In the NBA, there appears to be such a thing as a perfect marriage between player and team. The partnership between Al Horford and the Boston Celtics counts as one of those perfect marriages. The Celtics always bring out the best in Horford, with Horford helping fill in the gaps in terms of whatever it is the team needs in the frontcourt. And on Wednesday night, with the Celtics having to battle against the Philadelphia 76ers without the services of Kristaps Porzingis, the 37-year old veteran showed why he remains one of the team's most important pieces.

Starting in place of Porzingis, Horford defended reigning MVP Joel Embiid in the way only he can, tallying five blocks on the night. And then on the other end, Horford stretched the floor at a high level, making four of his eight triples to finish with 14 points and nine rebounds in the Celtics' 117-107 win over the Sixers.

Given the rivalry between these two teams, it's no surprise that the Celtics broadcast on NBC Sports decided to rub some salt on the Sixers' wounds by putting a reminder on their post-game graphic that Al Horford, once upon a time, was Joel Embiid's teammate in Philadelphia.

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As one would recall, back in 2019, the Sixers signed Al Horford in the aftermath of all the Kyrie Irving-related dysfunction on the Celtics roster. Horford, on paper, should have given Joel Embiid an incredible frontcourt partner, someone to take on tougher matchups on the post to help conserve Embiid's energy while functioning as the team's de facto backup to prevent a complete drop-off when Embiid is resting on the bench.

Alas, the twin-tower frontcourt look did not work according to plan, and after just a season, the Sixers shipped Horford to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the deal that brought Danny Green to Philly. Horford, after rebuilding his value in OKC, was acquired by the Celtics for the second time, and since then, the veteran big man has been everything the team has needed and more, playing a vital role during their deep playoff runs for the past two seasons — a perfect marriage, indeed.