On Wednesday afternoon, the Los Angeles Lakers got some major help when it comes to plugging their massive hole at the center position when Deandre Ayton agreed to sign with them. Reportedly, he will sign for roughly $8 million a year, and his deal will last two years, with a player option for the 2026-27 season, per ESPN.

Ayton may be a questionable defender, but he will certainly upgrade the Lakers offensively, on the boards and in the athleticism department. The 26-year-old has career averages 16.4 points, 10.5 rebounds and 1.0 blocks a game and has shot 59% from the field since joining the NBA seven years ago.

But the Lakers need a little more depth in the middle, as well as a veteran who can mentor Ayton, who had some attitude problems over the last couple of years with the Portland Trail Blazers. According to Evan Sidery, Los Angeles is seriously interested in signing veteran big man Al Horford.

Even after signing Deandre Ayton, the Lakers remain in strong pursuit of Al Horford.

Ideally, Los Angeles wants to add a pick-and-roll lob threat alongside a stretch-five.

Signing Ayton and Horford would certainly accomplish that goal. pic.twitter.com/mXC4MWwF60

— Evan Sidery (@esidery) July 2, 2025

Horford is a player who has seemingly been around forever. He was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2007 NBA Draft, and at his peak, he was one of the better centers in basketball. At this point in his career, the 39-year-old remains a viable multi-faceted role player in limited minutes who can hit 3-pointers, play effective defense and even serve as a secondary facilitator in a team’s halfcourt offense.

He won a world championship with the Boston Celtics one calendar year ago, and this past season, he averaged 9.0 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 0.9 blocks in 27.7 minutes a game while hitting 36.3% of his 3-point attempts.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers are reportedly ‘in strong pursuit’ of Al Horford