Before Friday night’s win over Memphis, Brett Brown said “everything is on the table” when asked about the possibility of Al Horford coming off the bench.
On Tuesday, that came to fruition as Brown opted to start the red-hot Furkan Korkmaz in place of Horford against the Clippers.
While it’s no secret that Horford has struggled to fit in offensively with the Sixers, this matchup is also a part of why Brown is using Korkmaz.
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“I think my immediate answer would be is I would suspect so,” Brown said Monday when asked if he’ll have to adjust to L.A.’s small ball lineups, “because it's an unlikely sort of group that you have to match up with, initially right from the get go with this at the start of the game. How we do that, how we start the game, how we match up, we'll discuss more tomorrow. But your question is fair. There's a lot of mobile wings, more than a lot of top heavy bigs.”
GM Elton Brand signed the 33-year-old Horford to a big four-year deal to give the team a Joel Embiid insurance policy. The thought was that Horford could play next to and back up Embiid.
During his three seasons in Boston, Horford shot 38.2 percent from three. Brand figured the five-time All-Star could help spread the floor for Embiid and Ben Simmons. Instead, the veteran big has made just 32.6 percent from deep.
In his defense, Horford’s strengths are not being accentuated with the current roster construction. Brand believes those skills will eventually shine through.
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“At home, it has been, but I don't want to lean on that because I can't lean on that,” Brand said last Friday. “But having the best record at home says something. Being as terrible as we have been on the road says something too. I believe in this group. It's going to be determined, and like I alluded to earlier, I put this roster together. So all the great things he does bring, I think will come to the surface.”
Korkmaz has more than earned the opportunity to start. He's put up back-to-back 30-point performances and the Turkish wing leads the team in both three-point percentage (39.8) and threes made (105). The 22-year-old has been especially lethal from deep at home, hitting 46.6 percent from distance at Wells Fargo Center.
For at least one game, Horford will be a very expensive reserve. If it goes well, it’ll give Brown plenty to think about during the All-Star break.
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