Philadelphia 76ers: 5 reasons to be excited for 2019-20 NBA season

5. Al Horford and Joel Embiid together

Following the Golden State Warriors’ era of dominance through going small, it seems like quite a few teams are pushing back on that trend by going bigger.

The Philadelphia 76ers are no different, signing Al Horford to be Embiid’s complement and insurance simultaneously. These two will spend significant time next to each other during the regular season grind, although in the playoffs they’d ideally play as little as possible together.

For the 82-game schedule though, they will be somewhat of a pairing. Horford has experience making Embiid play at his worst, which also means he knows how to help JoJo play at his best.

Horford is a good shooter for a big, which will help give the seven-footer some room to operate in the post.

The Florida alum’s playmaking will be immensely helpful too. These two won’t be running pick-and-rolls or anything like that, but Horford’s passing is perfect for a high-low game with Embiid.

Normally, starting two bigs would be considered rudimentary. But the modern twist that these two bring to that end of the positional spectrum makes for an intriguing combo.