Horford, the 'ultimate connector,' hailed after Celtics' win - ESPN

BOSTON — Saturday night marked the 1,314th game in the long and illustrious career of Boston Celtics center Al Horford. Now in his 18th NBA season, Horford long ago got past the point where a run-of-the-mill game in the middle of the season will change his demeanor much — if at all.

But Saturday night's matchup against the Los Angeles Lakers felt anything like a typical regular-season game in March. And Horford — along with Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla and the rest of his teammates — didn't treat it like one.

Horford played 37 minutes — his second-highest total of the season — and put up 14 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists, all while being relentlessly targeted by the Lakers throughout what became a 111-101 Celtics victory.

The performance afforded his teammates the latest opportunity to lavish praise on their elder statesman, who is 38.

«He's one of one,» Jayson Tatum said. «I'm the biggest Al Horford fan there is. I love that guy.»

«At one point,» Mazzulla said, «I wasn't coaching. I was just watching him. I was like, 'Man, this guy's a future Hall of Famer, and I get to watch this for free.' You have to be able to have that perspective.»

Added Jaylen Brown: «Al is just old reliable. He's just the ultimate connector for us on both ends.»

On a night when Mazzulla made it clear he wasn't messing around — Tatum played more than 45 minutes and Brown played north of 41 — it was Horford's 11 first-quarter minutes that were the clearest indication that the Celtics were determined to come out of this showdown against the LeBron James-Luka Doncic Lakers with a win.

He sprinted down the court on the break for a slam dunk in the first quarter, nearly (and accidentally) taking out Doncic in the process. And, according to Brown, the