Al Horford is a multi-faceted problem for the Wizards

BOSTON — Al Horford’s stat line crept up on everyone. After a modest first half, and so-so third quarter, Horford had suddenly stacked the box score by the end of Game 1: 21 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists. He was one pass short of his second career triple-double when the series opener between the Washington Wizards and Boston Celtics concluded.

At halftime, such a surge seemed unlikely. Horford had scored just four points. He had five assists and three rebounds. Social media grumbled since everything Horford does for the Celtics is weighed against the maximum deal they provided him in the offseason. For Washington, he was the second one who got away — maybe the prime one since he took the time to talk with the Wizards, unlike Kevin Durant. It was happy with the half.

Horford’s decision to take Boston’s money and not Washington’s has created a complication the Wizards need to solve in order to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals. His potent fourth quarter Sunday positioned him as Boston’s second-largest threat behind point guard Isaiah Thomas.

“The first half, kind of like the first three quarters, he was pretty much invisible,” Marcin Gortat said. “All of a sudden in the fourth quarter, he made one putback, one layup, one 50-50 ball, one three, and all of a sudden he changed the whole game. We just go to stop him. The way they play, it’s about team defense. It’s not like he’s underneath and throw him the ball 20 times and he goes 1-on-1 with me. He’s playing behind the 3-point line a lot.”

The Celtics’ use of Horford shows precisely how he would have fit, at times, with the Wizards. Though, signing him would have meant Markieff Morris came off the bench. presenting Wizards coach Scott Brooks with an interesting puzzle. How much could Horford play next to Gortat? How much, and how effective, would have a lineup of John Wall, Bradley Beal, Otto Porter, Morris and Horford been? At the least, one of the three would have been on the floor throughout the game.

“He’s just been so impactful for us all year,” Boston coach Brad Stevens said. “Obviously, he’s playing at the five right now, so he’s stretching the floor a little bit for us. But, you know, kind of the ironic thing about him playing in the last five games there has been all the rolls he’s gotten and all the tip-ins he’s gotten…. And the way he moves the ball for us, I think, is contagious. And I’ve felt that way ever since our first practice. I just felt like we move move the ball at a different level when he’s around and on the court.”

Instead, Brooks had to wade through a season with under-performing bench players. That led to heavy minutes for his starting five.

“He’s one of the best all-around bigs in the league,” Brooks said. “He’s probably two or three top passing bigs in the league and he shoots 3s. He’s a problem.”