Al Horford

On June 28, 2007, Horford was selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the third overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft.[7] On July 9, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Hawks.[8] As a rookie in 2007–08, Horford was the only player unanimously selected to the NBA All-Rookie First Team; he was also runner-up for Rookie of the Year honors and was named Rookie of the Month on four occasions. He became the first Atlanta draftee to earn first team honors since Stacey Augmon in 1991–92.[9] Horford averaged 10.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 0.9 blocks, 0.7 steals and 31.4 minutes in 81 games (77 starts). The Hawks finished the regular season with a 37–45 record and entered the playoffs as the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference. In their first round match-up with the Boston Celtics, Horford helped the Hawks take the eventual champions to seven games, losing the series 4–3. In the series, Horford averaged 12.6 points and 10.4 rebounds per game.[10]

Horford in April 2008

In 2008–09, Horford started all 67 games he played in, averaging 11.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.4 blocks and 0.8 steals in 33.5 minutes.[11] With a 47–35 record, the Hawks entered the playoffs as the fourth seed in the East. Horford helped the Hawks advance to the second round where they were swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers; Horford missed Game 2 of the series due to injury.[12]

Horford had an outstanding season in 2009–10, becoming the first Hawks draft pick to earn an All-Star berth since Kevin Willis did so in 1992. Horford contributed 14.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.1 blocks and 0.7 steals in 35.1 minutes (.551 FG%, .789 FT%), appearing in 81 games. He ranked eighth in the NBA in field goal percentage, 10th in rebounds, tied for ninth in offensive rebounds (2.9), and 26th in blocks. He had a team-leading 39 double-doubles, which was tied for 11th in the NBA.[9] Playing alongside Mike Bibby, Jamal Crawford, Joe Johnson, Josh Smith and Marvin Williams, the Hawks entered the playoffs as the third seed in the East with a 53–29. However, the team failed to get past the second round for a second straight year, getting swept again, this time by the Orlando Magic.[13]

On November 1, 2010, Horford signed a five-year, $60 million contract extension with the Hawks.[14][15]

During the 2011 NBA All-Star Weekend, Horford was an All-Star for the second straight year,[9] and he was also a member of the Atlanta team that won the Shooting Stars Competition.[16] In 77 games in 2010–11, he posted averages of 15.3 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.0 blocks and 0.8 steals (.557 FG%, .500 3FG%, .798 FT%). He ranked fifth in the NBA in field goal percentage, 28th in blocks and 16th in efficiency (22.5). He was also one of the top all-around rebounders in the league, finishing 11th in rebounds, seventh in defensive rebounds (7.0) and tied for 24th in offensive rebounds (2.4). He had 36 double-doubles (tied for ninth in NBA), including one 20/20 game. He was named Third-Team All-NBA.[9] With a 44–38 record, the Hawks entered the playoffs as the fifth seed in the East. They made it through to the second round again, this time losing 4–2 to the Chicago Bulls.

Due to the 2011 NBA lockout, the 2011–12 season did not begin until December 25, 2011. Horford appeared in the Hawks' first 11 games of the season before missing the final 55 due to a torn left pectoral muscle, an injury suffered on January 11, 2012 against the Indiana Pacers. On January 17, he underwent surgery to repair the muscle and was ruled out for three-to-four months.[17] With a 40–26 record, the Hawks entered the playoffs as the fifth seed in the East. Horford missed an additional three playoff games before returning to action in Game 4 of the Hawks' first round series against the Boston Celtics.[18] He played out the series, a series the Hawks lost 4–2.

In 2012–13, Horford started all 74 games he played in, averaging a career-high 17.4 points, career-high 10.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.1 blocks and 1.1 steals in 37.2 minutes. He recorded 43 double-doubles (20 20-point/10-rebound games), including one in points and assists. He scored 20-plus points in nine consecutive games (February 11 – March 3) for the first time in his career. On November 26, 2012, he was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for the first time in his career.[19] On February 27, 2013, he scored a career-high 34 points in a 102–91 win over the Utah Jazz.[20] With a 44–38 record, the Hawks entered the playoffs as the sixth seed in the East. In their first round match-up against the Indiana Pacers, the Hawks were defeated 4–2 despite a playoff career-high 16.7 points per game from Horford over the six games.[21]

Horford with the Hawks in November 2013

Over the first 29 games of the 2013–14 season, Horford posted nine double-doubles and scored in double-figures 28 times, including 13 20-point outings and one 30-point game. Over this stretch, he averaged a career-best 18.6 points per game. However, another shoulder injury suffered on December 26, 2013 sidelined him for the rest of the season. Initially considered a "bruised right shoulder",[22] the injury turned out to be a complete tear of his right pectoral muscle,[23] and required season-ending surgery.[24] He did not play in the postseason, where the Hawks lost in the first round to the Indiana Pacers.

In 2014–15, Horford played in 76 regular season games, the most since the 2010–11 season. On December 22, 2014, he was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played Monday, December 15 through Sunday, December 21. He earned the award for just the second time in his career.[25] On January 13, 2015, he recorded his first career triple-double with 21 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in a 105–87 win over the Philadelphia 76ers.[26] Six days later, he was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played Monday, January 12 through Sunday, January 18.[27] On January 29, he earned his third All-Star nod as a reserve for the Eastern Conference in the 2015 NBA All-Star Game.[28] In a brilliant stretch of play from December 7 to January 31, Horford scored in double digits in 28 consecutive games. Between December and January, the Hawks went 28–2 and had a franchise-best 19 game winning streak.[29] Behind Horford and fellow All-Star teammates Paul Millsap, Kyle Korver and Jeff Teague, the Hawks finished the regular season with the best record in the East at 60–22, and advanced through to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history.[30] There they were defeated by the Cleveland Cavaliers in four games.

In 2015–16, Horford played in all 82 regular season games for the first time in his career. On November 11, 2015, he scored 26 points and made a career-high four three-pointers in a 106–98 win over the New Orleans Pelicans.[31] On December 4, he scored 16 points against the Los Angeles Lakers to extend his streak of double-digit games to 22, setting a career high.[32][33] His streak came to an end at 23 after scoring nine points against the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Hawks' 24th game of the season on December 10.[34] On February 12, 2016, Horford was named to replace the injured Chris Bosh on the 2016 Eastern Conference All-Star team, thus marking his fourth All-Star selection.[35] On February 28, he recorded his 200th career double-double with 13 points and 16 rebounds in an 87–76 win over the Charlotte Hornets.[36] With a 48–34 record, the Hawks entered the playoffs as the fourth seed in the East. They advanced through to the second round where they were swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers for the second straight year.

On July 1, 2016, Horford became an unrestricted free agent. The Hawks were optimistic they could reach a new deal with Horford, but after the team committed much of their salary cap to pick up Dwight Howard, it would have taken a max offer to land Horford. Horford signed a four-year, $113 million contract with the Boston Celtics on July 8, and said he was looking forward to working with Celtics head coach Brad Stevens and the rest of the team to bring a championship trophy back to Boston.[37][38][39] He made his debut for the Celtics in their season opener on October 26, 2016, scoring 11 points in a 122–117 win over the Brooklyn Nets.[40] He appeared in the team's first three games of the season, but then missed nine straight games with a concussion.[41] He returned to action on November 19 and had 18 points and 11 rebounds in a 94–92 win over the Detroit Pistons.[42] On March 19, 2017, he scored a season-high 27 points in a 105–99 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.[43] In Game 1 of the Celtics' second-round playoff series against the Washington Wizards, Horford nearly had a triple-double with 21 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists in a 123–111 win.[44] The Celtics went on to reach the Eastern Conference Finals, where they were defeated 4–1 by the Cleveland Cavaliers.

On November 12, 2017, Horford returned from a two-game absence with a concussion and scored 21 points on 8-of-9 shooting to help the Celtics hang on to beat the Toronto Raptors 95–94 for their 12th straight victory.[45] On December 2, he recorded 14 points and a career-best 11 assists in a 116–111 win over the Phoenix Suns.[46] Two days later, he recorded 20 points, nine rebounds and eight assists in a 111–100 win over the Milwaukee Bucks.[47] On February 4, 2018, he made a 15-foot fadeaway jumper at the buzzer to lift the Celtics to a 97–96 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, finishing with 22 points and 10 rebounds.[48] In Game 1 of the Celtics' first-round playoff series against the Bucks, Horford had 24 points and 12 rebounds in a 113–107 overtime win.[49] In Game 7, Horford had 26 points and eight rebounds in a 112–96 win over the Bucks.[50] The Celtics went on to reach the Eastern Conference Finals, where they were defeated in seven games by the Cavaliers.

On October 19, 2018, Horford had 14 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists in a 113–101 loss to the Raptors.[51] In December, he missed seven games with a sore left knee.[52] On December 29, he scored 18 points with a career high-tying five 3-pointers in a 112–103 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.[53] On February 21, 2019, he recorded 21 points and a season-high 17 rebounds in a 98–97 loss to the Bucks.[54] On April 1, he recorded his second career triple-double with 19 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists in a 110–105 win over the Miami Heat.[55]

On July 10, 2019, Horford signed with the Philadelphia 76ers.[56] An unrestricted free agent, Horford signed a four-year, $97 million (with $12 million in bonuses) contract.[57]

On December 8, 2020, Horford was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder.[58]