Boston Celtics center Al Horford caught a lot of flak for skipping game 17 of 82 to be with his wife and new-born son.
Michael Felger of CSNNE was the guy who publically chastised Horford for missing the 17th game of the Celtics’ season where they faced off against the Miami Heat who boasted a 5-11 record at the time.
Boston won, by the way.
Felger said the following on air:
“He had the birth of his kid in Atlanta. The game was in Miami. I know when you make $30 million a year it ain’t much to get a private jet. (Celtics co-owner) Wyc (Grousbeck) would probably pick it up to fly down at 3 o’clock in Atlanta. It’s about a 90-minute flight to Atlanta. Play the game and come right back.”
This is a short-sighted remark.
Felger prefaced it, “If there were complications then OK, take that all off the table. If the mother or the child or something happened where there were complications, then I totally understand.”
So, for an NBA player to miss a game, something must be wrong with the child or mother; got it.
He then added his own story about taking just one day off of work following the birth of his daughter.
It’s a shame that Horford even has to respond to this, but the four-time All-Star did, and it was classy, even when it would’ve been OK for him to be candid. “Family is very important to me,” said Horford per A. Sherrod Blakely, who also works for CSNNE. “For me, I’m in more of a unique situation. This is our first year here and my wife, going through all the moving in the middle of the pregnancy … I just felt it was really important for me to be there for here, supporting her,” Horford continued.
“We have a son as well. For her, it’s been a lot thrown at her the past few months. I know it meant a lot to her for me to be there,” he concluded.
Horford should be back and active for Wednesday’s game against the Indiana Pacers.
Sometimes, ball isn’t life. The birth of a new-born child is something that isn’t experienced every day. Horford might not have another kid. He’ll suit up less than two days from his son’s birth. The moment in-and-of itself is something that a regular season NBA game can’t compete with — they aren’t even in the same galaxy.
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