Greene: Get Al Horford The Rock More Often
In the time elapsed since All-Star weekend the Atlanta Hawks haven’t had the look of a team destined to get out of the first round of this year’s playoffs, let alone a legit title contender.
Part of the struggles can be explained away as incorporating veteran guard Kirk Hinrich into the rotation after he was acquired in a trade deadline deal. Some of the lackluster play can be written off to the team having to play without All-Defensive power forward Josh Smith manning the interior for a few games.
However what is quietly becoming a disturbing trend is the lack of touches and shot attempts All-Star center Al Horford is receiving as the season enters the stretch run.
Only three players who played in this season’s All-Star game average less shot attempts per night than Horford (12.5). One is pass-first point guard Chris Paul (11.4) and the other two are aging big men Tim Duncan (11.2) and Kevin Garnett (12.0).
On Horford’s own team he is third in field-goal attempts behind All-Star Joe Johnson and Smith.
In fact, in the 61 contests in which Horford has appeared this season, the third-year center has attempted 10 shots or less on 17 different occasions. But here’s the most alarming fact: eleven of those 10 or less shot attempt games have taken place since January.
The lack of involvement of Horford in the team’s offense as of late defies reasoning.
Horford averaged 16.9 points, 9.7 rebounds and 57 percent shooting in November and December. However since January his averages are 14.8 points and 10 rebounds on 55 percent shooting.
The decline in productivity runs in direct relation to the decline of Horford’s shot attempts. The field-goal accuracy has remained relatively steady throughout the season, so it’s not a matter of extended shooting slumps.
After attempting nearly 13 shots per night in November and December, the number has dipped to 11.9 since January. With the team struggling nightly to remain relevant in the ever improving and strengthened Eastern Conference Horford has to get more looks at the basket.
After all, more offensive aggression means the more likely a player will get to the free throw line. The former University of Florida standout has also experienced a sharp decline in his free throw attempts as the season rolls along as well.
When the Hawks pulled off a stunning come-from-behind victory (down 17 at half) over the East’s number two-ranked Chicago Bulls, Horford served as the lead catalyst erupting for 31 points and 16 rebounds on 20 shot attempts.
Yet in the two games immediately following the thrilling victory Horford only attempted a combined 18 shots versus Oklahoma City (10) and New York (8) respectively.
In the rematch versus the Bulls a little more than a week later, Horford only managed to get up eight field-goal attempts in 40 minutes of court action.
One is left to wonder how much of Horford’s lack of shots is due to his own unselfishness or head coach Larry Drew’s offensive strategies. Horford should be getting the same number of looks usually reserved for the game’s best – especially on Atlanta’s current roster. He’s earned that right and should be the clear number two option behind Johnson on the offensive side of the floor.
When Drew was promoted to head coach last summer one of the first orders of business he wanted to implement under his reign was getting Smith away from the perimeter.
In 2010 Smith attempted only seven shots from three-point range. However this season the number has skyrocketed to 136 attempts in 64 contests – or two per game.
While on the positive side Smith is shooting a career-high 34 percent from long range, he isn’t a marksman from deep by any stretch. Some of those jump shots, not just from Smith but the entire squad, should be force-fed to Horford, who is a 57 percent shooter from the field and hits at 80 percent accuracy from the free throw line.
Horford is an unselfish player to the core, so if it’s a matter of deferring open looks which has been the case on multiple occasions. Then somewhere down the line, either Drew or Johnson will need to sit with him and say our success is dependent on your ability to produce big numbers.
{AUTHOR_BOX}Get the big fellow the rock, clear out and let him operate. He earned the All-Star distinction for a reason and there’s no reason why his shot attempts should continue to deteriorate as we near the playoffs.
Jeff Teague Explodes
An area where the Hawks have routinely struggled has been point guard. So much so the team shipped out starter Mike Bibby to Washington in exchange for Hinrich at the trade deadline.
The arrival of Hinrich told two stories.
One was the club no longer felt Bibby had the overall game to be the team’s starting point guard and the other was second-year guard Jeff Teague wasn’t ready to take full control as the club’s floor leader.
Yet in Saturday night’s win over the playoff-bound Portland Trail Blazers, Teague finally showed Atlanta fans glimpses of the talent the team felt they acquired when they selected him with the No. 19 overall pick in the 2009 draft.
With Horford out of the lineup nursing a sprained left ankle, Teague got the start as part of Drew’s lineup shakeup and finished with 24 points, 5 steals, 4 assists, 3 blocks and only one turnover against an extremely solid veteran in Andre Miller.
A guy putting up strong numbers in one contest isn’t exactly news, but Teague’s play left Smith pleasantly surprised and expecting more.
"He [Drew] wanted to shake things up and it worked to our advantage," Smith told HOOPSWORLD after the win. "Teague had a tremendous game tonight and I know we need that from him every night he steps on the court. He needs to keep playing confident and not worrying about anything else."
Before the season Drew was so high on Teague’s talent that he opened up the starting point guard position during training camp in order to allow the young guard a chance to become a full-time starter.
An ankle injury coupled with Bibby’s hot play ruined that opportunity quickly. As a result Teague has often found himself as a rotation afterthought throughout the season.
But as the playoffs loom on the horizon Atlanta could benefit from a backcourt boost from the bench in Teague if his game against Portland was his pro epiphany and not an anomaly.
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