Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon drew praise for battling through a Grade 2 hamstring sprain to play in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Oklahoma City Thunder. Gordon was clearly laboring through his injury during Game 7, but still provided a boost to the Nuggets.

Entering Sunday, there was significant doubt whether stalwart forward Aaron Gordon would even be able to play a Game 7 between the Denver Nuggets and Oklahoma City Thunder. But waving the white flag is not how Gordon or these eternally resilient Nuggets roll, especially with the entire season on the line.

As per the current NBA playoff scheduling, only the fittest roster could survive the hectic schedule. And if you’re Aaron Gordon, you can play with a Grade 2 hamstring strain, too. Recently, during the unforgettable Game 7 showdown between the Denver Nuggets and the Oklahoma City Thunder,

Stephen Curry missed four consecutive games in the second round due to a Grade 1 hamstring strain, contributing to the Warriors' elimination by the Timberwolves. Jayson Tatum suffered an Achilles injury during the Celtics' series against the Knicks, sidelining him for Game 5 and 6.

The Nuggets and Thunder play Sunday in a Western Conference semifinal, with the winner advancing to face Minnesota.

Aaron Gordon might be the gold standard of the "struggling leading man to role player" transformation right now. After never finding his place in Orlando, he has become Mr. Nugget in Denver by giving up the on-ball portion of his offensive game,

Aaron Gordon calls out ESPN for a “disrespectful” report on Russell Westbrook during a fiery postgame rant defending the Clippers star.

The Denver Nuggets expected a lot of interim head coach David Adelman this season. After the shocking firing of Michael Malone, Adelman had just three regular-season games to prepare the Nuggets for the playoffs.