Al Horford, Celtics Praised by NBA Twitter for Historic Game 1 Comeback vs. Warriors

The Boston Celtics defeated the Golden State Warriors 120-108 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals at Chase Center in San Francisco on Thursday to take a 1-0 series lead—and what a win it was.

The Celtics were down by 12 points entering the fourth quarter of Thursday's game, but it felt like they were down by much more than that. However, Boston's offense exploded in the final eight minutes of the game to make a miraculous comeback against Stephen Curry and the Warriors.

While Jayson Tatum had a rather quiet night, Al Horford, Jaylen Brown and Derrick White powered the Celtics to victory with their fourth-quarter performances. Boston outscored Golden State 40-16 in the final quarter.

Horford had an incredible performance, finishing with 26 points, six rebounds, three assists and one steal. Meanwhile, Brown finished with 24 points, seven rebounds, five assists, two steals and one block, while White finished with 21 points, one rebound and three assists off the bench.

For comparison, Tatum had just 12 points, though he found other ways to contribute with 13 assists, five rebounds and one steal.

The decision to bring Horford back to Boston has paid dividends for Brad Stevens and the Celtics. So has the decision to acquire White at the trade deadline. The C's would not be in the NBA Finals without those players, let alone have a 1-0 series lead.

If the Celtics can continue getting key performances from players like Horford and White, they'll be in a good position down the stretch, especially if Tatum can find his rhythm moving forward.

Game 2 between the Celtics and Warriors is set for Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET.