Where would the Celtics be without Al Horford?
Throughout the 2022 NBA Playoffs, Horford has proven to have an invaluable presence on this Boston team, whether it's through his leadership or his virtuoso performances, both of which he has provided plenty of.
Just hours before his 36th birthday, Horford put an end to his unfortunate run of having played in the most NBA playoff games without making an NBA Finals appearance. As fate would have it, Horford emerged from being on the wrong side of history to make the right kind of history, setting a new record for most 3s in a Finals debut with a career-high six triples in the Celtics' come-from-behind victory over the Warriors in Game 1.
MORE: How the Celtics flipped the 4th quarter of Game 1 of the NBA Finals
As he exited the court accompanied by his son, Horford flashed the smile of an individual fully taking in the magnitude of the moment.
What a #NBAFinals debut for Al Horford!
— NBA (@NBA) June 3, 2022
☘ 26 PTS, 6 3PM ☘#NBAFinals presented by @YouTubeTV 🏆 pic.twitter.com/XFSrZiYgXr
Given how he got to this point, Horford's smile only begins to tell the story.
Rewind time to less than a year ago and these moments were far from a given. After Horford spent one season as a limited participant with the rebuilding Thunder, one trade call from his former head coach changed everything.
Revisit last offseason's trade that set up Horford's second stint in Boston and has helped lead to the Celtics' NBA Finals run.
Revisiting the Celtics-Thunder trade: How Al Horford returned to Boston
Just weeks after Brad Stevens stepped down from his post as Celtics head coach to become the franchise's president of basketball operations, his first big splash was a trade.
Before he even appointed a new head coach as his successor, Stevens worked the phones to execute a multi-player deal that saw Horford return to Boston after spending three seasons with the franchise from 2016 to 2019.
2021 Celtics-Thunder trade details
- Celtics received: Al Horford, Moses Brown, 2023 second-round pick
- Thunder received: Kemba Walker, 2021 first-round pick, 2025 second-round pick
At the time, the deal was looked at as more of a financial move than anything.
Walker, who was owed $36.0 million for the 2021-22 season, had his fair share of injury struggles and no longer fit with the Celtics' core. In order to get Walker's salary off the books, the Celtics only needed to part ways with two draft picks.
In return, the Celtics received Horford, a player that left the franchise in 2019 to join the 76ers on a four-year deal worth up to $109 million (more on that in a moment) but his time in Philadelphia was short-lived as he was traded to OKC after one season.
MORE: How a trade in 2013 paved the way for Boston's Finals run
The Thunder did all but shelve Horford, who saw a limited role before agreeing to sit for the season as the franchise focused on the development of young players. Horford remained engaged as a leader and, in turn, reached an amicable split with the franchise that would see him return to Boston.
For a deal that made sense for all parties involved at the moment, it continues to age even better with time.
When the deal was officially announced, Stevens had this to say of Horford: "Al played a critical role both on and off the court during his time in Boston, and we’re excited to welcome he and his family back to the Celtics."
While reacting to the trade, The Sporting News' Kyle Irving said "the Celtics bring back a veteran big man who played some of the best basketball of his career in Boston."
Both Stevens and our own Irving acknowledged Horford's past success in Boston, but I'm not sure they had this in mind for his return.
After averaging 10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds during the regular season, Horford increased his numbers to 12.7 points and 9.4 rebounds in the postseason, including epic performances of 30 points in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals and the aforementioned 26-point performance in his NBA Finals debut.
The biggest improvement? Horford went from shooting 33.6 percent from 3 in the regular season to 46.3 percent in the playoffs.
Horford's shooting 46.3% from 3 in the playoffs after shooting 33.6% from 3 during the regular season.
— Krishna Narsu (@knarsu3) June 3, 2022
As for his contract, the deal he signed in 2019 is nearing its total worth of $109 million. As outlined by ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski in 2019, $12 million of Horford's deal is tied to championship-related incentives.
In advancing to the 2022 NBA Finals, the value of Horford's contract increased to $102 million, with the remaining $7 million tied to Boston winning the title.
With Boston reaching the NBA Finals, the guaranteed portion of the Al Horford contract for 2022/23 will increase from $14.5 to $19.5M.
— Bobby Marks (@BobbyMarks42) May 30, 2022
The $26.5M contract becomes guaranteed if the Celtics win the championship.
A year after his next NBA destination was unknown, Horford is three wins away from winning his first-ever NBA title, and he's already delivered one defining moment in the series.
It's amazing how much can change in less than a year.
