Warriors' Al Horford Nearing Return, Will Richard Staying Ready Amid Rotation Shuffle
PHOENIX - The Golden State Warriors are still waiting to get a more consistent look at veteran big man Al Horford, but there’s finally some movement in the right direction. Horford, who’s been sidelined with a sciatica issue, is ramping up his on-court activity and says he’s “probably a week” away from being game-ready.
“I feel good,” Horford said Thursday ahead of the Warriors’ matchup with the Phoenix Suns. “Just excited to be on the court and just getting my body going again.”
It’s been a tough start to the season for the 39-year-old, who’s appeared in only 13 games since signing with Golden State. Between injury setbacks and a limited role-he doesn’t play both ends of back-to-backs-Horford hasn’t been able to find much rhythm. His numbers reflect that: career lows in scoring (5.6 points per game), rebounding (4.4), and a chilly 29.8% from three-point range.
The latest hurdle has been particularly frustrating. Unlike past muscle injuries he’s played through, Horford said this nerve-related issue has required a different kind of patience.
“Very tricky,” he said. “Just cause nerves are different than the muscle injuries. In the past, I’ve been able to push through different kinds of injuries like that, but this is just a little different.”
Horford’s last appearance came back on December 4, when he made his first start of the season and logged 18 minutes in a loss to the 76ers. It was during that game that things started to go sideways again.
“That game, that’s where I started to feel - it didn’t feel right towards the end of the game,” Horford said. “That’s when I kind of regressed considerably, so the medical team is obviously trying to protect me, and they understood that I needed to get right.”
While Horford works his way back, the Warriors are also juggling the development of rookie guard Will Richard. The 22-year-old, a fellow University of Florida alum, is healthy but currently out of the rotation as Steve Kerr experiments with lineups behind Stephen Curry.
Richard started 12 games earlier in the season and showed flashes, but for now, he’s on the outside looking in. Still, his mindset is exactly where you want it to be.
“He was very transparent with me,” Richard said of his conversation with Kerr. “Told me I was going to be out of the rotation.
I understood where he was coming from, so for me just trying to control what I can control. Make sure I’m getting better every day.”
That maturity didn’t come out of nowhere. Richard leaned on advice from Curry himself, who shared some of the ups and downs of his own rookie season during training camp.
“I was watching him work out. After he got done, he came over and talked to me,” Richard said.
“And we were just talking about his rookie year and stuff like that. I was asking him some questions on what to expect.
He was real transparent with me, and he kept it real.”
That conversation stuck. So has the message from Curry and other Warriors vets: early-career inconsistency is part of the NBA journey.
“They said that’s really what the NBA is all about,” Richard said. “I talked to Steph, he told me he got like eight straight DNPs his rookie year, and then he was starting the rest of the season, so it’s just everyone has to go through it.”
Richard’s four years in college helped him prepare for this kind of grind. He knows he’s still carving out his place in the league, but he believes he’s already proven something important.
“For me, I showed that I belong on the court,” he said. “I feel like I proved that, so now it’s just building on that. And keep getting better, keep providing whatever the team needs from me.”
As the Warriors continue to navigate a season full of lineup questions and health concerns, Horford’s return and Richard’s readiness are both encouraging signs. Whether it’s a seasoned vet trying to get back or a rookie staying ready, the common thread is clear: stay patient, stay prepared, and make the most of the next opportunity.