It was an uncomfortable sight for Celtics fans: Marcus Smart in Laker gold and purple, squaring off against Al Horford in his fresh Warriors uniform.
The former Boston fan favorites debuted for their new Western Conference teams late Tuesday night, coming off their respective benches in the Warriors’ 119-109 victory at Crypto.com Arena.
Smart, who’s bounced from Memphis to Washington and now to Los Angeles since being traded by the Celtics in 2023, was the more impactful of the two. The rugged point guard spent much of his 23 minutes cannonballing around the court in pursuit of Stephen Curry.
His performance felt like a “Marcus Smart Greatest Hits.” In one second-quarter stretch, Smart checked in, hit a jumper, flopped to draw an offensive foul on Curry, then hooked his arm around Curry’s shoulder and wrestled the Warriors star to the floor, earning him a flagrant 1 foul and prompting a celebration from Horford.
Watching Al Horford in a Warriors jersey yelling at Marcus Smart in a Lakers jersey over a flagrant foul on Curry this is just bizarre, bro! 🥴🥴 pic.twitter.com/1YhqJEierG
— CELTICS ☘️ BANNER 19 (@BiggLynch) October 22, 2025
A few minutes later, Smart tried to draw a charge on Curry that went uncalled, then immediately raced to score a contested layup at the other end. He also was whistled for multiple fouls for aggressively setting or running through screens.
In the third quarter, Smart borderline tackled Curry from behind while crashing hard for an offensive rebound. The referee called a foul on Curry, giving Smart two free throws.
Smart’s final line: nine points, 3-for-6, 0-for-3 from 3-point range, one steal, three turnovers, four fouls drawn, four fouls committed. He paced LA’s bench in minutes played and was the only Lakers player to finish with a positive plus/minus (plus-2) in the 10-point loss.
Horford, meanwhile, was the only Warrior to finish in the negatives, with the Lakers outscoring Golden State by 10 points across his 20 minutes. The 39-year-old big man went 2-for-7 from the field and 1-for-4 from three, grabbed five rebounds and tallied four fouls with two turnovers.
LA scored multiple baskets against Horford during a late 9-0 run, and he was not part of the Warriors’ closing lineup, with head coach Steve Kerr opting to start and finish with Jonathan Kuminga (17 points, nine rebounds, six assists).
Kerr said before the season that Horford, who left the Celtics this summer to join a team better-positioned for a championship push, would be limited to around 20 minutes per night to avoid wearing him out before the playoffs.
Smart’s latest return to Boston is set for Dec. 5, when the Lakers make their annual visit to TD Garden. Horford won’t be back in his former home arena until March 18.
Originally Published: October 22, 2025 at 9:55 AM EDT