At long last, Al Horford’s time in Boston has come to an end.
The veteran big man has agreed to a multi-year contract with the Golden State Warriors in NBA free agency, his agent confirmed to ESPN’s Shams Charania on Sunday. After spending eight of his 18 NBA seasons with Boston (five in his second stint), Horford likely will end his illustrious career in a new uniform.
Horford, who turned 39 on June 3, remained productive during the 2024-25 season despite his age. The five-time All-Star averaged 9.0 points over 42 regular-season games, then 8.0 points and 6.0 rebounds over 11 playoff appearances.
Above all else, the Celtics will miss Horford’s veteran leadership. Horford was beloved in Boston’s locker room, with superstar Jayson Tatum going as far as to call him his “favorite teammate.”
Horford’s absence will be glaring during what could be Boston’s most challenging season in years. Multiple pieces of the championship core already have been moved — the Celtics traded Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, then lost big man Luke Kornet in free agency — while Tatum will spend most (if not all) of the 2025-26 campaign recovering from a ruptured Achilles.
Tatum’s injury as well as the offseason departures of Holiday, Porzingis and Kornet factored into Horford’s decision to sign elsewhere, according to The Boston Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach, but it was still “quite hard” for Horford to leave Boston, “which he considers a second home,” Himmelsbach reported.
With Horford, Porzingis and Kornet out of the picture, Boston’s current frontcourt consists of Neemias Queta, Xavier Tillman Sr., free-agent addition Luka Garza and rookie Amari Williams.
