, a big game with playoff seeding implications.
In terms of fantasy and betting, if Gordon is to miss any time, it would hurt the Rockets’ chances of finishing in the top 4 in the West. The further down in the seeding the tougher it will be for Houston to make it out of the first round. If Gordon is out, Austin Rivers and Ben McLemore would have to step up and play more minutes. Both are capable from what we saw during the regular season.