Al Horford chose to sign with the Boston Celtics last offseason over rival playoff teams like the Washington Wizards, Atlanta Hawks and Houston Rockets.

“The biggest thing was Danny Ainge,” said Horford of the Celtics president. “Right before I signed here one of the things he said to me was, ‘I want you to be who you are and the player that you are - the competitor, the winner. Don’t worry about the numbers. Just play hard and help us win.’ He was very clear from the beginning, and that really took the pressure off me. Obviously, there were all of these expectations – the big contract - but he and coach Stevens put me at peace and allowed me to play my game.’’

Horford averaged role player stats despite his max salary.

“You don’t take a guy that’s averaging 14 points a game and expect him to average 25,’’ Ainge said. “You don’t take a .270, 20-home-run guy and expect that he’s going to hit .330 and 40 home runs. We knew what Al was, and I think he’s even been better than what we thought.’’