On the day the NBA preseason kicked off, the Golden State Warriors signed their starting center.
Al Horford is officially in the fold with as of Thursday, signing a two-year deal — which includes a player option for next season — as he enters his 19th season in the league. Multiple outlets reported the contract has a total value of $12 million.
Horford, 39, verbally committed to sign with Golden State last week, but the transaction was delayed as restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga weighed multiple contract offers from the Warriors.
He finally opted for the two-year, $48.5 million deal this week, setting the books for Golden State to add Horford and free agent guard Seth Curry.
One of four players in NBA history with 900 made 3-pointers and 1,300 blocks along with Rasheed Wallace, Brook Lopez and Clifford Robinson, Horford should blend in nicely with the Warriors’ core of Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler III and Draymond Green. The veteran 6-foot-9, 240-pound center has shot 40.9 percent from beyond the arc and drained more than 100 3-pointers in each of the past three seasons.
Kuminga, 22, was seeking a player option instead of a team option, but the Warriors stood firm. The framework of the contract frees Kuminga to hit the open market with no strings attached in two years instead of three at age 24.
Reports of interest in a trade focused on suitors in the conference — Sacramento and Phoenix — but the Warriors did not entertain sign-and-trade possibilities.
It took time for the seventh overall pick of the 2021 NBA Draft to work into the Warriors’ rotation, as Kuminga mostly came off the bench as a rookie on the most recent Golden State team to win a championship.
Last season with the Celtics, Horford — a five-time All-Star — started 42 of 60 games and averaged 9.0 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.1 assists while connecting on 36.3 percent of his 3-point attempts.
Over his 18 seasons, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2007 draft by the Atlanta Hawks has averaged 12.9 points, 7.9 rebounds and 3.2 assists while shooting 37.7 percent from 3-point range in 1,138 games (1,078 starts).
Horford spent his first nine seasons with Atlanta (2007-16), then joined the Celtics for three seasons (2016-19) before playing one season apiece for the Philadelphia 76ers (2019-20) and Oklahoma City Thunder (2020-21). Named to the 2017-18 All-Defensive Team, he rejoined Boston for the 2021-22 season.
In 258 regular-season games (84 starts), Kuminga has averaged 12.5 points and 4.0 rebounds per game. That included 15.3 points and 4.6 rebounds over 47 games (10 starts) in 2024-25, when he missed two months with an ankle injury.
