Boston Celtics center Al Horford was a highly coveted free agent this summer.
He has a diverse skill set on the basketball court. Horford can score from inside the paint, he hit shots consistently from the elbow area, and he can even sink occasional three-pointers if left open. Horford averaged 15.2 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game last season for the Atlanta Hawks.
The Celtics saw Horford as one of the missing pieces on their quest to conquer the Eastern Conference, and they gave their best pitch in hopes that he would see a future in Boston.
Celtics starting forward Jae Crowder wanted to help seal the deal, and he came along to give his best pitch in addition to what the team had planned.
From Tom Westerholm of Mass Live:
He's a perfect fit. That's what we were telling him. He had Washington and some other teams looking at him, but we beat them four times this year. You don't want to go there. We play through our bigs, and a lot of teams don't play through their bigs — they post them up and give them the ball. Our bigs, like he did in Atlanta, he makes the play. We were explaining our basketball terminology to him, and how ours will fit right in with (his) game. It's going to mesh. Most guys have to blend in and fit in, but it's going to be automatically just there. The style he plays, that's what we reiterated to him: The way we play fits you so well. We need you. You need us. Let's make it happen.
The pitch worked, as Horford decided to join the Celtics with a four-year, $113 million deal. The Hawks had plans of trading Paul Millsap to make enough cap room to keep Horford after signing Dwight Howard, but he made it clear that he would not return.
Needless to say, he's been more than enthusiastic about his choice, raving about the fan support during games while tweeting about his new home:
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