The Oklahoma City Thunder decided to shutdown veteran Al Horford midseason as the organization made a not-so-secret effort to embrace their tank mode. After the conclusion of the NBA regular season, Horford opened up on the decision between the two sides regarding his healthy scratch.

“…understanding that the team also wanted to play younger guys and see what they could do with their development, and for me, for myself, health-wise, what's best for me,” Al Horford said according to Royce Young of ESPN. 

So, it seemed clear that at some point Horford was going to be shut down as the Thunder embraced their decision and plans to tank to better their draft chances. After all, Sam Presti acquired a multitude of draft picks in an attempt to revitalize the team with young talent.

At the time of Horford's shutdown, the Thunder were 19-25 and squarely in a race for at least a spot in the play-in tournament. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander got hurt again, and shutting down Horford was the gasoline that field the tank right into the sunset.

The Thunder ended the year with a 22-50 record and the second-worst mark in the Western Conference. Despite all that, Horford was still productive in his run with the team. He finished the year with 14.2 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 3.4 assists. The difficult part for the Thunder will be finding a trade partner, due to Horford's two years and $53.5 million left on his contract.

For a veteran big who can still produce, it might be tough to find a suitable taker for him, unless they end up paying most of his remaining salary. Nonetheless, the Thunder's plan worked to perfection, as their hopes of picking in the top-five looks better than ever.