Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here… highlighting the big story line. Because there’s nothing quite as satisfying as a good morning dump.
I could note that Horford actually boosted that to +39 by the time he subbed out for good in the third quarter. I could also note all the ways he helped the Celtics starters dominate the early part of that period. Everybody knew how much Horford would help Boston, but it’s still startling to see how much he makes the offense sizzle.
Okay, I’ve got to get these disclaimers out of the way:
- Obviously, it’s very early in the preseason
- Obviously, Kevin Durant is a better player than Al Horford (dude had a 94.7% EFG night Thursday)
- If the Celtics could only land one free agent this summer, landing KD would’ve been better for the team.
There, having gotten that out of the way, let’s talk about how Al Horford may be a more impactful free agent signing than Kevin Durant.
First of all, it’s not like there’s that much room for the Warriors to improve. They lost what? nine? games last year. They’re not going to go 82-0 with KD. Horford can do more to improve the Celtics than KD can do for the Warriors.
Secondly, the Warriors had to give up a lot to get KD. They basically replaced their bench with vets’ minimum guys and will be starting journeyman center Zaza Pachulia (which is your answer to the ‘greatest team of all time’ question right there: the greatest team of all time would not have Zaza as a starting center). The Celtics didn’t give up anything to sign Al. The players they lost (Sullinger, Turner) were players they were willing to let go.
And, I mean, again, we’re two games into the preseason, so this is really early, but Horford playing for Stevens right now looks like Max von Sydow working with Ingmar Bergman (you may remember Max from such films as Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens and Strange Brew). The two are simpatico is what I’m trying to get across here. Also, that you really should watch (or re-watch) Wild Strawberries sometime.
Anyway, let’s just say I’m looking forward to a full season of the Al Horford show.
Page 2: Where the Young/Hunter roster battle just got interesting.
The club has 16 players on guaranteed contracts but can only break camp with 15 players, so the next few weeks could be critical for both players. Celtics coach Brad Stevens has lauded Young so far for his training camp performance and defended Hunter after a difficult debut.
“I think R.J. had a really good offseason, really prepared,” Stevens said. “And the one thing he’s struggled with in the first couple of days is making shots and that’s usually the case when you’re going harder and there’s more wear on your legs. So I’m not overly reacting to that. That’s a small sample size. We know what he’s about. We know how good he is. We know he passes the ball and can shoot the ball. And he’ll play better.”
After summer league, I was not only ready to close the book on James Young, I had it already closed, and now here he is, playing like he means it and putting RJ Hunter on the bubble. The only thing I’d worry about is Young playing well enough to earn a spot, and then doing nothing with it once he has it. And I say that as a guy who did plenty of ‘just good enough’ work when I was 20 years old–stuff that I’m embarrassed to look at and remember today. It happens.
Finally
Lol Al Horford: pic.twitter.com/hX2jklieM7
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) October 7, 2016
Did I mention that I’m really excited about this whole Al Horford thing?
The rest of the links
CSNNE: Stars, studs and duds: Brown shows there’s a lot more to his game | Celtics get balanced effort in 107-92 win over Hornets | Isaiah Thomas suffers sprained left wrist vs. Hornets
Boston Herald: Al Horford shines as Celtics pick up preseason win | Celtics still waiting for floor spacers Olynyk and Green to return
