Al Horford is a finalist for the NBA’s Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award.
His coach believes he should win it in a landslide.
“It’s a no-brainer that he should get it,” Joe Mazzulla said before the Celtics hosted the Phoenix Suns on Friday night at TD Garden. “But you can’t really put into words what he’s able to do, the respect that he has of the guys.”
The 38-year-old Horford is the universally respected veteran leader of Boston’s locker room. He’s also still performing at a high level in Year 18 of his NBA career, especially in the second half of this season.
Horford averaged 14.1 points and 8.3 rebounds per game in March, including three of his top five scoring efforts of this season. In Monday’s win over Memphis, the big man scored 26 points — his highest total since Game 1 of the 2022 NBA Finals — and added eight rebounds in 37 minutes off the bench.
Several of Horford’s best performances this season have come against superstar opponents, from Giannis Antetokounmpo to Nikola Jokic to LeBron James.
“What people don’t know is how innately competitive he really is day in and day out, and he just sets the tone, more with his actions than anything else,” Mazzulla said. “I really hope he gets it. He deserves it. He’s one of the best teammates, and we’re lucky to have him.”
Suns coach Mike Budenholzer, who coached a young Horford with the Atlanta Hawks in the late 2000s, also had high praise for the Celtics’ oldest player.
“He’s such a smart player,” Budenholzer said. “He’s just a high-IQ guy, both ends of the court. Selfless. Does anything to win. … He’s just a unique talent and a unique individual that’s continued to impact winning.”
Budenholzer also coached Celtics guard Jrue Holiday during his time in Milwaukee. Holiday is a finalist for the NBA Sportsmanship Award, which he previously won with the Bucks in 2021.
“Jrue is just kind of the ultimate winner,” the Suns coach said. “He makes so many little plays at really both ends of the court. I think everybody talks about how great he is defensively, and he takes on tough matchups, he gets his hands on balls. He just does so many little things. But offensively, it’s similar. His selflessness, his ability to create space in places where maybe other people don’t want to go — he learns how to thrive in those spaces and loves the big moment. He’s a great player. Ton of respect for him.”
Jayson Tatum will not win NBA Most Valuable Player this season — that top honor almost certainly will go to either Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or Denver’s Jokic — but he’ll likely finish in the top six in MVP voting for the fourth consecutive year, potentially as high as third.
Mazzulla was asked to name his star player’s most valuable trait.
“I think there’s a lot of them, right?” the coach replied. “I think the first one that comes to mind is just the leadership, and he’s one of the guys that sets the atmosphere for the organization. You heard after the Brooklyn game what (Kristaps Porzingis) said about (how Tatum) sets the tone from his availability and playing every night. Just his impact he has from a leadership standpoint. And then the on-court stuff speaks for itself — his rebounding, his ability to be a playmaker, his potential assists, his assists. In the end, only one guy can win (the award), and I still think whoever doesn’t is still of an MVP caliber. At that to me is more important, how you’re able to do that, and that’s something he does well.”
Tatum leads the Celtics in points, rebounds and assists per game this season.
Jaylen Brown, who’s been dealing with a painful knee injury, was upgraded from questionable to available before Friday’s game. With Horford, Holiday and Porzingis all returning after sitting out Wednesday’s loss to Miami, the Celtics had their entire roster available for the first time since Feb. 23.
They were down at least one rotation player in their previous 19 games (and missing at least one starter in 17 of those) and posted a 15-4 record in those contests.
“We’re just doing whatever makes the most sense to put our guys in the best position and what gives us the best chance to win every night, what gives us the best chance to win every single night and what gives us the best chance to be at our best every single night but also be at our best in the long term,” Mazzulla said. “Nothing’s guaranteed, so looking too far ahead doesn’t really matter. We’ve just got to continue to get better and better and put ourselves in position to be successful, and at the same time make sure our guys are in a position to be at their best.”
Brown’s health and workload will be worth monitoring as the playoffs approach, as he admitted after Wednesday’s game that his injured knee was hurting him. He can miss no more than one more regular-season game if he hopes to qualify for All-NBA or All-Defensive consideration, but he said that factor is not influencing his decision to play.
Bradley Beal returned to the Suns’ lineup Friday night, but Kevin Durant missed the game with an ankle injury.
Bill Chisholm, leader of a group that agreed last month to buy the Celtics for $6.1 billion, was in attendance Friday night after also watching Wednesday’s game from courtside seats. Chisholm was raised in Georgetown, Mass., but lives in Northern California; he and his family currently are house-hunting in the Boston area. The sale is pending approval by the NBA’s Board of Governors, which is expected to vote in June. … Also on hand for Celtics-Suns: Paul Pierce, who chatted with Chisholm during pregame warmups, and David Ortiz. … The Maine Celtics will visit the Osceola Magic this Sunday in the G League Eastern Conference finals. G League MVP JD Davison stuffed the stat sheet in Maine’s first two playoff games, totaling 70 points, 29 assists, eight rebounds, four steals and two blocks. Second-year pro Jordan Walsh, who’s lost playing time with the big club to rookie Baylor Scheierman of late, also played in both playoff games for Maine. He tallied 19 points and 11 rebounds in Thursday’s win over the Westchester Knicks.