Celtics forward Al Horford was among the 12 finalists for the NBA’s Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year Award, which aims to recognize the player who best exemplifies leadership, mentorship and selflessness.
Minnesota Timberwolves guard Mike Conley ultimately won the player-voted award, but Derrick White stumped for Horford, whom he called “the ultimate professional.”
“You can just watch him day in and day out, (and) you’re going to be a better NBA player,” White said before Wednesday’s game. “You’re going to be more prepared. (He’s) just a guy that doesn’t care about himself, cares about others and is always reaching out to help other people.
“I’ve been extremely thankful and blessed to be his teammate, and I think every person that’s been Al Horford’s teammate will agree that he definitely deserves that award.”
Horford sacrificed playing time to contribute for the star-studded Celtics, shifting into a sixth man role for the first time in his 17-year NBA career. His 26.8 minutes per game were a career low, and he started just 33 of the 65 regular-season games in which he appeared.
Entering this season, the 37-year-old had played in 1,013 NBA games and come off the bench in just 10 of them.
Horford now can expect to be back in Boston’s starting lineup until Porzingis is healthy enough to return, with Luke Kornet and Xavier Tillman backing him up. Porzingis reportedly is expected to miss at least part of the Celtics’ second-round series, but his injury is not considered season-ending.
