The Boston Celtics' improbable fourth-quarter rally during Monday night's 99-93 triumph over the Minnesota Timberwolves was filled with all sorts of loud plays, like a Terry Rozier steal/dunk combination that left teammates Avery Bradley and Isaiah Thomas so delirious with excitement on the Boston sideline that neither one seemed to know quite what to do with his arms or legs while stumbling onto the court in celebration.
But if you want to see maybe the key moment of Boston's extended run -- and a sequence that maybe better than any other encapsulates the below-the-radar contributions of free-agent signee Al Horford -- then queue your DVR to the five-minute mark of the fourth quarter. Boston was clinging to a one-point advantage after rallying ahead and Thomas tried to throw a little jump pass from the top of the arc.
Thomas' pass was behind a cutting Horford, and Minnesota's Andrew Wiggins stood in perfect position to intercept. Instead, Horford reached back like a 6-foot-10 defensive back and batted the ball out to the perimeter. Horford didn't just have the presence of mind to swat the ball, but did so in the direction of Marcus Smart, who was open on the right wing after his man roamed to double Thomas. Smart caught the ball in rhythm and made a 3-pointer that put Boston out front by two possessions.
Horford, playing only his second game since returning from a concussion, put up 20 points, 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 blocks over 36 minutes. What's more, the 30-year-old big man spent the fourth quarter leaning on Minnesota's 21-year-old star-in-the-making Karl-Anthony Towns and doing all he could to prevent the frustrated Timberwolves from generating easy points around the basket.
While Minnesota looked gassed in the fourth quarter, Horford played all but 32 seconds of the final frame. He was plus-22 in that span, chipping in four points and three assists as Boston rallied despite trailing by as many as 15 in the final moments of the third quarter.
"It was an incredible play by Al Horford. [Thomas] probably shouldn't have thrown into him, but Al read that Smart was the right guy and he just tapped it out," Celtics coach Brad Stevens told reporters in Minnesota when asked about Horford's batted assist. "It was a great play."
It seems fair to assume the Celtics would have lost both games at the start of this three-game road trip if not for Horford, who not only hit the winning shot on Saturday in Detroit but sealed the win with a block at the buzzer.
It was Horford's turnaround/fadeaway jumper in the final seconds of the third quarter that ignited Boston's 19-0 run. After the Celtics rallied within five early in the final frame, Horford missed an open look at a 3-point attempt, but the ball bounced all the way back to him at the top of the arc. Emerging from between two white jerseys, Horford drove hard into the lane and split two more Minnesota defenders for an emphatic two-handed slam in which he hung a bit on the rim before slapping the ground in front of the basket after coming back down.
But so much of what Horford does goes largely unnoticed. Like late in the fourth quarter when, after the Timberwolves got within a possession again, Thomas sent a lobbing entry pass to Horford outside the right blocks. Horford caught the ball, but Towns sprinted to trap on the baseline. Sensing the extra body coming his way, Horford threw the ball to a cutting Bradley in the paint, leading to a one-handed dunk.
The Celtics are now 2-0 since Horford returned after missing nine games due to a concussion. Boston is 4-1 when Horford has played this season, 4-5 when he's been out. And that's not a coincidence.
Horford's basic stat line doesn't leap off the page: He's averaging 14.8 points, 6.6 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 2.6 blocks over 31.6 minutes per game. Those who don't pay attention to the details will wonder if Boston overpaid for that sort of production after giving Horford four years and $113 million this past summer.
But one look at Boston's on/off splits with Horford tells the story. Boston owns a net rating of plus-14.8 with Horford on the court (the next-closest teammate is plus-6.2). In fact, the Celtics' net rating drops to a team-worst minus-3.1 without Horford. Boston's defense is a whopping 10 points better per 100 possessions with Horford on the court.
Horford certainly had help on Monday night. Rozier was exceptional while providing some much-needed energy in the fourth quarter, both in chasing rebounds and breaking out the other way. Jonas Jerebko, who has had an up-and-down season, played the entire fourth quarter and was a plus-20.
Rozier, the No. 16 pick in the 2016 draft, scored 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting over 16 minutes.
"Terry's going to be a good player. From the day we drafted him, I think we talked about his athletic intangibles, but it's more about his competitive spirit and desire to be good," Stevens told reporters. "That guy wants to be good. He works at it. He's still learning, he's a got a lot to learn. But he was one of, if not the biggest reason why we came back."
