Philadelphia 76ers: 3 reasons not to trade Al Horford

The Elton Brand Connection

One reason Elton Brand surely targeted Al Horford in free agency, outside of his pedigree as a certified Embiid-buster in the playoffs, is because of how much the 33-year-old’s game mirrors his own.

While it may seem like a distant memory now, a pre-process dream only provable because of its documentation in The Safdie Brothers’ film ‘Uncut Gems’, but once upon a time, Brand was also an undersized All-Star center who made a living as a do-it-all big.

During his first tenure with the 76ers, a tenure cut short when the organization used the since-discontinued Amnesty clause to expunge his contract from their books, Brand played a vital role in getting Philly three postseason series in two seasons, before the team was eventually blown up to start the Process.

But that wasn’t Brand’s only tenure with the team.

After spending two seasons in Atlanta, where he shared the court with a young Horford, the Sixers brought Brand back for the 2015-16 season to serve as a mentor for a young center the team just drafted out of Kansas, Joel Embiid.

By signing Horford to a four-year deal, he can split the difference between old Elton’s ability to impact the game as a do-to-all big man, and slightly less old Elton’s veteran leadership as a leader both on the court and in the locker room for the Philadelphia 76ers.