What to Make of Al Horford’s Dislocated Finger
By John Buhler
Al Horford dislocated his pinky finger in the middle of the fourth quarter in last night’s series opener against the Brooklyn Nets. His shooting hand got tangled up with Nets C Brook Lopez when chasing an errant rebound. After securing the board, Horford collected himself and carefully tossed the basketball to PG Dennis Schroder before Head Coach Mike Budenholzer called a timeout.
Horford was able to relocate his Denzel Washington looking digit on his own and Hawks trainer Wally Blase quickly taped Big Al’s fourth and fifth fingers together on the sideline. Al Horford’s return looked questionable with his right hand wrapped in gauze and iced down to prevent swelling. He did return later in the fourth quarter to finish the game and his post-game x-rays did come back negative, much to the delight of the Atlanta faithful.
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Although the Hawks will have the next two days to recover before Game Two Wednesday night, Atlanta’s offensive attack may need modification if Horford struggles with his renowned mid-range set shot in practice. The team’s ability to stretch the floor with impressive outside shooting, particularly from their big men, has created defensive matchup problems for opponents all season long. Lopez and PF/C Mason Plumlee are reluctant to contest mid-range shots from the Hawks power forwards as those jumpers detract from their primary focus of protecting the defensive glass.
Big Al doesn’t have to shoot a blistering percentage from mid-range to effect this series going forward from an offensive stand point. But if Horford cannot connect on roughly 25% of those shots and PF Paul Millsap’s shooting shoulder continues to hold him back, Brooklyn will have a much easier time defending the Hawks in the Eastern Quarterfinals. If this is the case going forward, expect ATL power forwards Mike Scott and Mike Muscala to use their perimeter games to offset any lingering ailments hampering Horford and Millsap in Round One.