Brad Stevens expects Celtics to lose key player

The Boston Celtics parted ways with two of their best players recently when they traded Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, and president of basketball operations Brad Stevens is bracing for another to depart.

Stevens told reporters on Tuesday that he believes it is “unlikely” the Celtics will re-sign veteran big man Al Horford. Stevens said the team has made an offer to Horford, but it sounds like the expectation is that the 39-year-old will move on.

“We made offers to both Luke (Kornet) and Al (Horford). We would love to have both of them back. I’d say that’s unlikely,” Stevens said. “The only reason I haven’t talked about Al is because it’s not final. I could probably talk about Al my whole press conference and not say enough, but I don’t want to speak in absolute terms until an ultimate decision is made.”

Stevens added that he views Horford as “an all-time Celtic”

The Celtics have been trying to get below the second apron, which is why they traded Holiday and Porzingis. They probably know that Horford is going to receive better offers from other teams.

Horford, a five-time All-Star, averaged 9.0 points and 6.2 rebounds in 27.7 minutes per game for Boston this past season. He can hit the occasional three-pointer and has made 37.7 percent of his career attempts from beyond the arc. Horford is also a strong rebounder and low-post defender.

Jayson Tatum is also expected to miss most — if not all — of the 2025-26 season, so the Celtics are unlikely to be the highest bidder for Horford with their championship aspirations in question for next year.

Horford has reportedly drawn significant interest from contending teams. He should find a new home in the near future.