First, we have to add the caveat that Al Horford‘s triple-double last night came against the Sixers, despite the Sixers no longer acting as the worst team in their conference anymore. Still, Horford and a Hawks team missing the majority of their starting lineup dismantled Philly like they’ve done most of the rest of the league while winning their last nine straight games and 23 of their last 25. Most impressive Horford was that Horford his first career triple-double in just 29 minutes of action.
Horford scored 21 on an efficient 8-of-10 shooting from the field in his 29:07 minutes of PT. He also added 10 rebounds and 10 assists:
It was a rather ho-hum triple-double, but he did it so quickly, and so efficiently, the accomplishment almost acts as a simulacrum of the Hawks in general.
There aren’t any superstars on coach Mike Budenholzer‘s roster, but they work so well together as a unified machine — something Bud brought over following his tutorship under Gregg Popovich in San Antonio — they don’t need a superstar, a lesson other NBA franchises should heed.
Whomever ends up purchasing the Hawks will have a serious title contender on their hands, which makes what ATL is doing even more impressive. Tonight, it was Al Horford; tomorrow, it could be Jeff Teague (who rested last night), or Kyle Korver, or Paul Millsap (who rested last night), or DeMarre Carroll (who rested last night). That’s right, the Hawks won going away even with 60 percent of their starters trading jokes on the bench all night.
Man, coach Bud is starting to turn into Coach Pop 2.0 — as high an honor as we’re liable to award a coach here at Dime.
What do you think?
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