Celtics Shouldn't Pursue New Al Horford Contract in 2025 Free Agency Amid NBA Rumors
The Boston Celtics have done a fine job of securing their pieces for the future, signing Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown to long-term deals and ensuring other key pieces are also under contract for the foreseeable future.
Except for one player, veteran big man Al Horford.
NBA insider Brian Windhorst reported for ESPN, "Even if Horford doesn't re-sign -- he doesn't plan to retire and would like to return, sources said -- Boston is facing a payroll, with luxury taxes, next season of $464 million, according to ESPN front office insider Bobby Marks."
The enormous payroll and diminishing returns from the forward/center suggest he should be the odd man out in Beantown.
Windhorst continued, "If the Celtics retain their first-round pick -- and, frankly, they need to because they are desperate for the inexpensive contract the selection would provide -- and then fill out their roster with minimum salaries, the team payroll crosses the $500 million mark."
That pending payroll issue, coupled with a decrease in points and minutes for Horford, unfortunately make the big man expendable. And that is not to suggest that the 38-year-old player does not still have plenty to offer a team.
He is remarkably consistent when it comes to rebounding (6.2 per game in two of the last three seasons) and he is still averaging nine points in just over 27 minutes in the 2024-25 season, but his field goal percentage (42.3) is the worst of his career and his assists have slipped from four per game in 2018 to 2.1 this season.
Considering the conundrum the defending champions find themselves in from a payroll perspective, and the new ownership group's desire to lighten the load and avoid the abundance of luxury taxes that come with a number as high as the one the Celtics are playing with.
The need to reduce those numbers becomes even greater if the team fails to return to the Eastern Conference Finals, let alone the NBA Finals.
With an expected late first-round pick from Washington and the Wizards' second-round pick, the team has plenty of draft capital to acquire young, more affordable stars, including a versatile big man who they can grow and mold into the player they want, all without increasing the payroll.
Regardless of the team's fate, longtime center and fan-favorite Horford could, and should, find himself a free agent this off-season and out of the Celtics organization for the second time in his career, and with another title contender for whom his skills are perfectly suited.
