Why is Horford exempt?

[Buzzard]

But the Hawks didn't just make it through the season. The Hawks were able to maintain the same level of competitiveness. Do you think this would have been the case had roles been reversed with Josh being out? I don't think so.

I would not assume we could not do the same if we lost Josh instead of Horf. In fact a lot on this board think Horford at PF is quite a few degrees better than Josh. Which is where Horford would slide to if Josh went down.2nd Portland has made the playoffs several times after suffereing major player injuries, Oden, Camby, and Batum to mention a few but losing Roy finally got the best of them. Which if we lost two of our key starters it would get the best of us as well.

[AHF]

Nobody on this team is untouchable...but this is the guy you deal for the right price. The price on Horford is high and I'll tell you what...getting rid of Horford would take no effort at all - today, tomorrow, next year... You know what you're going to get out of him, anybody in the league would be happy to have him - ecstatic.

The guy takes nothing away from this team. Not one single negative. Not one. And he brings A LOT. Pretty much anybody would be willing to yank him off our hands. In a heartbeat. He's got real value and you don't deal him unless you get real value in return. Outside of a major young stud or a superstar rental (minimum 2 years), there's no point in even asking about Horford.

This is right on point. No one on our team is untouchable but you have to be happy with Horford on the court and with his contract and off-the-court so there is no driver to unload him. Size is also a prized commodity in the NBA and Horford made All-NBA playing center so there is some difficulty in finding replacement value on top of that.

There are a lot of deals where I would trade Horford instantly but it is pretty unlikely anyone comes calling with one of those deals. In the meantime, you enjoy the guy and ask him to work on his post game like he developed into one of the top mid-range shooters in the NBA.

[ag82]

Seriously, how does a team make it through an entire season without a player and not question if that player is truly necessary?

Didn't the bulls make the playoffs and sweep the first round after Jordan retired? (the 1994 season)This year's bulls also played really well without Rose. Edited June 28, 2012 by ag82

[GameTime]

There are a lot of deals where I would trade Horford instantly but it is pretty unlikely anyone comes calling with one of those deals. In the meantime, you enjoy the guy and ask him to work on his post game like he developed into one of the top mid-range shooters in the NBA.

He always had a midrange jumper though, which he improved. How can he improve on a post game that he never had in the first place? Barring a playmaking PG that can give him easy baskets (that can do the same for Smoove), his numbers have peaked.

Didn't the bulls make the playoffs and sweep the first round after Jordan retired? (the 1994 season)This year's bulls also played really well without Rose.

Didn't the Bulls lose in the second round; they looked worseThis year's also were completely destroyed by the 76ers in the playoffs; they looked worseLast year's Hawks didn't look worse, we looked the same. Get rid of Smoove, and when Teague and Horf pull their disappearing acts, all we got is Iso Joe under Drew and layup lines.

[Guest]

. How can he improve on a post game that he never had in the first place?

Huh? Didn't Josh workout with Hakeem to develop a post game? and don't say he had one before. Didn't LBJ finally for the first time work in the post?

[benhillboy]

He's an All-Star with still considerable potential to reach, a great floor runner at his size, top-notch post defender, top-notch mid-range shooter, and a smart, stand-up guy that we drafted and has never tasted a season missing the playoffs. He can outplay Bosh on any given night because he's physically tougher and I think Ferry has tunnel vision solely on beating Miami, which is very possible if you can excel at what they lack in terms of post play up front and traditional PG duties of spacing the floor and getting their lesser talented big men easy opportunities to score.

Edited June 28, 2012 by benhillboy

[hawkman]

Given the latest trade rumors, apparenty Horford isn't exempt.

[MrMeltdown]

Given the latest trade rumors, apparenty Horford isn't exempt.

When did yardbreaker become credible? To be honest when did any of these random sources become valid?

[NJHAWK]

Horford has become softer since he got his money. He relys on his jumper. The guy who fought Garnett tooth and nail as a rookie has vanished.