Al Horford Leading the Way on Defenae

Al Horford is holding everything together on the defensive end for the Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics have endured an uneasy start to the season, and it is easy to see that they have not played anywhere near the level people were expecting. Especially on offense, the Celtics have been far from the powerhouse we wanted after Danny Ainge assembled this roster.

We now know that it will take time for this offense to mesh together. The roles are still changing and players need to get more comfortable. It could be some time before they reach their offensive potential, and that will prevent them from from reaching their potential.

The defensive end, however, has been a different story. The Celtics do not look like they have liabilities on the court, and they have shown no signs of getting abused when they play small ball.

The Celtics clearly have individual defenders they love, but it is more than that. The Celtics are looking great as a unit, and the man most responsible for that is Al Horford.

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We will get to the fact that he has shut down some of the toughest matchups in the NBA to start the season, because his best impact is how he helps everyone around him.

Kyrie Irving is looking like a strong defender, Jayson Tatum looks far from a liability, and we already know how good Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown are. What is great about all of them is they have the freedom to try and make plays on defense.

They have the extra security they need to take more risks on the defensive end, and that is because of Horford. The addition of Aron Baynes also helps in that respect, but Horford takes on the majority of that responsibility.

The Celtics have been a notably better defensive team with Horford on the court, and he does not need to put up crazy block or rebounding numbers to accomplish that.

Rebounding might be the only area where Horford does not give the Celtics an added advantage on the defensive end. Fortunately, Horford is surrounded by wings and guards that are great rebounders, and that also allows him to focus on the areas he is strongest.

Then you can also look at this matchups. Now, Giannis Antetokounmpo had his way, like he has done in every single game this season. Other than him, Horford has taken both Joel Embiid and Kristaps Porzingis out of theor game.

Horford may not have the crazy versatility of those two, but he knows exactly what he needs to do with them on the defensive end.

We know that Horford will have no problem defending bigs in small ball lineups, and this season we have seen that he will have no problem in pretty much any situation with any big.

It also helps that Horford never gets trapped in a single matchup every game. He takes on a lot of the responsibility with these great bigs, but there is always help around him, allowing him to have a more dynamic impact on the overall defense.

The Celtics have also been without Smart for two games now. It cannot be understated how important he is on the defensive end for this team, and Horford has been the reason that they have not felt that absence in a detrimental way.

Horford has been one of the premier defenders in the league this season, and has easily been the most important defender on this team so far.

Horford has been a vital presence to this team early on. He offers reliability on both ends, and is making everyone around him better at the same time. He is impacting every facet of the game right now, and if he keeps this defense up the Celtics should become one of the most balanced teams in the league.

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Last year, it was easy to find people who thought Horford was overrated and not worth a max contract. After the start to this season, there are going to be a lot more people realizing how important Horford is to any success this team wants to have.