Al Horford Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Celtics Notes: Brown, Richardson, Schröder, Udoka

October 2nd, 2021 at 8:57pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jaylen Brown is ready for the challenge of a new season after finishing the last one on the sidelines, writes Taylor Snow of Celtics.com. Brown had to undergo surgery and miss the playoffs after tearing the scapholunate ligament in his left wrist in May.

“I never had surgery before, so this was a first for me,” he said. “Definitely the mental part of it was interesting. The wrist takes so long to heal, it was kind of frustrating at times. But my body got a chance to heal, my mind got a chance to be refreshed, and right now I feel great. I feel lighter than ever, faster than ever, stronger than ever.”

Brown was limited physically after the operation, so he concentrated on watching film to get a better understanding of his opponents. Much of the film focused on the league’s top playmakers, and Brown hopes to add that aspect to his game this season.

“There’s a few guys, especially in the playmaking department that I watched,” Brown said. “So I’m looking forward to going out and showing all the things that I watched.”

There’s more from Boston:

Josh Richardson is hoping to re-establish himself with the Celtics after being traded for the third straight offseason, per Jared Weiss of The Athletic. He expects to benefit from a reunion with new head coach Ime Udoka, who was an assistant when Richardson was with the Sixers. “I think that the way we see things basketball-wise lines up and he’s always been a straight shooter,” Richardson said. “That’s how I know him and that’s how I am and that’s how I would like my coaches to be.”
Al Horford reached out to Dennis Schröder on Instagram as the first step toward getting his former Hawks teammate to sign with the Celtics, according to Jay King of The Athletic. Horford asked for a phone call and then sold Schröder on the benefits of playing in Boston, telling him that his aggressive style would be a good fit and that he would have much more freedom than he did with the Lakers last season. Schröder said Horford told him, “You’re going to have a big year here because we know your value and we know how to put you in place to be successful.’”
Udoka will tinker with the starting lineup during preseason, but he plans to have a regular group of five when the season begins, tweets Mark Murphy of The Boston Herald. Udoka said he’s not a believer in “plug-in” starters.

Celtics Notes: Williams, Horford, Smart, Camp Battles

September 29th, 2021 at 2:33pm CST by Luke Adams

So far during the 2021 NBA offseason, five players have signed rookie scale extensions. Of those five, only Robert Williams signed for less than the maximum salary. While it’s uncommon for players to sign non-max extensions so far in advance of the season, Williams said this week that he didn’t want to wait until 2022 to sign his next contract.

“I told my agent before the season even started, when we started discussing contract extensions, I told him I wanted to stay,” Williams said, according to Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston. “I feel like we have a pretty good group here. A good group of coaches, a couple people I came in the league with here with (Marcus) Smart, (Jayson Tatum), (Jaylen Brown), we got Al (Horford) back. So we kinda know what it takes, we just gotta apply it.”

Even though Williams prioritized getting an extension done with the Celtics, it still took him some time to wrap his around the fact that he was able to complete a deal that locks him up through 2025/26 and guarantees him at least $48MM, Forsberg writes.

“Honestly, it was amazing, I went through three days of shock — feel like I’m still in shock,” Williams said. “Just a sense of — they trust me. When people put their trust in you, you gotta take it seriously.”

Let’s round up a few more Celtics notes…

Al Horford wouldn’t say this week that he regretted his decision to leave the Celtics for the Sixers during the 2019 offseason, but he did acknowledge that his time away from Boston made him better appreciate his time with the franchise, per Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe. Horford was thrilled to be sent back to the C’s in June. “My family and I were all just jumping and screaming,” he said. “It was so exciting, because I know what kind of place this is. I didn’t want to be any other place but here. It’s taken me being away from here and having to go through what I went through to really realize that.”
Speaking to Jay King of The Athletic, Marcus Smart explained why he wasn’t surprised by Brad Stevens‘ decision to move on from his head coaching position and admitted that he strongly considered passing on the team’s extension offer in favor of reaching free agency. According to Smart, he believed he could potentially get $90MM+ in free agency, but opted for long-term security by accepting Boston’s four-year, $77MM offer. “I was actually willing to go straight into free agency and go to the market. But just talking to my circle, my family, my people and just understanding the pros versus the cons, the good versus the bad and things like that,” Smart said. “What are you willing to sacrifice? What are you willing to gain? So it was a business decision. Especially with the way everything’s going with COVID and everything, nothing’s for sure, nothing’s guaranteed.”
Ethan Fuller of BasketballNews.com outlines five Celtics roster and rotation battles to watch during training camp.

Celtics Notes: Brown, Udoka, Schröder, Hernangomez

September 27th, 2021 at 5:43pm CST by Rory Maher

The Celtics dealt with lots of turmoil last season: injuries, a short turnaround from the Orlando bubble, and COVID-19 outbreaks affecting several players, including star Jayson Tatum. The team is hoping to turn the page entering training camp, and Jaylen Brown appears optimistic, particularly about new head coach Ime Udoka.

“I’m completely bought in,” Brown said of Udoka. “I’m looking forward to this season and being an extension of him on the court.” (Twitter link via Keith Smith of Spotrac).

President of basketball operations Brad Stevens, the former head coach, says that Brown has been cleared by the team’s doctors after recovering from wrist surgery, and will be a full participant in practice, per Jared Weiss of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Udoka participated in media day virtually through Zoom, instead of in person, because the first-year head coach is in the last day of quarantine after contracting a breakthrough case of COVID-19, per ESPN News Services. Udoka is fully vaccinated and asymptomatic, according to team spokesperson Christian Megliola. He’s expected to join the team tomorrow for the start of training camp.

There’s more from Boston:

Dennis Schröder mentioned yesterday that Tatum and Brown both called to recruit him to the Celtics, but they weren’t the only ones. He told reporters today that Stevens, Udoka, and former Hawks teammate Al Horford called him as well, adding, “I know Al Horford will have the locker room under control.” (Twitter link via Keith Smith of Spotrac).
Schröder also consulted with Thunder general manager Sam Presti prior to signing with Boston, and Presti endorsed the Celtics organization, per Smith (Twitter link).
Juan Hernangomez, who dislocated his left shoulder over the summer in an exhibition game prior to the Olympics, says the shoulder is 100 percent now, according to Jared Weiss of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Atlantic Notes: Celtics Lineup, Clark, Noel, Sixers

September 22nd, 2021 at 7:34pm CST by Dana Gauruder

With Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Robert Williams and Marcus Smart seemingly locked into starting spots for the Celtics, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston explores the possibilities for the fifth starter. The most likely candidates are Aaron Nesmith, Josh Richardson, Al Horford and Dennis Schröder — Forsberg takes a closer look at what each player could bring to the starting unit.

We have more from the Atlantic Division:

Free agent Gary Clark worked out for the Celtics, Emiliano Carchia of Sportando tweets. Clark, a 6’6” forward, played 39 games in the league last season, including 35 with the Magic. He also played two games apiece for Denver and Philadelphia.
Knicks center Nerlens Noel has filed an amended complaint against super-agent Rich Paul, which includes an October 2017 letter from the legal counsel for Noel’s prior agent, Happy Walters, stating that the decision to reject the Mavericks’ $70MM offer “placed Noel at serious professional and financial risk,” Darren Heitner of SportsAgentBlog tweets. Noel sued Paul and Klutch Sports last month, claiming that he fired Walters in favor of Paul because Paul told him he could get a max contract. Paul also allegedly told Noel to turn down Dallas’ extension offer.
The Sixers have signed a deal with Crypto.com to be their new jersey patch partner, according to a team press release. According to Gina Mizell of the Philadelphia Inquirer, the multiyear deal is worth eight figures annually and is among the top five most lucrative jersey ad deals in the league.

Atlantic Notes: Raptors, Sixers, Simmons, Horford

September 20th, 2021 at 12:08pm CST by Luke Adams

Having already received clearance to play their home games in Toronto in 2021/22 after spending last season in Tampa, the Raptors are now waiting to see whether the Ontario provincial goverment will allow them to play in front of full-capacity crowds at Scotiabank Arena, writes Kevin McGran of The Toronto Star.

Both the Raptors and the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs – who share Scotiabank Arena – intend to only allow fully vaccinated individuals to attend games. They’re expecting to get an answer from government officials this week, per McGran.

“With a fully vaccinated venue, it is our belief that we can safely host a full capacity event,” MLSE spokesperson Dave Haggith said. “With tickets on sale, we are planning for eventual full capacity in 2021 and our ticketing rollout has built-in flexibility so we are ready for potential scenarios.”

Here’s more from around the Atlantic:

With the Ben Simmons situation still unresolved, Rich Hofmann of The Athletic examines what the Sixers‘ rotation might look like in 2021/22 both with Simmons and without him. Tyrese Maxey, Shake Milton, and Furkan Korkmaz would receive the biggest minutes boosts if Simmons holds out and hasn’t yet been traded.
Jared Dubin of FiveThirtyEight considers what past trades of All-Stars can tell us about the Simmons situation. As Dubin outlines, pieces-and-picks packages are typically the most common returns for All-Star players, while the Sixers are seeking a star-for-star deal, increasing the degree of difficulty.
Al Horford‘s return to the Celtics means the team will be able to comfortably run out lineups featuring two big men again. Jared Weiss of The Athletic explains why that’s a good thing for Boston.

Celtics Notes: Parker, Horford, R. Williams

August 27th, 2021 at 1:48pm CST by Arthur Hill

Jabari Parker earned a $100K guarantee by staying on the Celtics‘ roster this week, but he will still have to win a job in training camp, writes Brian Robb of MassLive. Parker signed with Boston in April and averaged 6.4 points and 3.6 rebounds over the final 10 games of the season while playing 13.8 minutes per night . The remainder of his $2.283MM contract is non-guaranteed, but he will receive $1,141,517 if he’s still with the team on opening night.

Robb believes Parker has a decent shot at sticking with the Celtics, who don’t have another reliable scorer off the bench at power forward. However, sources tell Robb that Boston continues to explore roster additions, and finding another forward could affect Parker’s prospects. He adds that trading Carsen Edwards or Kris Dunn would be another option to trim the roster to 15 players.

There’s more from Boston:

The extensions the Celtics gave to Marcus Smart, Robert Williams and Josh Richardson will limit their roster flexibility next summer, Robb states in a separate story. The luxury tax line for the 2022/23 season will be about $145MM, and the new extensions leave Boston with a commitment of $141MM for 10 players. That could change if the Celtics decide to waive or stretch the contract of Al Horford, who only has a $14.5MM guarantee on his $26.5MM salary for 2022/23. Getting rid of Horford could open anywhere from $12MM to $18MM.
With only $48MM in guaranteed money, the extension for Williams could turn out to be one of the best deals of the summer, contends Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston. Forsberg reports that the Celtics looked at several power forwards this summer and have the assets to make a deal if one becomes available.
In case you missed it, we relayed several details on Williams’ extension earlier in the week.

Celtics Notes: Walker, Stevens, Fournier, Williams, Smart, Griffin

June 19th, 2021 at 7:30pm CST by Arthur Hill

Kemba Walker, who was traded to the Thunder on Friday, had a “tension-filled” season with former coach and now president of basketball operations Brad Stevens, according to Jared Weiss of The Athletic. Multiple team sources tell Weiss there was dysfunction in the Celtics‘ locker room and Stevens was seen as being tougher with Walker than other players. Weiss adds that after Gordon Hayward left to sign with the Hornets, he told Stevens that he needed to take a more forceful stance with players for the team to be successful.

Stevens became harder on several players, including Walker, whom he frequently criticized for errors on defense. Walker and Stevens often argued, sources add, but they maintained a working relationship and respect for each other.

According to multiple sources, Walker, who signed with Boston two years ago in free agency, became angry about the team’s disappointing season and boos directed at him by Celtics fans. He began talking privately about moving to another team and was willing to accept a trade.

There’s more on the Celtics, all from Weiss:

Trading Walker was a first step toward keeping free agent guard Evan Fournier and young center Robert Williams, who is eligible for a rookie scale extension this summer. The Celtics hope to bring back Fournier on a long-term deal while creating only a modest tax bill. The trade will also make it easier to add a maximum-salary slot for 2022 free agency, as Horford’s contract has just a $14MM guarantee in its final season.
Multiple sources told Weiss that several players were hoping for a coaching change, believing Stevens didn’t hold some of his star players accountable. There was also frustration with the coach’s “college offense” and complaints that players would get stuck in isolation. There seems to be a preference in the locker room for a Black coach with NBA playing experience, and Chauncey Billups, Ime Udoka and Darvin Ham are among the candidates being given second interviews.
Marcus Smart stands to inherit the starting point guard role and will hope to re-establish a culture of accountability on defense that he built along with Al Horford, who returns to the team in the Walker trade. Teammates often ignored Smart after Horford left, according to Weiss’ sources, which led to his confrontation with Jaylen Brown after Game 2 of the 2020 Eastern Conference finals.
After Blake Griffin‘s buyout with the Pistons, he asked a Celtics player about joining the team and was told there was too much dysfunction.

Celtics Trade Kemba Walker To Thunder

June 18th, 2021 at 11:20am CST by Arthur Hill

11:20am: The trade is now official, according to press releases from the Thunder and Celtics.

The second-round pick the Thunder will receive in 2025 will be the most favorable of the Celtics’ and Grizzlies’ picks, Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman tweets.

The second-rounder that Boston will get in 2023 will be the least favorable of the following three picks that OKC controls:

The Thunder’s own second-rounder.
The Wizards’ second-rounder.
The most favorable of the Mavericks’ and Heat’s second-rounders.

Boston agreed to give Brown a $500K guarantee for next season as part of the deal, according to Marks (Twitter link). The Celtics also generated a $6.88MM trade exception.

8:20am: The Celtics will send point guard Kemba Walker and a pair of draft picks to the Thunder in exchange for Al Horford, Moses Brown, and a future pick, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Boston has been looking for a taker for the veteran guard, who has been injured for much of the two years he spent with the team. A recent report said former president of basketball operations Danny Ainge started shopping Walker after the Celtics were knocked out of the playoffs last summer.

The main incentive for Boston was to get rid of Walker’s contract, which pays him close to $74MM over the next two seasons. He was considered an important addition when he signed a free agent deal with the Celtics two years ago, but a lingering knee injury limited his effectiveness. The 31-year-old missed 29 games this season and averaged 19.3 PPG, his worst scoring numbers in six years, while shooting just 42% from the field.

Walker’s contract includes a 15% trade bonus that will be voided, according to Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link). He would have received an additional $3.2MM if the trade had occurred after the league’s new calendar year starts on August 6.

The Thunder will receive the Celtics’ first-round pick this year, which is slotted at No. 16, along with a second-rounder in 2025. Boston will get OKC’s second-round selection in 2023. The Thunder now have three first-round picks in this year’s draft and five of the top 36 choices.

Horford returns to the Celtics two years after leaving for the Sixers in free agency. He spent one year in Philadelphia before being traded to Oklahoma City last December in a cost-cutting move. Horford never found a role on the rebuilding Thunder and played just 28 games before being shut down in late March after the trade deadline passed.

The 35-year-old big man was still effective when he played, averaging 14.2 points and 6.7 rebounds per night, and should be a welcome addition to the Celtics’ frontcourt. He will make $27MM next season and $26.5MM in 2022/23, but only $14.5MM of that year’s salary is guaranteed. Boston will save about $20MM for next season with the trade, Marks adds, and that figure could rise to $32MM for 2022/23 if Horford is waived before the season starts (Twitter link).

Brown, a 21-year-old center, showed a lot of promise in his second NBA season, starting 32 of the 43 games he played and averaging 8.6 PPG and 8.9 RPG per night. He is under contract through 2023/24, but no money is guaranteed beyond this season.

Today’s trade marks the first major deal for former coach Brad Stevens since he became the Celtics’ president of basketball operations two weeks ago. Wojnarowski notes that it involves Thunder general manager Sam Presti, who has been a friend of Stevens dating back to when he coached at Butler (Twitter link). Woj adds that it’s unusual for trades to take place before the pre-draft combine, but both sides were happy with what they got.

Western Notes: Booker, Paul, Curry, Muscala

May 23rd, 2021 at 8:51pm CST by JD Shaw

Suns star Devin Booker is ready to produce in the playoffs after Phoenix’s six-year postseason drought, Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic writes.

“It’s been a long journey since I’ve been here,” Booker said. “A full six years to get to this point and I know it’s been even longer for the city of Phoenix and this organization to get to this point. So I don’t want to take these opportunities for granted. We gave the fans what they wanted with a playoff berth and now, we want to give them even more of what they asked for.”

Booker is looking to create something special in Phoenix, finishing with 34 points, seven rebounds and eight assists in a Game 1 victory over the Lakers on Sunday. The team will host Game 2 on Tuesday.

There’s more out of the Western Conference tonight:

Suns guard Chris Paul sustained a right shoulder contusion in the club’s game against the Lakers, the team announced (Twitter link). Paul appeared to be in significant pain before exiting for the locker room. He later returned for a brief stint, exited again and returned to finish the game. With Phoenix up 1-0 in the series, it’s an injury to monitor as the team looks to take a 2-0 lead this week.
The Warriors owe Stephen Curry more next season, says Marcus Thompson II of The Athletic. Golden State failed to make the playoffs despite an excellent season from Curry, who averaged a league-best 32 points per game on 48% shooting from the floor and 42% shooting from deep.
Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman examines why veteran big man Mike Muscala wanted to stay with the Thunder this season. Oklahoma City shut down Muscala and teammate Al Horford to focus on its young core late in the season, but Muscala had no interest in leaving the team. “I’m going to get a little emotional probably,” he said as part of a larger quote. “But coming to OKC, it was just like — I’m grateful for it, and it helped me a lot as a man and as a player.”

Northwest Notes: Horford, Muscala, Towns, Vanderbilt, Nuggets

May 17th, 2021 at 11:40am CST by Luke Adams

The rebuilding Thunder shut down big men Al Horford and Mike Muscala in the second half of the 2020/21 season, with neither veteran playing a single minute after the March trade deadline. Muscala is now facing unrestricted free agency, while Horford has two years left on his contract, including a partial guarantee in the second year.

Asked today about their respective futures, neither player sounded certain he’d be back in Oklahoma City in ’21/22, but Muscala said he’d “love to be here” going forward, as Joe Mussatto of The Oklahoman tweets. Meanwhile, an offseason trade to a team closer to contention seems like a realistic next step for Horford, and he didn’t rule out that possibility.

“I’m sure that I’ll be talking with the team and we’ll figure out what’s best,” Horford said, per Mussatto (Twitter link).

Here are a few more notes from around the Northwest:

Timberwolves big man Karl-Anthony Towns told reporters today that he won’t require offseason surgery on the wrist he dislocated at the start of the season, tweets Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic.
In a story for The Athletic, Krawczynski takes a deep dive into the long, winding path that Jarred Vanderbilt took to become an NBA regular for the first time this season. The Timberwolves forward, who had logged 120 total minutes in two NBA seasons entering 2020/21, started 30 of the 64 games he played this year, averaging 5.4 PPG and 5.8 RPG on 60.6% shooting in 17.8 minutes per contest.
The Nuggets are increasing the capacity of Ball Arena for the playoffs from 4,050 fans (22.1% capacity) to a maximum attendance of 7,750 (42.3%), according to The Denver Post. Denver is one of a handful of teams expecting more fans at postseason games, as coronavirus-related gathering limits begin to loosen in states across the nations.