The Case to Bring Al Horford off the Bench
It is no secret that the Philadelphia 76ers have performed below a majority of fan’s expectations thus far this season.
One could argue that Philadelphia fans entered this season with unrealistic expectations, however, the team’s play on the court has left much to be desired. The Sixers are not living up to the “Bully Ball’ theme that was projected by the team throughout the offseason. The team has struggled to get to the free-throw line on a consistent basis and particularly struggle at generating offense within their half-court sets.
Although the season is still young, it is time to begin looking at alternatives in order to alleviate some of the Sixers’ offensive struggles. Bringing Al Horford off the bench may just be the solution to the team’s current issues. Bringing Al off of the bench enables coach Brett Brown to add another shooter to the starting lineup. Adding a shooter like Furkan Korkmaz or Mike Scott to the starting lineup in place of Horford helps to stretch the floor and allows Ben Simmons to spend more time in the post.
Starting Lineup
PG: Ben Simmons
SG: Josh Richardson
SF: Furkan Korkmaz
PF: Tobias Harris
C: Joel Embiid
While sending a $109 million dollar player who is averaging the third-most points per game on the team to the bench is not ideal, this is the position that Ben Simmons has put the Sixers in. Simmons’ absolute unwillingness to shoot a jump shot and his overall lack of development has created a challenge for the team within the half-court. Playing Al Horford, Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons simultaneously has become impossible based on all three’s desire to operate in the low post. Brett Brown has to introduce a three-point shooter to the starting lineup in order to stagger the minutes of these superstars, while also adding an additional element to the team’s offense.
Removing Al Horford from the starting lineup will surely have a negative effect on the starting lineup’s defense. However, Simmons and Embiid are all-pro caliber defenders, and Tobias Harris has improved on the defensive end as well. The starting five has enough talent that they should be able to overcome this drop in defensive efficiency.
The Sixers are in the endgame this season, with the goal being a Finals berth at the absolute minimum. Bringing Al off the bench also allows Brett Brown to slightly reduce his minutes so that he is still fresh in the playoffs when he will be needed most. Al has played very well this season, however, there is no reason for him to be playing 35 minutes in a game in the middle of November.
Getting the number one seed is important, and Brett Brown has made his desire for the one seed very clear, however being healthy entering the playoffs is more important.
Featured Image: MATT ROURKE/ASSOCIATED PRESS
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