The Boston Celtics have the potential to make a big splash this summer. They have a phenomenal head coach in Brad Stevens, and they have a roster that can play lockdown defense. The only thing they are missing is a superstar, and there are a couple of those on the market in free agency. Kevin Durant will obviously be their primary target, but the Celtics also shouldn’t take their eyes off of Al Horford. Durant will probably stay with the Oklahoma City Thunder for at least one more season and reassess his options in the summer of 2017.

That means the Celtics need to figure out a way to become more appealing next year. Adding Horford to their lineup as either the starting power forward or center would certainly do that, and it’s even been reported that Durant let Boston know about the players they should sign through a back channel.

It would not only help the Celtics to sign Horford, but it would also hurt the Atlanta Hawks. Boston was eliminated by them in the first round this postseason. Isaiah Thomas would definitely appreciate some other players who can score the basketball, and either Horford or Durant would present a solution to that problem.

Horford doesn’t get enough credit for how great he is on the defensive end, and people seem to forget that he won consecutive national titles at the college level. Horford would love to be reunited with his old Florida Gators‘ teammate Joakim Noah this summer, but that could only happen if they are both willing to take a pay cut or go to a team with cap room.

The Celtics are going to have a lot of options this offseason, and that is mainly because of all their draft picks. Having space under the salary cap helps as well, but they’ll definitely be able to make some moves that improve their team. Signing Horford should be near the top of their list, because he could turn them into a contender once again.