Report: Celtics sign Al Horford to multi-year extension
The Celtics and Al Horford have come to terms on a new contract, according to a report from ESPN.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS – JUNE 08: Al Horford #42 of the Boston Celtics reacts to a play in the second quarter against the Golden State Warriors during Game Three of the 2022 NBA Finals at TD Garden on June 08, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
Al Horford's second chapter with the Boston Celtics will not end in 2023, as the team has signed the veteran big man to a two-year extension worth $20 million, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski.
The contract will keep Horford in Boston through his 39th birthday, and likely sets him up to retire as a member of the Celtics, and in pursuit of his first NBA championship.
Brought back to Boston by the Celtics in a 2021 trade that sent a battered Kemba Walker out of town, Horford averaged 10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds per game in 69 games with the Celtics last season, and played a gigantic part in the Green's run to the 2022 NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors.
The run was enough to make you believe that Horford still had plenty left in the tank. And his start to the new season has done little to sway you from that belief, as Horford has averaged 10.9 points per game, and shot 55.5 percent from the field (and a career-best 48.8 percent from deep), through 18 games this season.
Jun 2, 2022; San Francisco, California, USA; Boston Celtics center Al Horford (42) shoots the ball against the Golden State Warriors during the first half of game one of the 2022 NBA Finals at Chase Center. (Cary Edmondson/USA TODAY Sports)
A veteran of 968 games, Horford's first stint with the Celtics came from 2016 through 2019 before he opted out of his contract and joined the 76ers on a top-dollar contract that simply didn't work out for either party.
Overall, the 6-foot-9, 240-pounder has played in 295 games with the Celtics, and was an All-Star for the club in 2018, and was named to the All-Defensive Second Team that same season.
