Warriors Manage Veteran Horford's Minutes to Stay Fresh for Playoffs

In the offseason leading up to the 2025-26 NBA season, the Golden State Warriors made several moves to bolster their roster and give themselves a chance to capture another NBA Finals title. The team re-signed both Jonathan Kuminga and Gary Payton II, ensuring they would have two key returners in the lineup.

Additionally, the Warriors decided to bring in veteran big man Al Horford on a one-year contract. Horford, who is now 39 years old, has brought valuable leadership to the locker room and provides some much-needed length to the Warriors' otherwise smaller lineup.

However, head coach Steve Kerr has decided to take a cautious approach when it comes to Horford's role on the court. In a pregame press conference on October 24th, 2025, Kerr stated that he would like to keep Horford's minutes around 22 per game. The goal is to keep the veteran fresh for the playoffs, as Kerr mentioned that if Horford is fresh come postseason time, the team may be able to increase his minutes.

Horford has not played since the Warriors' overtime win against the Denver Nuggets on October 22nd, 2025, which was the second game of the season. The reason for this is that the team had a back-to-back game against the Portland Trail Blazers the very next day, and Kerr opted to sit Horford for that contest. This is a trend that is likely to continue throughout the season, as Kerr plans to have Horford sit out one game of any back-to-back sets to keep him fresh.

When Horford does play, he will come off the bench as the first big man off the bench, unless someone gets injured. In the two games he has played so far, Horford has averaged 9.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game, while shooting 50% from the field and 50% from three-point range. His veteran presence and ability to hit open shots will be valuable for the Warriors' second unit.