Although they lost many of the main players during the offseason, the Thunder did not let anyone bully this season. In the face of the favorite Bucks to win the championship, the Thunder gave their opponents a three-game losing streak. Before that, they also defeated the Nets and the Blazers. The Thunder also fought to the last minute when they faced the Jazz, Clippers, Lakers, and Nuggets. Whether it is a veteran or a young player, the whole team is full of energy to prove themselves and play well, which is obviously a good thing for the Thunder.
During the offseason, the 76ers were eager to free up salary space and adjust the lineup, so they took the initiative to find the Thunder. The two sides finally reached a deal. The Thunder took over Horford’s big contract. Of course, they also gained an extra first-round pick and A second round lottery. There is nothing to say at first. Due to Horford's poor performance last season, and also entering the twilight years of his career with a big contract, the Thunder seems to be a draft pick with a bad contract.
As a result, Horford's state has picked up significantly this season, especially in the last three games. Horford scored 25 points, 8 rebounds, 8 assists and 4 steals against the Lakers. In the face of the Nuggets, Horford also won. 16 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists; and against the Bucks, the Thunder finally had the last laugh. Horford contributed 20 points, 7 rebounds and 9 assists. He scored 61 points, 20 rebounds and 21 assists in these three games. He almost found his peak. Style. And Horford’s overall performance this season is not bad, averaging 14.8 points, 6.9 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game. It seems that Horford still has the strength to fight, whether the Thunder keep him or send him to the playoffs as a bargaining chip. All levels of teams can come in handy.
Al Horford was a flower show in 2007. He played for the Hawks for the first 9 years of his career. In the first season, Horford averaged 10.1 points and 9.7 rebounds per game. After the end of the season, he was successfully selected for the All-Rookie Team. After that, Horford continued to grow. During his time with the Hawks, he was selected to the All-Star four times. In the 10-11 season, he was also selected to the league's third team.
Among them, the 14-15 season is a special year for Horford personally and the Eagles.This season the Hawks topped the Eastern Conference in the regular season, and they also reached the conference finals in the playoffs. Speaking of which at that time, because the Hawks were not only outstanding in strength, but also emphasized sharing awareness and discipline, the outside world also called them the Spurs of the East. I personally think that besides the then head coach Budenholzer was an assistant to Spurs coach Popovich, another reason is that Horford is a little weakened version of Duncan. His playing style is not very gorgeous, but the basic skills are Very solid.
After the contract expired in the summer of 2016, Horford did not renew his contract with the Hawks, he joined the Boston Celtics. As he grows older, Horford’s statistics decline slightly, but friends who watch the game know his value. Horford is almost everywhere on the court, scoring, rebounding, coordinating, defense, including boosting team morale. For this reason Horford is also known as a ball blind appraiser. In the first two seasons of the Green Army Horford helped the team reach the Eastern Conference Finals, especially in the 17-18 season, Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward both missed the playoffs due to injuries. The Green Army was able to enter the Eastern Finals and also fought against the Cavaliers led by James for seven games. In addition to the rapid growth of a few teenagers, Horford's role cannot be ignored. He was the Dinghai Shenzhen of the Green Army at that time.
However, there is no permanent feast in the world. Horford dropped out of the contract after the end of the 18-19 season, and the Celtics did not choose to keep him. In the end, the 76ers offered Horford a super big contract worth nearly 110 million U.S. dollars for 4 years. This caused a huge controversy at the time. After all, if the contract was given to Horford at the peak, he was 33 years old at that time. Up. Sure enough, Horford’s performance last season was very bleak, averaging only 11.9 points and 6.8 rebounds per game, and the 76ers’ offensive space was completely unavailable. Horford, whether it was Joel Embiid or Ben Simmons, seemed a bit incompatible. . Later, Horford simply gradually became a substitute player. In the playoffs, he averaged only 7 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. This investment can be said to be a complete failure.
So the 76ers in the offseason can be said to be selling Horford at a loss, but the Horford state who never expected to come to the Thunder has clearly recovered.But the better Horford played, it also proved that his time in Oklahoma City might be about to count down. Because now he is just like Paul when he first joined the Thunder. When he first came, he was a typical negative equity. If you don't want to stick to others, you can only keep it yourself. But after joining the Thunder, both Paul and Horford gradually returned their worth, so both Paul and other valuable veterans were sent away during the offseason, taking advantage of Horford’s market at the highest point now. I think as long as the right offer is received, Thunder general manager Presti will probably make another move.
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