Hey, Aaron Gordon, you are also part of the problem | Commentary

Running off at the typewriter. …

Who out there can legitimately begrudge Aaron Gordon’s request to be traded by the Orlando Magic?

In fact, Gordon probably spoke for everybody, including Orlando Magic fans themselves, when he was asked the other night the reason he wants to go to another team in another town.

“There’s been times where I just expressed my frustration to management and the frustration with the losses, the injuries, the way we’ve been playing, how we’ve been playing and how many losses have accumulated over the years,” Gordon answered. “So, it’s just my frustration kind of boiling over, I would say. I think a lot of people share that sentiment with me; a lot of frustration.”

To which Magic fans say, “We feel your pain, brother!!!”

But unlike Gordon, frustrated Magic fans cannot request a trade; all they can do is stick it out and hope their injury-ravaged team gets healthy next year, drafts a great player and quickly turns around their sagging fortunes.

Let me stress that I do not blame Gordon for wanting out of Orlando after seven mostly losing seasons in which he’s played for five different head coaches with five different ideas about what his position and his skill set actually are — or should be.

But let us not forget that Gordon himself has been part of the problem, too.

He was the No. 4 overall pick and has as much athletic ability as most any player in the league but has been wildly inconsistent and simply not developed into the All-Star many thought he could become.

Is this the Magic’s fault or Aaron Gordon’s fault?

That might go down as perhaps the fourth-greatest philosophical question in franchise history, right behind: (1) What would have happened if the Magic hadn’t originally low-balled Shaq. (2) What if Nick Anderson hadn’t missed the four free throws? (3) Did Fran Vazquez actually exist?

Short stuff: Did you see where Jameis Winston broke down and started crying when talking about how much Drew Brees means to him? I haven’t seen Jameis that emotional since he found out those stolen crab legs weren’t seasoned with Old Bay!!!. ... I find it hilarious that so many Gators fans want basketball coach Mike White fired after the upset loss to Oral Roberts. White has made the NCAA Tournament every season but his first season and he’s one of only five coaches in the country to win at least one game in the last four NCAA Tournaments. Good thing FSU didn’t have this same kneejerk mentality with Leonard Hamilton, who actually missed the NCAA Tournament his first six years on the job. Two decades later, Hamilton has built FSU into an elite basketball program. … Speaking of the Seminoles, they will be playing Michigan in a Sweet 16 matchup that should be known as “The Battle of the Former Football Schools.” ... I suppose you saw where Emmanuel Henderson, the No. 1-ranked running back in the 2022 recruiting class, has committed to Alabama. Yawn. …

Comedy writer Brad Dickson: “Dish Network and DraftKings just struck a deal that will allow fans to place bets on sporting events from their televisions in the middle of games. OK, we’re going to need another $1.9 trillion bailout very soon.” … Only dumb politicians would deny Bright Futures. ... Oregon State president F. King Alexander just resigned earlier this week because he was part of the Les Miles sexual-misconduct coverup when Alexander was president of LSU. Kansas fired Miles and its athletics director (Jeff Long) because of what happened at LSU. Meanwhile, at LSU (Lamentably Shady University), all we’ve heard is crickets. ... How far has Gonzaga come as a basketball program? I remember when Billy Donovan’s Florida Gators lost to the 10th-seeded Zags in the 1999 NCAA Tournament, I wrote that the Gators choked the game away by pulling a “Gone-Gag-uh!” Little did I know then that it wasn’t a choke at all; the Gators had simply lost to undiscovered Gonzaga, which was about to emerge as one of the nation’s elite basketball programs. That said, I’ll still take the field against the Zags the rest of the way. …

How about a standing ovation for Iowa wrestler Spencer Lee, who won his third straight NCAA title in the 125-pound weight class while wrestling with two torn ACLs he didn’t reveal until after winning the championship a few days ago. “I’m wrestling with no ACLs,” Lee said. “Whatever man. I didn’t want to tell anyone because (bleep) excuses. Excuses are for wusses.” Translation: There ain’t no load management in college wrestling, baby. … A moment of silence, please, Elgin Baylor has gone not only to That Big NBA Hall of Fame In the Sky but also to That Big Army Barracks In The Sky. Little known fact about Baylor, who died earlier this week at the age of 86: He was not only one of the greatest NBA players of all-time, but when he was leading the Lakers to seven NBA Finals, he was also in the U.S. Army Reserve. He was actually on active duty in 1961-62 and used his weekend passes to play in selected games for the Lakers. By the way, he averaged 38.2 points and 18.6 rebounds that season. And who will ever forget the famous quote of his former Lakers teammate Rodney “Hot Rod” Hundley: “My biggest thrill was the night Elgin Baylor and I combined for 73 points at Madison Square Garden. Elgin had 71 of them.” …

The Washington Football Team name has evidently gone from a temporary and generic placeholder to one that is being seriously considered as the franchise’s permanent name. I still think a more appropriate name for a football team in our nation’s capital should be the Washington Pandering Partisan Politicians. …

Last word: In honor of Friday being National Medal of Honor Day: “This Medal of Honor does not belong to me. This medal belongs to every man and woman who has ever served their country. We were doing what we were trained to do. We were doing our job.”— — retired Navy SEAL Michael E. Thornton, who received the Congressional Medal of Honor in 1973 for his bravery in Vietnam.

Thank you, sir.

This column first appeared on OrlandoSentinel.com. Email me at mbianchi@orlandosentinel.com. Hit me up on Twitter @BianchiWrites and listen to my Open Mike radio show every weekday from 6 to 9:30 a.m. on FM 96.9, AM 740 and HD 101.1-2