Joe Mazzulla pays highest possible compliment to unheralded Celtics player: “I get to watch him for free”

The Boston Celtics defeated the Los Angeles Lakers at TD Garden on Saturday, with Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown taking much of the acclaim as Luka Doncic and LeBron James, who was forced off injury, endured a tough night. However, Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla paid one of his less heralded stars the biggest possible compliment following his performance.

Tatum led the scoring with 40 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists, while in addition to registering 31 points, six rebounds and two assists, Brown again earned huge praise from analysts for his handling of Doncic, as had previously been the case in last season’s NBA Finals.

After the game, however, Mazzulla also singled out center Al Horford, claiming the 38-year-old is destined for the highest possible accolade in basketball.

Joe Mazzulla pushes Al Horford for NBA Hall of Fame

When asked how Horford had dealt with being targeted by the Lakers, the Celtics coach revealed he was in awe of how the veteran‘s defense against Doncic and James.

“I think it [being targeted] motivates him. I got to watch five possessions of him defend at a high level and at one point I wasn’t coaching, I was just watching him. And I was like, man, this guy’s a future Hall of Famer. I get to watch this for free.

“You have to be able to have that perspective, so I think he was motivated by that. He’s just an innate competitor and inspires our team”.

During his 18-year NBA career with the Atlanta Hawks, the Philadelphia 76ers, the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Celtics, the Dominican has been named to the All-Star team five times, the last of which came in 2018.

Horford has been voted into the All-NBA Third Team once (2011) and the NBA All-Defensive Second Team once (2018), his only other recognition since his league debut in 2007.

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