Al Horford explains decision to leave Celtics for Sixers

Al Horford made his debut as a new Sixer in Philadelphia on Friday, joining five new teammates on stage as management unveiled their free-agent signings.

The 33-year-old Horford was all smiles after signing a four-year, $109-million deal with Philadelphia and talked about his choice to go to a one-time rival.

“When I decided to opt out, it wasn’t an easy decision,” Horford told reporters at the presser. "But I did it. I felt like there was going to be a lot of options for me. When June 30 came around, things escalated very, very quickly. There were multiple teams, a lot of strong interest. I had to make what was the best decision for me. When Elton called and spoke with my agent, he laid down this offer. I was very surprised there was such strong interest for me being here. It made the decision very easy, and I’m just excited to be a part of this.”

The news of a big offer for Horford was not a big surprise after his agent reportedly informed the C's in mid-June that Horford would not be planning on returning to Boston. The Celtics tried to make a play on June 30th to retain the big man after securing the services of Kemba Walker but Horford still choose Philadelphia minutes after they agreed to trade Jimmy Butler to the Heat for Josh Richardson.

The five-time All-Star averaged 13.6 points and 6.7 rebounds per game during his final season in Boston. He will spend a larger chunk of his time in Philadelphia playing at power forward alongside Joel Embiid, which appears to be another key component to his decision.

“I’ve always been a fan of Joel,” Horford said. “Just everything that he brings. ... There were some great battles. When this opportunity came along, and the possibility of teaming up with him, it got me really excited about the potential, how good we can be.”

Horford also spoke how the pursuit of him by Sixers general manager Elton Brand (a former teammate in Atlanta) left a lasting imprint on him.

"I’m hype. I’m ready to go. I’m just letting you guys know right now. I have a lot of respect for Elton," he said. "I got to watch him as a younger player and see how professional he was, how he took care of his body. Really respected him. I’ll tell you a quick story about him: We were getting ready to go to dinner one night, some of the guys and I. We’re about to get into the elevator. ... He was just in the elevator going to his room, but he was coming from the gym, sweating. He’d just done like an hour of cardio and he was just drenched. His commitment to wanting to win and do the right things inspired me back then."

The Celtics side of the story from Horford's perspective will always remain a little bit unclear. It's been evident that the team was not willing to match the type of offer that Horford got from the Sixers but it's clear that the newest Sixers may have felt that he had a better chance of earning a ring in Philadelphia than in Boston over the final years of his career.

Boston will get to share their side of the story next week when Danny Ainge is expected to speak publicly for the first time after the team's recent signings. For now, Brad Stevens will be forced to mix and match plenty in the frontcourt with a lot of inexperience and varying skillsets.

"Obviously Al was great here," Stevens said this week. "We loved Al, we wanted him back. Again, it’s his choice. He can go do what he wants to do and there’s a lot of factors that end up helping these guys making those decisions. But he’s a heck of a player and did a great job here in the three years he was here."