The Boston Celtics are back in the NBA postseason. The Eastern Conference's No. 2 seed finally knows who they'll face in the playoffs' opening round after the Orlando Magic clinched the No. 7 seed with Tuesday's 120-95 Play-In Tournament victory over the Atlanta Hawks.
Each of the Celtics' best players must perform to their full potential if bringing a title back to Beantown is the ultimate goal. While a strong playoff performance could cement an individual in Boston sports history forever, a lackluster spring showing could easily see someone kicked out of town for good.
Celtics News: Al Horford Has Most to Lose During 2025 Playoff Run
If there's any Celtic with a lot to lose this postseason, it's Al Horford. The fan-favorite big man's future in Boston is currently up in the air now that he's turning 39 years old in June and will become a free agent less than a month after that.
There's no denying Horford's on- and off-court popularity in Boston between his two stints with the franchise. He's averaged 11.2 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and .484/.388/.815 shooting splits across 465 regular-season games with the franchise, while also putting up 11.8 PPG and 7.8 RPG while shooting 50.3% from the floor and 39.9% from deep in 108 playoff outings.
Having said that, Father Time knows no bounds and has been catching up to Horford with each passing season. The former five-time NBA All-Star's regression continued during the 2024-25 regular season, averaging only 9.0 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.1 assists while shooting a career-worst 42.3% from the floor.
Horford is a proven playoff performer, which he'll need to prove again if he wants to be re-signed this summer. Spotrac currently has the Celtics' 2025-26 payroll listed at over $262 million, meaning they likely won't be too eager to sign Horford to anything beyond the veteran minimum at this stage of his career.
In other words, Horford needs to do whatever it takes to show that he has plenty to give ahead of Year 19. Failure to do so could general manager Brad Stevens looking to replace the declining veteran with a younger, cheaper option either through the 2025 NBA draft or free agency.
Hopefully, Horford will step up to give Celtics fans yet another reason to love him. Boston's back-to-back title odds look promising at the moment, as the C's head into the playoffs with the second-best NBA Finals odds (+190) on FanDuel Sportsbook.
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