The Los Angeles Lakers have made a couple of outside additions so far during the NBA free agency period, signing both Jake LaRavia and Deandre Ayton.
While those two moves were quality additions, the Lakers are still hoping to add more. Plenty of names have been brought up as possible targets, both in free agency and on the trade market, but so far Rob Pelinka has not made other moves.
Even though the team added Ayton as their starting center and re-signed Jaxson Hayes, there is another center they have been interested in.
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Of course, that center is none other than Boston Celtics’ free agent Al Horford. He has considered retirement, but has also been getting interest from a handful of teams.
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A new report has revealed that Los Angeles is still among the teams interested in signing Horford.
Marc J. Spears, a longtime NBA insider, has reported that the Lakers, Milwaukee Bucks, Atlanta Hawks, and Golden State Warriors are still working to sign Horford.
“Golden State expected him to sign last week, he didn’t,” Spears said. “Lakers, Milwaukee, Atlanta I believe are also interested.”
Horford is now 39 years old. He only has another year or two left in his NBA career and will likely prioritize being able to have a role on a championship contender.
During the 2024-25 NBA season with the Celtics, Horford played in 60 games and made 42 starts. He averaged nine points per game to go along with 6.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 0.9 blocks, while shooting 42.3 percent from the floor and 36.3 percent from the three-point line.
If Los Angeles can add Horford, its front-court issues from last season would be a thing of the past. He would be elite depth off of the bench behind Ayton.
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That being said, the Warriors have been viewed as the favorite to sign Horford. He hasn’t signed yet, which was unexpected, which could give the Lakers some life.
As for the Hawks being on the list, Horford played much of his prime in Atlanta. He was a star previously for the Hawks. The Bucks could offer him a primary backup role behind Myles Turner, who was also signed in free agency.
Expect to hear more news about Horford in the near future. At least for now, Los Angeles still seems to be in the running.
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