Al Horford made some history in his NBA Finals debut

BOSTON  -- Al Horford spent his final day as a 35-year-old playing in -- and winning -- the first NBA Finals game of his career. The Celtics forward even made a little history as he played a big role in Boston's 120-108 comeback victory over the Golden State Warriors.

Not a bad way to usher in one's birthday.

Horford scored 26 points for the Celtics in their comeback win, including 11 in the fourth quarter as Boston climbed out of a 12-point hole to start the frame. He was 9-for-12 from the floor, and six of those makes were from downtown.

His six threes were the most ever in an NBA Finals debut.

Not too shabby. But it was when Horford made a pair of those threes that mattered most to the Celtics.

Horford checked into the fourth quarter with Boston trailing 101-97. A pair of Boston threes by Derrick White, sandwiching a Steph Curry jumper, had the game knotted at 103-103 less than a minute later. That was when Horford went on an 8-0 run, hitting back-to-back threes for Boston.

His second three came after Horford snagged a Draymond Green turnover and put the Celtics on top 109-103. He hit a mid-range jumper his next trip down the floor. He snagged an offensive rebound on Boston's next possession, and swung it to Marcus Smart for another Boston three to build the lead to 114-103.

Horford capped off his night with a layup while he was being fouled by Green, and was subbed out after completing the three-point play. When he left the floor, the Celtics owned a commanding 120-105 lead.

He blew a kiss to the San Francisco crowd as he took his spot on the Boston bench. What a satisfying way to end an NBA Finals debut.

In pure Horford fashion, he lauded the full team effort that the Celtics displayed in their comeback win.

"Just continue to play. That was our message throughout the whole game. They're such a good team, and for us, it was just continue to play no matter what," the veteran said at the podium, with his young son at his side. "And our guys, that's what we did. It wasn't our best game, but we continued to fight and find different ways to get this win."

After playing in an NBA record 141 playoff games without ever making a trip to the Finals, Horford is the happiest man on the planet right now. And his teammates are happy for him too, grateful that the veteran is back in Boston providing the calming presence this Celtics team so badly needed ahead of the season.

"We were ecstatic for him. Al is the OG, man," Smart said after Thursday's win. "He puts in the work. Don't nobody deserve to be here more than him. The way that he carries himself professionally, the professionalism he comes to this game with every day, we knew it was only a matter of time for him to have a big game, and continue to have a big game.

"That's what he does. That's what he's been doing," Smart added. "He's been that catalyst for us this whole year."

Horford is commonly referred to as a glue guy, the one who keeps it all together for the Celtics. He is certainly worthy of that tag, but he's also so much more.

He's not always going to knock down six of his eight three-point attempts, but the Celtics can count on him as a lethal threat from downtown. Horford is hitting 46 percent of his three-point bids this postseason, and 52 percent of his shots overall. He is the only player this postseason to put up such shooting numbers.

He's averaging nearly 13 points per game for Boston while adding 9.4 rebounds each night. He has five games where he's scored 20 or more, including his 30-point explosion in Game 4 of the East semis against Giannis and the Bucks.

Is it a magic elixir? Multiple trips to the fountain of youth? Nope. Just Al Horford being his usual self, contributing to Celtics wins in every way possible.

And now that he has reached the biggest stage in the NBA, he is going to make the most of it every time he hits the floor.

"Just grateful to be in this position. God has put me in this position, and it's something that I embrace and I'm excited about," he said. "Just excited to be able to share this stage with these group of guys. We have a lot of great guys here, guys that have really bought into what we're trying to do.

"It's just fun to see all that come together," he added.

The man just loves when his team wins. Hopefully the Celtics have a huge birthday bash scheduled for their elder statesman on Friday.