1 week Ago By Zack Cox
ORLANDO — Joe Mazzulla saluted Celtics stars Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Kristaps Porzingis for their vital contributions in Sunday’s Game 4 win over the Magic.The head coach’s highest compliment, however, was reserved for 38-year-old Al Horford.“There should be a separate stat sheet for guys like him because of the type of stuff that he does,” Mazzulla said after the Celtics won 107-98 at the Kia Center to take a 3-1 lead in their first-round playoff series.
“...
(He’s) just an unbelievable competitor. Made all the plays necessary to help us win.”Making his second consecutive start in place of injured guard Jrue Holiday, Horford scored just six points in the hard-fought victory but blocked five Orlando shots, his most in a game since January 2024.
Two of those came in the fourth quarter as the Celtics turned a 91-91 tie with four minutes remaining into a nine-point win.With 1:33 to play and the Celtics leading 101-94, Horford tracked Paolo Banchero and denied the Orlando star at the rim. After the Celtics were called for an eight-second violation on the ensuing possession, Horford’s scrappiness under the basket helped foil another Magic scoring chance, as he tied up Gary Harris and Wendell Carter Jr.
to force a turnover.Related ArticlesCeltics’ stars shine as Boston bounces back in Game 4 win over MagicMagic coach doesn’t care about Celtics’ physicality complaintsWhy Kristaps Porzingis, Payton Pritchard are Celtics X-factors in Game 4Celtics notebook: Jrue Holiday injury update; Boston’s Game 4 priority‘There might be a fight’: Flagrant fouls, injuries mount in Celtics-Magic seriesBoth of those plays came after the oldest member of Boston’s roster swooped in as a help defender to blast a shot from Cory Joseph into the stands.“I can’t say it enough: Al is unbelievable,” said Tatum, who led all scorers with 37 points and 14 rebounds.
“Big moments, the game is tied, four minutes left and just making plays the entire night on both ends of the floor. 38 years old, he’s picking up full court, doing whatever is asked of him, and that just kind of sets the tone for everybody else. He’s got the heart of a champion.
”Horford also came up with a timely offensive rebound midway through the fourth quarter, feeding Derrick White for a layup after a missed Tatum 3-pointer. Beyond his box-score stats, he served as Boston’s de facto enforcer, as well, racing in to confront Carter after the Magic center floored a driving White with a hip check.Universally beloved inside the Celtics’ locker room, Horford has a habit of elevating his play in Boston’s biggest games.
Some of the best performances of his 18th NBA regular season came in matchups against former MVPs Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic and LeBron James.On Sunday, Horford helped the Celtics avoid a second straight loss to a bulldog Magic team that’s challenged the defending champs in all four games in this series.“Tremendous, tremendous effort from Al down the stretch in that second half,” Brown said.
“Big-time rebounds, some big-time plays. That block was huge. He just did what it took to win, and we don’t expect nothing less.
That’s just Al Horford in a nutshell.”.
