Drew Gordon, Former NBA Player, Dead at 33 in Car Accident

Drew Gordon, the older brother of Denver Nuggets forward Aaron Gordon, has died in a car accident in Portland, Oregon, his agent, Calvin Andrews, confirmed to ESPN late Thursday. Gordon was 33 years old.

A standout basketball player in his own right, Gordon began his collegiate career at UCLA after receiving offers from blue blood programs like Duke, North Carolina and Arizona. Despite two relatively successful years as a Bruin, Gordon elected to transfer to New Mexico for his junior season. He averaged at least 13 points and 10 rebounds per game in each of his two seasons as a Lobo, and with that performance, he put himself on the NBA's radar.

He ultimately was not drafted in 2012, but played for the Dallas Mavericks in Summer League. From there, he bounced between foreign leagues and the G League before ultimately signing with the Philadelphia 76ers, his only NBA team. He played in nine games for the 76ers during the 2014-15 season before ultimately getting waived in December. 

He played nearly a decade of professional basketball after that, most of it coming abroad. The highlight of that foreign career was being named an All-Star in France in 2015. Gordon retired from basketball in 2023.

This story was originally published by CBS Sports on May 31, 2024. 

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