The veteran has seen it all, and he lauds the Celtics for having a top-notch squad that competes in the NBA Playoffs every year. Al Horford reflected on his years as a player in the league and outlined how insanely different this Joe Mazzulla-led squad has been.

The Celtics’ big man could not help but gush about the biggest luxuries that he has uniquely experienced while loving and trusting this system, via Jack Simone of FanSided.

Al Horford celebrates historic NBA Finals win

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“It’s very different because, in the past, a lot of the time, you didn’t have all this time to kind of prepare and get ready… In my years, to get to the playoffs, we had to exert ourselves quite a bit, play a lot of high minutes, just kind of work our way there. By the time you got there, you probably weren’t feeling the best physically, and it was just about kind of pushing through and trying to do your best,” Horford declared.

The Celtics are the second seed of the Eastern Conference for the 2025 NBA Playoffs and are awaiting their series against the Orlando Magic.

Regardless of his age, Horford has found a way to become a key contributor. Whether it’s locking up a crafty star guard on drop coverage, acting as an off-ball spot-up shooter, or even turning back the clock as a bruising big man on the dunker’s spot, Mazzulla has found a way for him to thrive in the Celtics’ winning culture.

“The luxury that we’ve had here the last few years is that we’ve been in a really good position. We finished as one of the top seeds, and that kind of allows everybody on the team to kind of get recharged, get refocused, get ready. So, this time period, it’s nice to prepare yourselves physically and mentally,” the Florida basketball legend said.

Much like his hopes back in college with the Gators, Horford knows that he can attain a repeat with the Celtics.