PHILADELPHIA -- Should the Celtics consider starting Al Horford? CLNS Media's Bobby Manning and Josue Pavon debate following Boston's 117-107 win over the Philadelphia 76ers, Al Horford stepped into the starting lineup in place of Kristaps Porzingis (knee contusion). Horford scored 14 points, including a significant block on Maxey's driving layup late in the 4th. Horford showcased his range, going 4 for 8 from the 3-point line, contributing to the Celtics' statement win to reclaim the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference. Should Boston start Al or at least vs Philly specifically?
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SportsTranscript
00:00 The Garn Report is brought to you by FanDuel, the exclusive wagering partner of the CLNS
00:04 Media Network.
00:05 Hey, Bobby Manning here.
00:08 Welcome to the Garn Report at Wells Fargo Center here in Philadelphia.
00:12 Josue Pavone joining us here post-game after a 117-107 Celtics win.
00:17 Another dub.
00:18 Short-handed with two starters out.
00:20 Christoph Porzingis with the knee, Jalen Brown illness.
00:23 So you start Sam Hauser and Al Horford.
00:27 After a slow start for Horford, explosive second half from behind the line.
00:32 Four of eight from three, he finishes this one.
00:35 14 points.
00:36 Timely ones as well between the third and fourth quarters in a one possession game.
00:41 And effectively icing one late.
00:44 He blocks Robert Covington for that fifth block, which I knew was a block.
00:47 So he ends with five here.
00:49 And then Tatum runs out in transition and hits a three to pretty much end this one.
00:54 And Horford, we've thrown the stats out there.
00:56 I think coming into this one, 22% from three, below 35% from the field.
01:01 He's really struggling coming off the bench.
01:02 But in a spot start, you saw the old Horford.
01:05 And that's exactly what I expected.
01:06 We spoke pre-game about what to expect.
01:09 And even when it wasn't officially announced that Joel Embiid would in fact play in this
01:12 game, I said to you, give me Harden.
01:14 I mean, Harden, wow.
01:16 Give me Horford.
01:17 Don't give him Harden.
01:18 I don't know.
01:19 Maybe that conversation we had earlier.
01:20 Give me Horford against Joel Embiid, the MVP here in Philly.
01:25 And I like this stuff.
01:26 He takes his chances.
01:27 And then Al went out and did what he did.
01:28 What he's been trying to do in terms of adjusting to this new spot coming off the bench, I just
01:34 think the law of averages is going to work in his favor.
01:38 I never was concerned that he's going to be a 25% shooter from behind the three-point
01:42 arc.
01:43 It's just about adjusting to that role when you're not getting as many touches and you're
01:46 not starting the way you started your entire career.
01:49 You're coming off the bench.
01:50 You have to sort of warm yourself up.
01:51 I was never concerned about him adjusting to it.
01:53 I knew there would be that period where it might take him a bit.
01:57 And I think that's what we saw throughout those first couple of weeks.
02:00 But situations like this, I think he lives for these situations.
02:03 And you look at a team to play without their two starters against the best team in the
02:07 Eastern Conference.
02:08 After what happened here one week ago, you send a message and you do it in a way that
02:12 a lot of Sixers fans in this building were really surprised about.
02:15 No Jalen Brown, no Christos Porzingis.
02:17 Al Horford, the bench, carrying the load, especially in that third quarter when you
02:22 needed to sort of turn things around after you blew a 17-point lead in the second quarter.
02:26 Who was the best person to set the example?
02:28 It's Al Horford, getting it done on both ends of the floor.
02:30 That block on Tobias Harris I thought was huge.
02:33 You mentioned the other one, his final block of the night.
02:35 And it all went down to the wire for Tatum to nail that dagger three at the end.
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02:58 Great room protection certainly tonight.
03:00 And he's been that kind of defender for this team.
03:02 Here's Joe Mizzoula talking about his impact and reminding us again that Al Horford is
03:07 indeed older than Joe Mizzoula.
03:09 That's the most inspiring thing for me as a coach is to watch him.
03:14 Why?
03:15 I mean, he's out.
03:17 One, he's two years older than me.
03:19 So I get to coach a guy that's older than me.
03:21 That's fun.
03:22 Secondly, he's one of the most selfless, humble people that you have.
03:27 And literally, he will do anything to win.
03:31 And we can't do what we do as a team if you don't have a guy like that at the top.
03:34 So it's refreshing to see this from him.
03:41 He's really struggled.
03:42 You look at the analytics action I did this week, the 538 Raptor stat I love, kind of
03:47 like a plus minus, plus zero offensively.
03:50 And we've seen that not much from him on that end.
03:53 But plus two points per 100 possession added to the Celtics saved, if you want to say it
03:58 that way, defensively.
04:00 So he's given you rock solid production on that end.
04:03 I'm just going to toss it out there.
04:05 I don't believe this, as we talked about on the show.
04:08 But on a night where you get this from Horford, and Drew really leads that second unit well,
04:13 and we'll get to that in our next video.
04:15 Do you consider, even on some nights, as we've talked about with starting lineup by committee,
04:19 flipping those two, letting Drew be that sixth man, and having Al be with the starters where
04:23 he was so successful in the night?
04:25 Unless you're trying to limit Porzingis' minutes in terms of he's dealing with a lingering
04:29 injury or something, then yeah, I'm OK with that.
04:32 I think Al is still confident and productive enough to be a spot starter on any given night.
04:39 However, I do like what the starting five looks like right now.
04:42 I don't want to see Mizzou switch that up.
04:44 If you ask Joe, he'll tell him that he doesn't have a permanent starting five.
04:47 But I think for most nights, he does.
04:49 And I would like to see him stick with that.
04:51 I think having Al come off the bench, you're sort of preserving that monster performance,
04:59 or at least that line of huge performances that I think will happen towards the latter
05:03 half of the season going into the playoffs.
05:06 I think that's certainly on the table.
05:07 But you want to keep him somewhat limited.
05:10 And again, he's giving you that muscle off the bench, and is still someone that can finish
05:14 the game for you.
05:15 So I like that.
05:16 I like that role for Al.
05:18 I would like things to stay the same.
05:20 However, nights like this, I can understand why you would consider switching things up.
05:24 Talking to Al throughout this process, he said that in that bench role, he's focused
05:28 more on energy.
05:29 Trying to just bring that burst off the bench and play rebounding, hustling style.
05:35 Offensively, though, you see him fit in the system, getting the quality shots, getting
05:39 the amount of shots he needs to get going with the eight three-pointers in this one.
05:43 It's a nice, valuable player to have in that role.
05:46 And I don't have a huge problem if they want to keep him off the bench where they've been
05:50 so successful so far.
05:52 But if you need a spot starter, having him step in there.
05:54 But they got a good look at something interesting tonight.
05:57 We will talk about the second unit in our next video here.
06:00 Celtics beat the Sixers 117-107 behind some surprise performances off the bench, including
06:05 Horford as a typical member of that second unit coming up big tonight.
06:08 Other guys did as well.
06:09 We'll talk about that here on Celtics All Access.
06:11 And of course, check out Horford, Joe, and Jason all talking about Horford on CLNS Media
06:18 with postgame coverage here in Philadelphia.
06:20 I'll be on to Memphis.
06:22 We'll have remote coverage of Friday's game, an in-season tournament game against the Raptors.
06:25 We'll see if Porzingis and Brown are back for that one on Friday night.
06:30 And for now, Joseph Pagone and Bobby Manning of Celtics win again and avenge their loss
06:34 here last week at Wells Fargo Center.
06:36 117-107.
06:37 This has been the GARN Report.
06:39 Ever wish you could navigate the betting field with the confidence of a pro?
06:44 Enter OddsR.
06:45 They're not a sports book, but they're the sports betting advisor you always needed.
06:50 It's like having a playbook for smarter bets right in your pocket.
06:53 I've been absolutely loving the experience, and I think you will too, especially since
06:57 Celtics All Access listeners get a 30-day free trial.
07:01 Elevate your game day and join the smart betting revolution.
07:05 Go get it at oddsr.com/celtics.
07:08 That's oddsr.com/celtics.
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