Celtics star Al Horford thought hard about joining the Rockets this summer before opting to go to Boston, relays A. Sherrod Blakely of CSNNE. Horford listed his finalists as Boston, Houston and Washington, in that order, if he decided to leave Atlanta.
“[Houston] and Boston were probably the two teams I was really, really looking at,” he said before today’s game in Houston. “Just a lot to consider. … “At the end of the day, I just felt I was better off being here in Boston.”
The Celtics haven’t been disappointed after giving Horford a four-year, $113MM deal. He has displayed the versatility that made him a two-time All-Star with the Hawks, averaging 14.9 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.6 assists through 20 games.
James Harden was part of the recruiting team that nearly convinced Horford to sign with the Rockets.
“I thought we had a chance,” Harden said. “I thought we had a real good chance, but obviously it didn’t work out. Which is fine.”
After Horford turned them down, the Rockets used their cap space to sign Ryan Anderson and Eric Gordon and are off to a 14-7 start.
Someone who didn’t take the news quite as well as Harden was Horford’s father Tito, a former NBA player who went to high school in Houston, tweets ESPN’s Calvin Watkins. Al Horford said his father was “heartbroken” by the decision, but has since gotten over it.
He would have been outshined and hated it. Harden is a superstar. Horford is a very good player. In Boston, Horford is easily the best player on the team. In Houston, he would have been a very distant second.
Idk about that. Al seems like a pretty big team guy. I think the only reason he left Atlanta is because they had peaked. Maybe the allure of Boston’s basketball history intrigued him because as far as better chance to win, I’d say he had better choices around the league. My point is you never really know what these guys are thinking. Not sure Al is clearly better than I Thomas anyways