While it seems inevitable that Al Horford will eventually sign with the Golden State Warriors, fans are certainly getting anxious given there's been no reported signing nearly a week since free agency opened.
The Los Angeles Lakers and even the thought of retirement have also been considered possibilities for Horford, but Warrior fans can breathe a little easier knowing an emerging threat for the 39-year-old has seemingly bowed out of the race.
The Nuggets are not expected to pursue Al Horford in free agency
With the uncertainty over the future of Jonas Valancuinas, the Denver Nuggets had begun to surface as a team who could steal Horford away from Golden State's grasp as an ideal backup for 3x MVP Nikola Jokic.
However, any thought of that has seemingly dissipated with ESPN's Shams Charania reporting on Sunday that the Nuggets fully intend to keep Valancuinas despite the Lithuanian's interest in returning to Europe.
Denver has informed Jonas Valanciunas' reps that the franchise fully intends to have him honor his contract as the Nuggets view Valanciunas as a critical center addition to back up Nikola Jokic and play alongside him. Greek team Panathinaikos pursued Valanciunas in recent days. https://t.co/a6SGnWFeLh
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 6, 2025
Valancuinas has been in Greece recently where he has a strong three-year offer on the table from Panathinaikos, but the veteran center would need the Nuggets to agree to a buyout before being able to sign with any overseas team.
Charania's report suggests Valancuinas will be heading to Denver, with the franchise trading former Warrior Dario Saric to the Sacramento Kings in exchange for the 33-year-old at the start of the week.
Keeping Valancuinas will prevent the Nuggets from having access to the full non-taxpayer mid-level exception, with NBA insider Marc Stein also reporting on Sunday that Horford is "destined to land in the Bay Area."
"While having the full non-taxpayer midlevel would theoretically provide the Nuggets with the financial flexibility to offer a richer Year 1 salary to Boston Celtics free agent Al Horford that Golden State can pitch, I continue to hear that Horford is destined to land in the Bay Area. That's despite the fact that the Warriors currently have only the $5.7 million taxpayer midlevel to offer him," Stein wrote.
There's a prevailing thought among many that the Horford signing is just on pause until the Warriors understand what they're doing with restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga, whether that be re-signing the former seventh overall pick or executing a sign-and-trade.
Signing Horford now to the taxpayer mid-level exception would hard-cap Golden State at the second tax apron, potentially leaving themselves vulnerable to an offer sheet for Kuminga that they wouldn't be legally able to match.