Boston Celtics Targeting Al Horford

By now, it is widely known that the Atlanta Hawks have been interested in dealing Jeff Teague. They clearly have lost faith in the current core that is playing and they are interested in giving Dennis Schroder an opportunity to take over as the starting point guard. Naturally, the moment Danny Ainge finds out a team with high level talent is interested in being active at the trade deadline, he will be calling.

While a player like Teague would certainly be great with the Boston Celtics, he is not what they should be looking for in a trade. The Hawks have always played a ball movement offense and Teague could come in as a wiling passer and another highly coveted go to scorer. Teague posses a skill set that is far and away more developed than any other player on the Celtics (other than maybe Isaiah Thomas) and putting him in such a guard friendly offense will allow him to flourish.

The problem is that the Celtics really do not have a need for another point guard, unless the trade involves some of their young prospects and most significant players. The Celtics’ front court is more cluttered than their back court but the back court seems to be more established. Isaiah Thomas was just named to his first all star team and with the way he is flourishing while improving, there is no reason to take the ball out of his hands.

Teague is the kind of player that would command a significant trade return and the Celtics need to ask themselves if he is worth it. Teague plays with the ball in his hands and if the Celtics acquire him that means either he or Thomas will have to come off the bench, or one of them will not be used to their full potential as primary ball handlers.

Throw in that the Celtics have another guard that they continue to be all in for with Marcus Smart and they do not need to add to their back court at the trade deadline, especially another point guard. The Celtics are also trying to get Smart more used to playing with the ball in his hands and Evan Turner is another bench guard who likes to have the ball in his hands. Unless the acquiring of Teague involved trading away multiple of these guards they will be taking a side ways step.

If the Celtics are trading for a player like Teague they will be looking for instant improvement and if Thomas is put on the bench they would be taking a step backwards and if Teague is coming off the bench then there is no sense in losing valuable assets for him.

Teague is a great player that would surely be successful with the Celtics but there is another Hawk potentially on the trade block that could transform the Celtics, Al Horford. The Celtics’ front court is even more cluttered than the back court but it is much less established. Brad Stevens has shuffled around the starting lineup multiple times and Horford could bring in some much needed stability and a veteran presence.

The Celtics have been seeing young forwards like Jared Sullinger and Kelly Olynyk step their game up tremendously this year but Horford is on another level. Throw in that his trade value might be down because of his age and because of the fact that he is having a down season and the Celtics have an opportunity to be much better now while not sacrificing too many assets for Horford.

Horford has not be stretching the floor like Olynyk has been lately but other than that his offensive game blows away any other big on the Celtics. He is still a threat from three as he has been above 30% in each of the last three seasons. Throw in that the three point shot has only been a big part of his game for three seasons and he could become the ultimate big in the Celtics’ offense. Horford has brought his three point percentage up to 31.7% from 30.6% and he did that taking 2.5 more three pointers per game.

Horford’s effectiveness all over the court makes him such a great fit in the Celtics’ offense. He has already shown a willingness to play without the ball in his hands and there are very few bigs who are more effective finishers all over the court. Horford is remarkable at the rim and has finished 72.4% of his career shots within three feet of the rim. He is an elite mid range shooter, finishing just below 50% of his shots between 16 feet from the rim and the three point line.

Throw in that Horford is a capable and willing passer and there is no reason to believe that he cannot have instant success in Stevens’ offense. Horford would undoubtedly become the most trusted finisher on the front court and he would also be the main play maker. Sullinger is the only current front court player that is averaging better than 2 assists per game and Horford has been above 3 in three of his last four seasons. Horford would continue to contribute to one of the fastest paced teams that depends entirely on ball movement and there should be no area where he holds them back.

If Horford can continue to improve his three point shooting then it will be hard to find a better offensive fit. The Hawks’ ball movement system will make for an easy transition. If anything, the Celtics will want Horford to have a increased role than he had with the Hawks. Horford will not have to contend with another offensive force in the front court like Paul Millsap. The Celtics will run more of the offense through Horford and he will be needed to create more for his teammates.

Throw in that Horford is a capable defender and if the Celtics can acquire Horford without gutting their team of all their assets and prospects then Ainge will  jump on it immediately. Horford does not excel on the defensive end but his defensive rating of 103 is just slightly worse than the best bigs on the Celtics. Throw in the fact that the way the Celtics play defense as a team will ensure that Horford improves on that end and Horford could see the best years of his career with the Celtics.

Age is the only thing that may make them hesitate but 29 years old is far from done in the NBA. Horford will have a few more years in his prime and if his body does not break down he can be a capable player long enough that it should far exceed the Celtics’ rebuilding period.

The only other downside to Horford is the fact that there is no guarantee that he stays with the team. Getting Horford for just this season would be a waste of assets for the Celtics. The hope is that the risk of losing him in free agency will cause his price to plummet but the Celtics need to make sure that they do not send their team backwards for years for a rent a player. Of courts, signing Horford now makes it much more likely that he sticks around for the future but there is never a guarantee.

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Horford will put the Celtics that much closer to getting the type of transcendent talent they need to be a championship contender but he has the kind of name that will carry a high enough price tag that trading for him could send the Celtics backwards. There are no questions about Horford’s ability to fit in with the Celtics and there is certainly the potential for him to have the best years of his career in Boston. The problem is then finding a trade package that does not hurt the team too much or getting some sense of what Horford has planned once his contract is done.