Los Angeles Clippers: Signing Al Horford would be a mistake

The Los Angeles Clippers are set to have an exciting offseason which should not include signing veteran center Al Horford to a contract.

The Los Angeles Clippers are primed to jump up the NBA ranks and establish themselves as one of the best teams in the league next season. With cap space and a solid established core, the Clippers have been heavily tied to Kawhi Leonard and are already one of the favorites in the Western Conference.

It does not stop at Leonard, though, as the Clippers have freed up enough salary cap space to add pieces around Leonard as well. If the team can trade the last year of Danilo Gallinari‘s contract then there will be enough room for two max contracts, not just one.

If the team manages to free up enough money one of the rumored targets to bring in alongside Leonard is veteran center, Al Horford.

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Many expected Horford to accept his $30.5 million player option with the Boston Celtics for next season but the veteran instead decided to become a free agent and likely sign a longer deal. He might not get $30 million per year but instead will get long-term flexibility and more money overall.

There is a reason why Horford is deciding to become a free agent this offseason and not next year and it is why the Clippers should ultimately stay away.

Horford’s value is very high right now. He looked like the glue piece for a dysfunctional Boston Celtics team that never figured it out all year. He might not put up insane box numbers, but his veteran presence and impact defensively are what makes him valuable.

He is a glue piece, similar to Draymond Green on the Golden State Warriors, that can help any title-contending team get over that hump.

But as we mentioned, his value is high right now, meaning that his current value is over what it actually is, hence why he wanted to become a free agent now, instead of later. He easily could have gotten paid $30.5 million this year and tried to get the same contract next offseason.

The reason he didn’t is because of the risk that his value will fall off, which is a very legitimate risk at this point in his career. He’s 33 years old. He is at the tail end of his career and with his size and play style, he will continue to diminish as father time catches up.

He might be good for another good season, maybe two solid years, but he would certainly not live up to the price tag that he is going to get this summer.

The Los Angeles Clippers would be much better off filling out a roster of role players this season and maintaining enough cap to go after a different max star next summer once Gallinari’s contract expires.

Signing Horford to act as the second star would sit well with the fanbase at first, but ultimately would never live up to expectations.