“Good foot, good eye” we headlined aboutAl Horford a few weeks ago after a very good performance against Cleveland. But also good wrist. Within the Celtics who are on a historic basis in terms of their volume of 3-point shots, the 38-year-old pivot does not stand out, quite the contrary.
The Dominican has never insisted so much on his outside shot in his career, without really dropping in skill. One more weapon for Boston and the style proposed by Joe Mazzulla.
The quality of Al Horford behind the arc is nothing new, he who has already been above 40% success rate from afar over the last two seasons. This season, it is above all the increasingly exclusive proportion of his attempts beyond 7m23 which stands out. Al Horford now takes almost three quarters of his shots from distance (73.9%), a figure still up compared to his previous seasons!
Shooting as the only focus of training
« It obviously has to do with how Joe (Mazzulla) wants us to play, and at the same time I continue to evolve my work towards more and more 3-point shooting compared to before, where I continued to do a little post-up for example » he explained to the Boston Sports Journal. “ But it has become almost exclusive. Everything I work on is behind the 3-point line. I just think I have more confidence in it right now. »
Over the last three matches he has played, Al Horford has accumulated an 11/25 shooting mark… including only three attempted (and successful) two-point shots! A bulimia of outdoor shooting which places him in the same waters, volume-wise, as certain players referenced as snipers such as Desmond Bane, Bradley Beal or Karl-Anthony Towns.
And Al Horford not only shoots more, but also faster, both in his movements and in the 24-second clock. Not really the quickest trigger to draw in the first part of his career, the Dominican has clearly progressed in this register.
The game continues to speed up
« His shot has become incredible » greeted the Cavaliers coach, Kenny Atkinson, who had worked with him when he was an assistant in Atlanta, after the success of the Celtics on November 19. “ Before, he needed a little time to trigger it, not anymore. It goes away so quickly. »
This opens up a new field of possibilities, such as long shots taken with first intention despite the rise of a defender, like against the Bucks last Friday. With Boston only leading by one point with 90 seconds remaining, Al Horford didn’t ask any questions to gun down, where many teams would have let the clock run out.
The veteran takes 35.8% of his shots in the first nine seconds of possession for the Celtics this season, also a career best, according to advanced stats from NBA.com after shooting between 28 and 30% since 2018.
Another new asset for the reigning champion and Al Horford, who defies time and logic which would on the contrary want the game to slow down for him over the years.
| Al Horford | Percentage | Rebounds | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saison | Team | MJ | Min | Shots | 3pts | LF | Off | Def | To | Pd | Fte | Int | Bp | Ct | Pts |
| 2007-08 | ATL | 81 | 31 | 49.9 | 0.0 | 73.1 | 3.1 | 6.6 | 9.7 | 1.5 | 3.3 | 0.7 | 1.7 | 0.9 | 10.1 |
| 2008-09 | ATL | 67 | 34 | 52.5 | 0.0 | 72.7 | 2.2 | 7.1 | 9.3 | 2.4 | 2.8 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 1.4 | 11.5 |
| 2009-10 | ATL | 81 | 35 | 55.1 | 100.0 | 78.9 | 2.9 | 7.0 | 9.9 | 2.3 | 2.8 | 0.7 | 1.5 | 1.1 | 14.2 |
| 2010-11 | ATL | 77 | 35 | 55.7 | 50.0 | 79.8 | 2.4 | 7.0 | 9.3 | 3.5 | 2.5 | 0.8 | 1.5 | 1.0 | 15.3 |
| 2011-12 | ATL | 11 | 32 | 55.3 | 0.0 | 73.3 | 2.4 | 4.6 | 7.0 | 2.2 | 1.9 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 12.4 |
| 2012-13 | ATL | 74 | 37 | 54.3 | 50.0 | 64.4 | 2.6 | 7.6 | 10.2 | 3.2 | 2.2 | 1.1 | 2.0 | 1.1 | 17.4 |
| 2013-14 | ATL | 29 | 33 | 56.7 | 36.4 | 68.2 | 2.3 | 6.1 | 8.4 | 2.6 | 1.9 | 0.9 | 2.2 | 1.5 | 18.6 |
| 2014-15 | ATL | 76 | 31 | 53.8 | 30.6 | 75.9 | 1.7 | 5.4 | 7.2 | 3.2 | 1.6 | 0.9 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 15.2 |
| 2015-16 | ATL | 82 | 32 | 50.5 | 34.4 | 79.8 | 1.8 | 5.5 | 7.3 | 3.2 | 2.0 | 0.8 | 1.3 | 1.5 | 15.2 |
| 2016-17 | BOS | 68 | 32 | 47.3 | 35.5 | 80.0 | 1.4 | 5.4 | 6.8 | 5.0 | 2.0 | 0.8 | 1.7 | 1.3 | 14.0 |
| 2017-18 | BOS | 72 | 32 | 48.9 | 42.9 | 78.3 | 1.4 | 5.9 | 7.4 | 4.7 | 1.9 | 0.6 | 1.8 | 1.1 | 12.9 |
| 2018-19 | BOS | 68 | 29 | 53.5 | 36.0 | 82.1 | 1.8 | 5.0 | 6.7 | 4.2 | 1.9 | 0.9 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 13.6 |
| 2019-20 | PHL | 67 | 30 | 45.0 | 35.0 | 76.3 | 1.5 | 5.3 | 6.8 | 4.0 | 2.1 | 0.8 | 1.2 | 0.9 | 11.9 |
| 2020-21 | OKC | 28 | 28 | 45.0 | 36.8 | 81.8 | 1.0 | 5.7 | 6.7 | 3.4 | 1.7 | 0.9 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 14.2 |
| 2021-22 | BOS | 69 | 29 | 46.7 | 33.6 | 84.2 | 1.6 | 6.1 | 7.7 | 3.4 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.3 | 10.2 |
| 2022-23 | BOS | 63 | 31 | 47.6 | 44.6 | 71.4 | 1.2 | 5.0 | 6.2 | 3.0 | 1.9 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 1.0 | 9.8 |
| 2023-24 | BOS | 65 | 27 | 51.1 | 41.9 | 86.7 | 1.3 | 5.1 | 6.4 | 2.6 | 1.4 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 1.0 | 8.6 |
| 2024-25 | BOS | 19 | 27 | 47.0 | 41.4 | 100.0 | 0.8 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 2.3 | 1.6 | 0.7 | 1.0 | 0.9 | 9.1 |
| Total | 1097 | 32 | 51.2 | 38.0 | 76.1 | 1.9 | 6.0 | 7.9 | 3.2 | 2.2 | 0.8 | 1.4 | 1.2 | 13.1 | |
How to read the stats? MJ = matches played; Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive rebound; Tot = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; Pts = Points.
