BOSTON – Al Horford hammered the nail in Cleveland’s coffin Wednesday night when he knocked down his career-high-tying sixth 3-pointer with 56 seconds remaining in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. He turned to the crowd, raised both arms in the air, and more than 18,000 fans joined him in blowing the lid off TD Garden.
Less than a minute later, the Boston Celtics walked off the court with a 113-98 series-clinching win, punching their ticket to their third straight trip to the Eastern Conference Finals and their sixth in the last eight years.
They did so while riding on the shoulders of their soon-to-be 38-year-old center, who put forth one of the best efforts of his life.
"Tonight was a special night for our group because we had this chance to close it out here at home,” Horford said. “And for me, the biggest thing was bringing energy.”
Horford brought energy in the form of a 22-point, 15-rebound, five-assist, three-block effort, making him just the third player in NBA playoff history to record a 20-15-5 game at age 37 or older along with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and LeBron James. He also became the first player to record at least 15 rebounds, six threes, and three blocks in a playoff game.
“He was unreal,” said Derrick White. “Both sides of the ball. Every little play he made for us. Obviously, he brought the energy, the excitement. He got the crowd going. He was just unreal today for every minute he was out there.”
His most unreal moment came late in the second quarter when he sprinted to the right corner to save a deflected ball from going out of bounds and fired it off Cleveland’s Dean Wade while falling toward the Celtics’ bench.
From that moment, came one of the most magnificent still images of the season – Horford leaping in the air and cocking the ball back like he’s about to throw a spear through Wade’s chest.
“It just gave us that extra possession and pumped our crowd up, pumped our team up,” said Jayson Tatum. “Those plays are so meaningful. And just how he played in the second half on the defensive end, knocking down big shots time and time again. So his performance, his energy, his leadership tonight was crucial.”
Being the emotionally-driven player that he is, Horford can’t help but get amped in these moments. And the electric TD Garden environment only intensifies his passion.
“It's special when you're here at the Garden,” Horford said. “This is something I just don't take for granted, the energy of the fans. Our fans, they love the Celtics. They want us to play hard. They want us to play the right way and I just felt very connected with them tonight. With the way that we were playing, that we got it going, I felt like there was that connection there. And there were just a few times that I wanted to be embraced by that in those moments. And that fuels me. That fuels our team. So it was pretty special.”
Likewise, the Celtics feel that it’s pretty special to see Horford continue to play like a 30-year-old at age 37, and they do not take his contributions for granted.
“Tonight you saw his gift,” said head coach Joe Mazzulla. “His gift is just passion, inspiration, toughness, and competitive nature.”
In return, Horford received a gift of his own: a trip back to the Eastern Conference Finals to put him one step closer to his first NBA championship ring.