Alfred Joel Horford Reynoso (born June 3, 1986), nicknamed Big Al, is a Dominican-Bahamian professional basketball player for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Horford is a five-time NBA All-Star and is the highest paid Latin American basketball player.
Horford played college basketball for the Florida Gators and was the starting center on their back-to-back National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) national championships teams in 2006 and 2007. He was drafted with the third overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft by the Atlanta Hawks, a team he played nine seasons with before signing with the Celtics as a free agent in the 2016 off-season. After playing three seasons with the Celtics, Horford signed with the 76ers in the 2019 off-season and played a season with the team before being traded in the 2020 off-season to the Thunder. Prior to the 2021 season, Horford was traded to the Celtics, with whom he reached the NBA finals.
Early years and high school career
Horford was born in Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic. His father, Tito Horford, played in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for three years and several more in other countries. In 2000, Horford and his family moved to Lansing, Michigan, where he attended Grand Ledge High School in Grand Ledge, Michigan, and was a star on its basketball team. Horford holds seven school records, including most career points (1,239). As a senior, Horford was named "Class A Player of the Year" after averaging 21 points, 13 rebounds and five blocks per game. While at Grand Ledge, Horford played AAU basketball for the Michigan Mustangs, who were runners-up in the Adidas Big Time National Tournament. Considered a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Horford was listed as the No. 7 power forward and the No. 36 player in the nation in 2004.
College career
Horford accepted an athletic scholarship to attend the University of Florida, choosing the Gators over Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State. There, he played for coach Billy Donovan and teamed up alongside Joakim Noah, Corey Brewer and Taurean Green. Horford made an immediate impact for the Gators in 2004–05, starting at center in the front court with David Lee, and helped the Gators win the 2005 Southeastern Conference tournament championship.
The Gators surged through the 2005–06 season, winning the SEC championship for a second straight year. They entered the 2006 NCAA tournament as the No. 3 seed. The Gators swept through the first four rounds to reach the Final Four. There they defeated George Mason to reach the final. In the final, they defeated UCLA for the 2006 championship behind Horford's 14 points and seven rebounds.
In December 2006, midway through his junior year, Horford missed a series of games due to injury. Coach Donovan held him out of a game against Stetson in hopes that he would be adequately healed for a game in Gainesville against the third-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes on December 23. The day before the game, Donovan announced that Horford would be unable to play, but Horford entered the game from the bench to guard Ohio State player Greg Oden, a highly touted 7'0" freshman. Oden scored just seven points, well below his season average of 15. Horford scored 11 points and added 11 rebounds in limited action, as the Gators defeated the Buckeyes. In the final home game of the season, on March 4, 2007, against Kentucky, Horford became the fourth player on his team to score 1,000 career points. He required 14 points during the game to reach the milestone, and scored exactly 14.
On April 2, 2007, the Gators became the first team to repeat as national champions since the 1991–92 Duke Blue Devils, and the first ever to do so with the same starting lineup. They defeated Oden and Ohio State in a rematch from the regular season, 84–75. Three days later, Horford, Joakim Noah, Corey Brewer and Taurean Green all declared for the NBA draft.
Professional basketball career
Atlanta Hawks (2007–2016)
All-Rookie honors (2007–2008) On June 28, 2007, Horford was selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the third overall pick in the 2007 NBA draft. On July 9, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Hawks.