Full admission: We’ve written this story before. You can go back in the archives and probably find 14 different versions of us gushing about ageless Al Horford’s impact. At this point, it feels like we’re just filling in an NBA Mad Lib.
At (CURRENT AGE, REFERENCE UPCOMING BIRTHDAY) years old, ageless Al Horford continues to be a defensive menace for the Celtics, holding the (ENTER PLAYOFF OPPONENT)’s superstar tandem of (SUPERSTAR X) and (SUPERSTAR Y) to just (X) points on (X) of (X) shooting with (X) blocks as Boston took a commanding (SERIES WIN-LOSS RECORD) lead.
In Sunday’s get-right Game 4 win over the Magic, the soon-to-be 39 year-old Horford held the age 23-and-under tandem of Franz Wagner and Paolo Banchero to seven points on 3-of-15 shooting with three blocks, per NBA tracking.
The Magic mustered just 11 points on 5-of-19 shooting overall as Horford swatted five shots in Boston’s 107-98 triumph at the Kia Center.
The Celtics own a 3-1 series lead with a chance to close out the Magic on Tuesday night at TD Garden.
Horford, per usual, has been fantastic throughout this series. Over four games, the Magic are shooting a meager 32.8 percent overall against Horford (21 of 64 overall), which is 12 percent below expected output. Among the 101 players with more than 25 shots defended this postseason, Horford ranks second in the NBA in defensive field goal percentage, trailing only Kawhi Leonard (9-of-38 FG, 23.7 DFG%).
What more can we say about Horford? Every time we write this article, it gets slightly more preposterous what he’s doing at an advanced age, but also somehow less absurd because you wouldn’t expect anything less.
The same guy who spent his early 30s locking up Joel Embiid and his mid 30s handcuffing Giannis Antetokounmpo is now tormenting a whole new generation of offensive-minded NBA big men. They get older, Horford seemingly stays the same age.
It’s a good thing the Hall of Fame shortened its waiting period to two years after retirement, because at this rate, Horford is going to play until he’s 45 and we’d be waiting until 2036 to watch him get his spot in Springfield.
Horford is still tidying up that resume having admitted before the postseason that he’s even hungrier for a second NBA title than he was for last year’s crown. The Celtics have done everything to limit the wear and tear on Horford during his time in Boston, but here we are in the playoffs, and due to injuries at other spots, Horford has started three of the four games against Orlando while averaging 31.8 minutes per contest (up from 27.7 in the regular season).
In Sunday’s win, Horford became only the second player in NBA history to record five blocks in a game at age 38 or older, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. He occasionally picked up the Orlando ball-handlers at near full court to force the Magic to eat up clock before getting into their half court sets.
It doesn’t quite make sense that Boston’s defensive rating is its worst when Horford is on the floor in this series (111.9 in Horford’s 127 minutes, 91.3 with him off the court). But his individual impact has been undeniable.
Horford felt vital to Boston’s chances to repeat entering the postseason. The way the bracket is shaking out, the Celtics should see plenty of size on their journey, and Horford will get all sorts of defensive challenges.
But whether he’s jousting with Banchero and forcing a tough fadeaway, or hustling over to swat Cory Joseph straight to Kissimmee, Horford has been exceptional yet again.
When Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown take their turns at the podium, they relentlessly gush about Horford’s impact, with Tatum pointing out Horford’s “heart of a champion” after Game 4.
Let’s be honest: We’re probably going to write this story again in a couple weeks. We’ll plug in some new numbers about how Horford is faring against Karl Anthony Towns or Evan Mobley. Just keep clicking and acting like it’s a fresh take.
Because, like Horford, this story never gets old.
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