Boston Celtics: 3 takeaways from Game 4 vs. 76ers

3. Al Horford silent offensively in Game 4

In the Game 4 loss, Celtics big man Al Horford managed to shoot the ball only six times on his way to a 10-point night.

While Boston’s offense is predicated on constant movement from both the ball and the players, allowing anyone to have a big night, Celtics coach Brad Stevens should look to get his All-Star more shots.

Horford is the only offensive presence Boston has on the inside, and ignoring him on that end makes the C’s very perimeter-centric, which, depending on how their shots are falling, is a risky play.

Throwing the ball down to Al in the post slows the game down against the run-and-gun 76ers, with a great chance of putting Philly’s bigs in foul trouble.

It’s also not necessarily about the shot totals for Horford. After averaging 4.7 assists during the regular season, Horford is more than capable of running the show for Boston.

What the Celtics can do is station him at the elbow or the post and execute dribble handoffs as well as have guys like Jaylen Brown and Tatum slash through the lane, either getting layups for themselves or dragging a second defender with them, opening up someone else on the perimeter.

Boston has one of the most versatile players in the NBA with Al Horford, and it generally exploits that versatility better than most could.

Having said that, if the C’s were to get Horford more touches, it would give them an entirely new dimension to their already unpredictable offense.