Howard has agreed to a three-year, $70.5 million deal with the Hawks, his agent Perry Rogers told ESPN’s Chris Broussard on Friday.
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Horford was reportedly impressed by the young core the Wizards have assembled – namely John Wall, Bradley Beal, Otto Porter, Markieff Morris and Kelly Oubre – and he was especially pleased that all of those players are under contract for the immediate future. The sources added that with Horford’s departure, the Hawks will halt trade talks regarding Paul Millsap. Anderson, the former Cal star who spent the past four seasons with New Orleans, is getting four years and $80 million, while Gordon agreed on a four-year, $53 million contract.
The Atlanta Hawks made changes early in the free agency period. But maybe that’s thinking too far ahead. Last season, Al Horford shot 50.5 percent from the floor, which made him the 25most proficient shooter from the field.
Horford, an unrestricted free agent, has played his entire nine-year career in Atlanta, which drafted him third overall in 2007. Losing Evan Turner to the Portland Trail Blazers certainly hurts, but Celtics coach Brad Stevens would surely take his program to the next level with Horford in tow.
By joining the Celtics, Horford immediately becomes the team’s best big man, something they clearly lacked last season against the best opponents and in the postseason. Delaney went undrafted in the 2011 NBA Draft, and went on to play for Lokomotiv Kuban of the VTB United League.
Horford was the topic of trade rumors at the deadline, with the Boston Celtics reportedly being among those interested.
With the addition of Al Horford, the Boston Celtics will turn their full attention to Kevin Durant. “One thing about it, this is a brand new team, brand new situation for myself and I’m looking forward to playing”.
With Horford’s decision and Howard’s move to the Hawks, Clint Capela is the only center on the Rockets’ roster. At times, it looked like Isaiah Thomas was the team’s only offensive option. Last year, the Celtics were very inconsistent on offense. By signing into free agency, he said he “exhausted every opportunity to see which one will be the best for me”.
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Experts have predicted that Boston, who finished with a 48-34 record last season, will improve to a 54-23 record with the acquisition of Al Horford.
