Reports: Thunder Pursuing Al Horford In Free Agency

The Thunder will pursue forward Al Horford in free agency, according to multiple reports. Horford made $12 million with Atlanta last season and the 30-year-old will command a decent raise to whichever team secures his services this offseason.

To make the signing work, Oklahoma City would likely need to find a way to get rid of Enes Kanter ($17.1 mil) and Kyle Singler ($5 mil). The Thunder could save a few more bucks by not exercising the $3.48 option on Anthony Morrow’s contract. They could also waive Ersan Ilyasova’s $8.4 million non-guaranteed.

The NBA’s 2016-17 salary cap is projected to jump to $94 million next season, up from $70 million in 2015-16. That jump, which stems from a new TV deal, allows teams to get a little greedy in the free agent market.

Horford is worth the money, though. The four-time All-Star averaged 15.2 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks last year. He’s one of the most versatile big men in the league on both sides of the ball. Ironically, his game is pretty comparable to Serge Ibaka’s.