After starting the 76ers-Celtics series shooting 2-12 from three-point range, reporters asked Boston’s Horford about his shooting struggles. 

“I’ll continue to shoot them,” Horford said. “Even during the season, I went through ups and downs. That’s just a part of it when you’re an elite shooter.”

Horford smiled as he said “elite shooter,” but when a reporter laughed, Big Al asked, “You don’t think I’m an elite shooter? My numbers don’t support that?”

The numbers did support it in Boston’s Game 3 win when Horford shot an elite 5-7 from deep.

In Boston’s losses in Games 4 and 5, Horford shot 2-7 and 0-7 from three-point range. He didn’t score a single point in Game 5. Hey, elite shooters have ups and downs! 

That’s a big reason Boston got beat at home in Game 5, despite Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown combining for 60 points. The Celtics made the second-most threes in the NBA this season but shot only 12-38 from deep in Game 5. And three of those triples came after both teams cleared their benches, meaning Boston was 9-33 from deep in the competitive portion of the game (27.3 percent).

Derrick White, Grant Williams and Malcolm Brogdon combined to make one three-pointer, so Horford wasn’t alone. But if the Celtics want to advance, they’re going to need at least one of their supporting players to shoot at an elite level. Why not Horford?