Gordon Hayward is reliving the night where his ankle snapped on the court ... and says seeing his parents' reaction -- especially his mom's -- might've been the hardest part of the ordeal.
In an interview with "TODAY" ... Gordon opened up about the game when his NBA career flashed before his eyes -- and got emotional talking about the toll it took on his parents, who were in attendance.
"As a parent, you don’t want your child to go through that. And as a parent myself ... I would rather take their pain .