2025 NBA free agency is officially in full swing, and it's safe to say the Los Angeles Lakers are having a quiet start to the festivities. Despite all the various needs they had at the start of the offseason, the Lakers have sat on their hands other than signing Jake LaRavia to a two-year contract, leaving time to tell if general manager Rob Pelinka will wake up any time soon.
Although a decent number of the top free agents have quickly found new homes, some available names out there could help improve the Lakers' 2025-26 NBA title odds. Interestingly enough, one of those options is a legitimate candidate to move to L.A., and it's all thanks to one of the franchise's most hated rivals.
Lakers Can Sign Free Agent PF/C Al Horford Thanks to Celtics
The Lakers must bolster their frontcourt this summer, and Al Horford is one experienced name who can help them. The 18-year veteran has over 1,300 games played between the NBA regular season and playoffs, along with a championship ring, and is a free agent after the hated Boston Celtics were unable to re-sign him.
Now, it seems like L.A. is a legitimate candidate to sign its rival's beloved leader.
"Sources tell me and (Dan Woike) that Al Horford is also under serious consideration by the Lakers," The Athletic's Sam Amick reported on Tuesday. "As he says below, this might take some time."
Sources tell me and @DanWoikeSports that Al Horford is also under serious consideration by the Lakers (in addition to the Warriors). As he says below, this might take some time. https://t.co/kwyL21qduv
— Sam Amick (@sam_amick) July 1, 2025
Horford, 39, is no longer in his prime; however, he'd certainly be an upgrade over the big-man options the Lakers were working with last season. A team simply can't succeed in the playoffs with Jaxson Hayes and Alex Len as the top center options, and adding Horford would give Los Angeles a better shot at a deeper postseason run come next spring.
Horford is coming off a 2024-25 performance that saw him average 9.0 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 0.9 blocks while shooting 42.3% from the floor and 36.3% from downtown. His accuracy improved in the postseason, as the former Florida Gator averaged 8.0 PPG on .472/.400/.857 shooting splits in his 11 playoff outings (9 starts).
Not only would signing Horford make the Lakers a better team, but it'd also be a great way to stick it to the Celtics. After all, Los Angeles already got the better of its long-time rival once this offseason, as the Lakers' $10 billion ownership sale completely dwarfed the $6.1 billion sale the Celtics announced back in March.
Adding a well-respected free agent would also let L.A. fans know the team is serious about competing for a title next season. That's why the Lakers can't afford to wait and let Horford get snatched up by another team, especially with how disappointing the start to free agency has been.