Gordon Hayward ‘Always Roots’ For Celtics’ Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum

He doesn’t play for the Celtics anymore but Gordon Hayward still is rooting for his former team.

Hayward’s Charlotte Hornets visited Boston on Friday night and were handed a loss at TD Garden.

The Celtics looked much different when Hayward was here with him and Kyrie Irving being teammates hoping to bring banner 18 to Boston. But Hayward suffered an ugly leg injury in his debut with the C’s and we all know how Irving’s tenure went.

Now that the Celtics are atop the NBA standings and look like a legitimate NBA Finals contender being led by Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, Hayward isn’t feeling any negative feelings toward his former team.

In fact, he’s rooting for them.

“Those guys were kids when they first came into the league,” Hayward told reporters of Brown and Tatum after Friday’s game, per MassLive’s Matt Vautour. “It’s been fun to see them grow up and turn into the players they are. I always root for them. … It’s cool to see Big Al (Horford) come back here. I certainly still have a relationship with Brad (Stevens).”

Hayward added he doesn’t think about the “what ifs” when it comes to him leaving the Celtics, but likely will reflect on it once his career comes to a close.

The Celtics return to the court Sunday afternoon when they welcome the Memphis Grizzlies to TD Garden for a 2 p.m. ET tipoff.