Sometimes, the grass isn't greener on the other side, which is typically a lesson learned the hard way.
During the offseason, 39-year-old center Al Horford made the challenging decision to leave a Boston Celtics squad a year removed from a championship and join a Golden State Warriors squad that’s struggled in the postseason since their 2022 NBA title run.
The move has been brutal in every way imaginable, as Horford has played like a shell of his former self (he's averaging a career-low in points and hasn't shot well from three), and the Warriors have started the year with a discouraging 10-10 record.
On Friday, NESN’s Collin Keane didn’t mince his words on Horford leaving Boston for a worse situation in the Bay.
“When Al Horford decided to sign with the Golden State Warriors this past offseason rather than return to the Boston Celtics, most fans assumed it was for money reasons,” Keane wrote.
“However, Horford turned heads later on when he admitted that competitive reasons went into his Golden State move. Horford suggested that once he saw that Jayson Tatum was likely done for the 2025-26 season, it made more sense to go to a place (Golden State) where he had a better chance to win a title.”
"Horford, however, definitely miscalculated his odds in that regard, and Celtics fans are trolling Horford on social media for it. Had Horford just stuck around and remained loyal to the Celts, he’d be looking at a possible return to the NBA Finals.”
Keane didn’t miss the mark on his assessment of Horford thus far.
While losing Tatum due to an Achilles injury was a devastating blow to Horford and the Celtics, the 6-foot-8 star has been making steady progress and could make a return during the second portion of the season.
As a result, Boston simply must remain in the hunt in a relatively weak Eastern Conference until Tatum hopefully rejoins the franchise for a late-season playoff push.
Unfortunately for Horford, he couldn’t see the vision, prompting him to make a move that’s currently haunting him.
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