PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Former Philadelphia 76er Al Horford has finally made his way into the NBA Finals, doing so in his 15th season and during his second stint with the Boston Celtics.
The Miami Heat were going on a furious 11-0 run as the Boston Celtics appeared to be choking away a comfortable lead late in Game 7 of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals on Sunday night. Another former Sixer, Jimmy Butler, who had not sat on the Heat bench for even a second of this game, rebounded a Boston miss in the final minute. Butler dribbled up the court, amid the roaring fans of Miami's FTX Arena, to face Horford.
Instead of driving past him, for what could have been an easy game-tying bucket, Butler pulled up for three and the lead.
"My thought process was, ‘Go for the win,’ which I did," Butler said after the game.
"I didn't know what he was going to do," said Horford. "It seemed like he was going to go for the shot, but I just had to make sure that I stayed solid. And when he pulled up for the three, I was like, ‘Let me just contest the best way that I can.’"
Butler missed.
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Horford got the rebound — one of his 14 that night in 44 minutes of action — putting Boston in control of the ball. The Celtics were just seconds away from advancing to the NBA Finals — Horford’s first in 15 NBA seasons.
It was the defining moment of the game.
"Missed the shot, but I'm taking that shot. My teammates liked the shot that I took, so I'm living with it," said Butler.
Moments later, Horford got another defensive rebound as the clock struck zero. He heaved the ball in the air and ran towards center court, falling to his knees and slapping the floor.
Each in his way, Butler and Horford represent mistakes of Sixers past.
Arguably, the Sixers should have figured out a way to keep Butler after the 2018-19 season, because of his chemistry with star Joel Embiid. To this day, it is clear that the Sixers miss Butler's leadership, gutsiness, toughness and scoring ability.
When Butler left, Al Horford came in on an expensive contract. There were questions about his fit with fellow big man Embiid. Answers came before long — all in the negative.
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President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey was able to flip Horford for Danny Green. Some observers thought Horford, age 34 at the time, might have seen his last days as a productive NBA player. He spent a season with the rebuilding Oklahoma City Thunder. He played only 28 games. This wasn't a good fit either.
Oklahoma City and Boston struck up a trade before this season, returning Horford to the Celtics, with whom he had found much success before his brief run with the Sixers. The move rejuvenated his career.
"Came into training camp in extremely great shape, chip on his shoulder, prideful. Wanted to come back to Boston — and for him to play 44 minutes at this stage of his career and lay it all out there, guarding bigs, smalls and everything in between — his leadership goes without saying," said Celtics head coach Ime Udoka
Udoka was a Sixers assistant coach during Horford's single season in Philadelphia.
After 141 career playoff games, Horford is finally going to the NBA Finals. The Sixers would have done no better this season had they kept him, but Horford’s story shows that, even if someone struggles on one team, he can still succeed on another.
Horford chalks it up to “a lot of hard work,” and he shares the credit with his team.
"I've been a part of a lot of great teams, a lot of great teammates, and I'm so proud of this group."