AL HORFORD

Al's Early Years

Horford grew up watching his father play and fell in love with the game. In the summer of 2000, Horford and his family moved to Lansing, Michigan, where he attended Grand Ledge High School in Grand Ledge, Michigan, and was a star player on its basketball team. At Grand Ledge, Horford holds to this day seven school records, including most career points, with 1239. As a senior he was Class A Player of The Year, averaging 21 points, 13 rebounds, and 5 blocks. While at Grand Ledge, Horford played AAU basketball for the Michigan Mustangs, who were runner-ups in the Adidas Big Time National Tournament

Al becomes a Gator

Horford accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played for coach Billy Donovan's Florida Gators men's basketball team from 2004 to 2007. He was a member of the Gators' 2004 recruiting class, together with fellow incoming freshmen Joakim Noah, Taurean Green, and Corey Brewer. He made an immediate impact as a Gator, starting at center in the front-court with David Lee. He helped the Gators win the 2005 Southeastern Conference (SEC) championship. He started his sophomore season without many expectations. Many people did not believe that the Gators would be very good in the 2005-06 season, losing three starters from the previous year's team. The Gators, with Horford's help, surged through the season, winning the SEC Championship. They entered the 2006 NCAA Tournament as a number 3 seed. Horford showed great leadership as he and the Gators swept through the first four rounds to reach the Final Four. The Gators beat the Cinderella story of the tournament,George Mason, to reach the final. Then they beat UCLA in the championship, where Horford had 14 points and 7 rebounds. Horford and the Gators started the 2006-07 season with the goal of repeating as national champions. In December 2006, On April 2, 2007, Horford and the rest of the Gators became the first team to repeat as national champions since the 1991-1992 Duke Blue Devils, and the first ever to do so with the same starting lineup. Then in May 2007, Horford, Taurean Green, Joakim Noah, and Corey Brewer all announced they would leave early for the NBA.

Al joins the Hawks

On June 28, 2007, he was selected 3rd overall by Atlanta Hawks in the 2007 NBA Draft Horford was considered to be an opening day starter because of his unique combination of skills such as the ability to shoot, pass, rebound and defend multiple positions. Horford made a big impact on the Hawks in his rookie year, starting 77 out of 82 games and averaging 10.1 points, and 9.7 rebounds. During his 2007-2008 rookie season, Horford was honored as Rookie of the Month on four separate occasions: November, February, March and April.[8] His great rookie campaign made Horford a unanimous selection to the All-Rookie first team. Horford's efforts helped the Hawks gain the 8th seed in the Eastern Conference. The Hawks gave the #1 seed Boston Celtics a challenge, taking them to 7 games. In the series Horford averaged 12.6 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 3.6 assists. Horford looked to improve on his rookie season his sophomore year. On February 16, 2008, Horford played in the NBA All-Star Rookie Challenge. He had 19 points and 7 rebounds as the rookies were defeated by the sophomores.[9] Horford improved on his sophomore year, averaging 11.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.4 blocks. The Hawks also improved, becoming the 4th seed in the Eastern Conference, and beat the Miami Heat in 7 games before being swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the next round. Coming into his third season the Hawks made some improvements to the team, adding shooting guard Jamal Crawford. Horford once again improved on his prior year, averaging 14.2 points, 9.9 rebounds, 1.1 blocks, and 2.4 assists. Horford was named to Eastern Conference All-Star Team, and in the All-Star Game he put up 8 points and 4 rebounds. The Hawks once again qualified for the playoffs, this time as the 3rd seed. The Hawks were swept by Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic in the second round. Horford improved once again in his fourth NBA season, averaging 15.3 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.0 blocks. Horford was selected to the All-Star game as a reserve, and was also selected to the All-NBA Third Team. On January 11, 2012, Horford sustained an injury to his right shoulder that appeared to be mild. However, results later showed that he tore his pectoral muscle and would miss between 3-4 months, essentially ending his 2012 regular season

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