Al Horford ended the waiting game with a simple tweet: “Celtic Pride,” it said, followed by 18 shamrocks. ADVERTISING Al Horford ended the waiting game with a simple tweet: “Celtic Pride,” it said, followed by 18 shamrocks. The number might
Al Horford ended the waiting game with a simple tweet: “Celtic Pride,” it said, followed by 18 shamrocks.
The number might not have been a coincidence.
A franchise with 17 NBA championships may have gotten closer to contending for an 18th on Saturday, when Horford decided to accept a four-year, $113 million offer to join the Boston Celtics. Horford made the announcement on Twitter, and the terms of the detail were confirmed to The Associated Press by a person with direct knowledge of the negotiations.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because no deals can be finalized until at least July 7 under league rules.
Horford wasted no time in changing his Twitter bio, which now says he is “Boston Celtics star Forward/Center Al Horford.” And the reactions came in swiftly as well, after one of the biggest prizes in this year’s free-agent sweepstakes decided to leave Atlanta.
“Let’s get it,” Celtics guard Isaiah Thomas wrote.
The Celtics won 48 games last season, finishing in a four-way tie for the third-best record in the Eastern Conference. They have a strong young core already, a highly regarded coach in Brad Stevens, and had the money to land a huge free agent.
Horford’s announcement came on the same day that the Celtics met with Kevin Durant in New York, even bringing New England Patriots star quarterback Tom Brady along for that meeting to help sell the virtues of playing in New England.
No such fanfare was needed for Horford — just an average salary of about $28 million a year for the next four years.
Horford also met with the Washington Wizards as well as the Hawks, the team that drafted him and the team he’s now leaving. Horford spent his first nine NBA seasons in Atlanta, but the Hawks agreed to terms with Dwight Howard and Kent Bazemore on big-money deals, leaving them little room for their centerpiece.
Atlanta could have made a trade or two to create enough room to keep him as well, but by Saturday Horford was already starting to look elsewhere.
The four-time All-Star averaged 15.2 points and 7.3 rebounds last season. He gives the Celtics a formidable presence on both ends of the floor as they try to vault into the top tier of the East.
Mavs plan max offer sheet for Warriors’ Barnes
DALLAS — The Mavericks have informed representatives of Golden State’s Harrison Barnes that they intend to sign the restricted free agent to an offer sheet for a four-year, $95 million contract, two people with knowledge of Dallas’ plans said Saturday.
The Warriors can match any deal for Barnes and are more likely to do so if they don’t get an agreement with Kevin Durant.
Durant, a four-time scoring champion and 2014 NBA MVP with Oklahoma City, has held meetings with the Thunder, Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, San Antonio and Boston. He’s expected to meet with Miami on Sunday.
Barnes was the fourth-leading scorer behind Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green for the 73-win Warriors.
Lakers agree to sign Luol Deng
LOS ANGELES–The Los Angeles Lakers made one of their last big free-agent deals of the off-season, adding another veteran Saturday by agreeing to a four-year, $72-million deal with former All-Star Luol Deng.
Deng, 31, typically does a little bit of everything on the court and gives the Lakers someone to fill the small-forward spot until Brandon Ingram is ready to start.
Deng can also play power forward in a small-ball lineup, creating added appeal in Coach Luke Walton’s vision of the Lakers.
