Celtics May Have Tough Decision to Make Between Al Horford, Luke Kornet

Heading into this offseason, the Boston Celtics have a lot of questions that they have to address. With the cap crunch that they are headed towards this summer, the roster is going to change.

With the giant luxury tax bill that the team is facing, there is going to be some movement when it comes to the roster. Brad Stevens has some hard choices he will be facing.

The injury to Jayson Tatum complicates things. This team can't be considered a title contender next season with Tatum going to miss most of the season.

One of the decisions the Celtics will have to make is choosing between two of their backup bigs. Al Horford and Luke Kornet likely won't both be back next season.

With the amount of money that Boston needs to shed before next year, they can't keep both of these players. There is a clear answer on which one they should keep.

Kornet is the clear answer in terms of having a long-term future at the backup big spot. Horford is still effective, but he has been in the league since 2007. He's close to retiring.

There's a good chance that Horford ends up retiring once the summer approaches. He finally won a championship last season, so he doesn't have anything else left to prove.

Kornet is someone who can actually protect the rim for the Celtics. He had to play more this season than what Boston was expecting him to because Kristaps Porzingis kept missing games.

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Kornet has not only shown the ability to protect the rim, but he can stretch the floor, as well. While he can't shoot it quite as well as Horford yet, he can work on that skill in the offseason.

The problem is that Kornet is now a free agent. He is going to be able to look around the league for other offers, and other teams have their eyes on him.

In contrast, Horford likely won't have many suitors. If he does play next season, he isn't going to get the attention that Kornet will in free agency.

Kornet averaged six points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game. Horford averaged nine points, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game.

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