SEATTLE - After a week-long wait, the 2024 NBA Finals tip off on June 6 with the Dallas Mavericks traveling to Boston to take on the Celtics at TD Garden.
Dynamic duos Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown will face off against Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving but, despite them taking the spotlight everywhere, this piece will focus on another key member of the Celtics team that has taken this NBA season by storm: 38-year-old veteran Al Horford.
He might not have the fame and flair of his All-Star teammates, but these NBA Finals are key for the Dominican as his window to get a ring in the league shrinks with every passing game.
Horford is 38 years old and will play in his second championship series. His first appearance took place in 2021-22 against the Golden State Warriors, where he averaged 12 points and eight rebounds as the Celtics lost the title in six games.
His NBA Finals debut was spectacular, as he led all Celtics with 26 points, six rebounds and six triples in the win.
Out of his 12 shots, eight of them were three-point attempts. That night, Horford became the oldest player in NBA history with five or more 3-pt made in a single NBA Finals game, surpassing LeBron James' record (35 years, 364 days).
Sadly for Horford and the Celtics, the Warriors won four of the following five games to take the championship. This time around, the Dominican hopes to become an NBA champion for the first time in his 17-year career in the league.
If the Celtics manage to beat the Doncic and the Mavs, Horford would become the third oldest player to win his first ring. Only Juwan Howard (2011-12) and P.J. Brown (2007-08) were older than Horford will be when he takes on the court for this year's Finals.
Overall, eight players have won a ring at 38 years or older. Robert Parish holds the NBA record as the oldest player ever to win a championship at 43 years old. He did so when the Chicago Bulls won their second title in a row in 1997.
Kevin Willis with San Antonio, James Edwards with the Bulls and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with the Lakers also won a championship in their 40's. Kareem is the only player to win multiple titles after his 37th birthday, as the Lakers formed a dynasty that won three of four championships between 1985-88.
VegasInsider says that the Celtics are the favorites to win this year's NBA Finals according to multiple sportsbooks. The C's are currently on a 16-year drought without a ring, their second-longest such streak since they went ringless between 1987 and 2008.
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