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NBA player comparison

Al Horford vs. Elton Brand: Career comparison

hussEyquationCareer impact · results to date
Regular-season verdict

Elton Brand ranks higher in career impact so far

Illustrated portrait of NBA player Al Horford

Al Horford

2007–08 to 2025–26 · 19 seasons · active

Impact comparison
#138Career Impact Rank to datePeak-weighted regular-season rank#134Leads
+5.0Peak era-centered impactEstimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average+6.5Leads
+4.3Best 5 average impact+4.6Leads
16.7Best 3 average finishAverage league place; closer to No. 1 is better13.0Leads
+3,556 ptsLeadsPoints above replacementCumulative regular-season value+3,054 pts
0Top-10 impact seasons1Leads

Career Impact Rank places Elton Brand #134 and Al Horford #138. It combines league finishes across each player's best three, five, and ten regular seasons, giving the most weight to the best three. Al Horford had more total career value.

Regular season only. Impact figures are estimates; small gaps are not exact. Playoffs, awards and titles do not determine the verdict.

Career impact · results to datehusseyquation.com/compare/al-horford/elton-brand/career
Career Impact RankSee exactly how both rankings are calculatedAl Horford18.213 · No. 138Elton Brand17.660 · No. 134

Only the three league-finish windows below determine Career Impact Rank. Career Value and peak impact are separate measures; neither adds points to this calculation. Lower composite scores rank higher.

Al Horford

18.213 composite · No. 138 all-time

Al Horford's Career Composite windows
Window and finishes usedAverage finishWeightContribution
Best 3No. 142010–11Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 182014–15Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 182018–19Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimate16.66750%8.333
Best 5No. 142010–11Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 182014–15Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 182018–19Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 192015–16Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 202020–2117.80030%5.340
Best 10No. 142010–11Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 182014–15Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 182018–19Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 192015–16Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 202020–21No. 212017–18Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 222013–14Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 272016–17Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 322021–22No. 362009–10Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimate22.70020%4.540

8.333 + 5.340 + 4.540= 18.213

Elton Brand

17.660 composite · No. 134 all-time

Elton Brand's Career Composite windows
Window and finishes usedAverage finishWeightContribution
Best 3No. 82005–06Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 152003–04Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 162006–07Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimate13.00050%6.500
Best 5No. 82005–06Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 152003–04Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 162006–07Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 202001–02Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 272004–05Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimate17.20030%5.160
Best 10No. 82005–06Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 152003–04Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 162006–07Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 202001–02Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 272004–05Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 341999–00Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 382000–01Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 382002–03Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 472011–12Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimateNo. 572010–11Recorded box inputsIncludes bounded historical defense estimate30.00020%6.000

6.500 + 5.160 + 6.000= 17.660

Averages, contributions, and totals are displayed to three decimal places. The ranking calculation keeps full source precision. Read the full method →

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Full comparison · Career comparison

Understand the numbers

Start with impact, then compare playing time and skills. Team results add context. These are not categories to tally into a winner.

1 · Ranking evidence

Impact: who ranks higher, and why?

Career Impact Rank compares entire regular-season careers across NBA history. It combines average league places across the best three, five, and ten seasons, weighted 50%, 30%, and 20%. A lower rank or average place is better.

Impact: Al Horford and Elton Brand
MetricAl HorfordElton Brand
Career Impact Rank to datePeak-weighted regular-season rank#138#134Better result for this metric.
Best 3 average finish16.713.0Better result for this metric.
Best 5 average finish17.817.2Better result for this metric.
Best 10 average finish22.7Better result for this metric.30.0
Show more stats: Impact
Impact: Al Horford and Elton Brand
MetricAl HorfordElton Brand
Points-above-replacement rankAll-time rank in estimated regular-season points above replacement#57Better result for this metric.#82
Peak era-centered impactEstimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average+5.0+6.5Better result for this metric.
Best 3 average impact+4.5+5.2Better result for this metric.
Best 5 average impact+4.3+4.6Better result for this metric.
Best 10 average impact+3.9Better result for this metric.+3.5
Points above replacementRegular season · fixed -2.0 replacement baseline · higher is better+3,556 ptsBetter result for this metric.+3,054 pts
Seasons ranked No. 100
Top-five impact seasons00
Top-ten impact seasons01Better result for this metric.

2 · Playing time and responsibility

How much did each player take on?

Read games and minutes alongside impact. Offensive usage is the share of team plays a player ends with a shot, free throws, or a turnover while on court. More usage is not automatically better.

Playing time and workload: Al Horford and Elton Brand
MetricAl HorfordElton Brand
Games1,1831,058
Minutes36,88734,910

3 · Individual skills

Where does each player have an advantage?

These are each player's averages across up to ten best seasons. Career Impact Rank gives the Best 3, Best 5, and Best 10 average league finishes 50%, 30%, and 20% window weights, giving the most weight to the highest peak. The model accounts for position, role, pace, playing time, and team results. Green marks the better result for a metric, including lower turnover rates. Workload and shot-selection measures stay neutral. These rows are not votes toward the ranking.

Shooting

True shooting includes two-pointers, three-pointers, and free throws.

Shooting: Al Horford and Elton Brand
MetricAl HorfordElton Brand
True shooting percentage57.3%Better result for this metric.54.8%
True shootingAverage across the best impact seasons selected for the model input profile57.0%Better result for this metric.55.4%
Show more stats: Shooting
Shooting: Al Horford and Elton Brand
MetricAl HorfordElton Brand
Field-goal percentage50.7%Better result for this metric.50.0%
Three-point percentage37.6%Better result for this metric.9.5%
Free-throw percentage76.4%Better result for this metric.73.6%

Passing

Assist rate is the share of teammates’ made shots assisted while the player is on court. Read turnovers alongside offensive workload; lower turnover rate is generally better.

Passing: Al Horford and Elton Brand
MetricAl HorfordElton Brand
Assist rateAverage across the best impact seasons selected for the model input profile19.1%Better result for this metric.12.5%
Assists per game3.2Better result for this metric.2.1
Show more stats: Passing
Passing: Al Horford and Elton Brand
MetricAl HorfordElton Brand
Turnover rateAverage across the best impact seasons selected for the model input profile10.6%Better result for this metric.11.6%

Rebounding

Rebound rate is the share of available rebounds collected while on court.

Rebounding: Al Horford and Elton Brand
MetricAl HorfordElton Brand
Rebound rateAverage across the best impact seasons selected for the model input profile13.3%15.2%Better result for this metric.
Rebounds per game7.78.5Better result for this metric.

Defense

Steals and blocks describe only part of defense. They do not capture every stop, rotation, or matchup.

Defense: Al Horford and Elton Brand
MetricAl HorfordElton Brand
Steal rateAverage across the best impact seasons selected for the model input profile1.3%1.4%Better result for this metric.
Show more stats: Defense
Defense: Al Horford and Elton Brand
MetricAl HorfordElton Brand
Block rateAverage across the best impact seasons selected for the model input profile3.5%4.0%Better result for this metric.

Scoring

Points per game describe scoring volume, not overall impact.

Scoring: Al Horford and Elton Brand
MetricAl HorfordElton Brand
Points per game12.715.9Better result for this metric.

4 · Team context, not ranking inputs

What happened with and without them?

A verified with/without comparison is unavailable for this scope. We do not substitute another season’s observations.

Four separate questions

Impact, winning, playoffs, and awards

These are different ways to understand a career. Only Regular Season Impact determines the hussEyquation verdict. The other three sections add basketball context without adding points or changing the rank.

Career to date. At least one player is active. Every total below stops after the latest completed season in this data; nothing is projected.

Ranking result

Regular Season Impact

Elton Brand ranks higher in career impact so far.

Al HorfordMetricElton Brand
#138Career Impact Rank to datePeak-weighted regular-season rank#134Leads
+5.0Peak era-centered impactEstimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average+6.5Leads
+4.3Best 5 average impact+4.6Leads
+3,556 ptsLeadsPoints above replacementRegular season · fixed -2.0 replacement baseline · higher is better+3,054 pts

This is the ranking result. It uses regular-season impact only. Team records, playoffs, and awards do not change it.

Context

Team Success

Al Horford leads every available measure below.

Al HorfordMetricElton Brand
903LeadsListed-team regular-season wins566
59.3%LeadsListed-team winning percentage41.1%
8Leads50-win team seasons1
3Leads60-win team seasons1
17LeadsPlayoff team seasons6

Context only. Not included in Career Impact Rank. Final records for every listed team-season. A traded season can include more than one team.

Context

Playoff Résumé

Al Horford leads every available measure below.

Al HorfordMetricElton Brand
16LeadsPlayoff appearances5
197LeadsPlayoff games40
105LeadsTeam playoff wins26
2LeadsFinals appearances0
1LeadsChampionships0

Context only. Not included in Career Impact Rank. Team playoff results count only seasons when the player appeared in a playoff game.

Context

Awards

The advantages are split across the available measures.

Al HorfordMetricElton Brand
5LeadsAll-Star2
0MVP0
1All-NBA1
1LeadsAll-Defense0
0DPOY0
0Rookie of the Year1Leads

Context only. Not included in Career Impact Rank. Major regular-season honors are recognition, not inputs to the impact ranking.

How each context field is counted
Listed-team regular-season wins
The sum of each listed team's final wins in every season the player represented that team.
Listed-team winning percentage
Those team wins divided by those teams' total regular-season games.
50- and 60-win team seasons
Listed team-seasons that finished with at least 50 or 60 wins. Shortened seasons are not projected to 82 games.
Team seasons reaching playoffs
Listed team-seasons in which that team qualified for the playoffs.
Playoff appearances and games
Postseasons and games in which the player appeared.
Team playoff wins
Team wins from those postseasons. They describe team results, not individual credit.
Finals appearances and championships
Seasons when the player appeared in the playoffs for the finalist or champion.
Awards
Recorded NBA selections and major regular-season honors. A zero means the source records none; Not available means the source field is missing.

Source and scope Basketball Reference, NBA seasons 1950–51 through 2025–26, accessed 2026-10-09. Active-career totals are results to date through the latest completed season in the source.

Career Shape Explorer

How the careers developed

Follow every regular season by NBA experience or age. This view describes the path; it does not create another verdict.

View
Align careers by
Al HorfordElton BrandPeak seasonHistorical source qualification

Career to date. Active careers stop at the latest completed season; no future seasons are projected.

Estimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average

S1
S2
S3
S4
S5
S6
S7
S8
S9
S10
S11
S12
S13
S14
S15
S16
S17
S18
S19

Striped bars mark seasons with fewer than 40 games. A dashed mark means that player had no season at the aligned point.

S means NBA season number; A means player age. Peak labels identify each player's accepted best season. Hover or focus any pair for season detail, or open Season timeline for the complete evidence ledger.