Arizona Marvelous Ideas: Aaron Gordon, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson shine in first NBA playoff series

Former Arizona Wildcats stars Aaron Gordon and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson made their first postseason appearances this season.

And while the Magic and Nets were ousted in five games by the Raptors and Sixers, respectively, Gordon and Hollis-Jefferson had strong showings.

Starting all five games for the Magic, Gordon led the team in points per game during the series with 14.0. He also had a great rebounding performance, with 7.2 per game, only surpassed by All-Star Nikola Vucevic, who grabbed 8.0 per game.

Gordon scored in double figures in all five games, including a 20-point outing in Game 2 and a 25-point outing in Game 4.

Gordon became somewhat of an NBA celebrity with his 2016 Slam Dunk Contest performance, in which he and eventual champion Zach LaVine put on one of the greatest performances in that contest’s history. Since then, he’s established himself as one of the many former Wildcats to become solid starter-caliber players in the league.

For the season, Gordon averaged 16.0 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game, as well as a career-best 34.9 3-point percentage. Gordon signed a four-year, $80 million deal with the Magic prior to the 2018-19 season.

Meanwhile, Hollis-Jefferson averaged 13.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game in the postseason on 48.5 percent shooting.

Hollis-Jefferson did not play in Game 1 of the series, but then scored in double figures in three of the next four games, including a team-high 21 points in Brooklyn’s Game 5 loss.

Hollis-Jefferson could be on the move this offseason, as he is expected to hit restricted free agency. RHJ averaged 8.9 points and 5.3 rebounds per game during the regular season.