Steve Kerr has seen Al Horford play basketball in the NBA for almost 20 years. It took one practice for him to realize he fits into exactly what Kerr's plans are for the Warriors going into this season.

“It’s huge to have, not only a space five, but it’s not just any space five, it’s Al Horford,” Kerr said Wednesday to reporters. “Rebounds, defends, smart, good passer. Just watching him today, you could see the fit, how smooth it is. He could play with Draymond (Green), space the floor as a five. He could play with Trayce (Jackson-Davis), and Trayce could be the dive man. We could play two bigs with him. He can also play the five himself. We could have a five-out lineup. So Al’s versatility, and the fact that he fits in any lineup, just makes him hugely valuable right away.”

The Warriors have a championship roster, and fans are expecting nothing less. At his first media conference on Wednesday afternoon, Horford sounded like he had played for Kerr for many years. He fits in with the Warriors like a foot into a well-worn pair of sneakers. He just has that perfect fit. Horford knows his place, and he knows who the team leaders are. He just wants to fit in and do his part.

“I think that for me it’s very clear, Draymond is our leader here,” he said. “And then Steph (Curry) and Jimmy (Butler) as well. And I’m just gonna follow suit and continue to look to learn from them, take guidance from them, and be here for whatever is needed from me. There will be times where I’ll probably step in, and if there’s something that needs to be said, it will be addressed, but I’m coming into a team that’s already very established and has those leaders and has that identity.”

Kerr likes another thing about Horford. He also has a championship pedigree. He knows what it is like to hoist the trophy at the end of the season. He won two titles in college at the University of Florida with coach Billy Donovan and was a major part of the Boston Celtics winning the title in 2024.

If there is one thing those teams had aside from talent, it was team chemistry. Horford knows talent alone does not win championships. They might win All-Star games, but when it comes to the NBA Finals, the team chemistry component is a must have.

“When you have success is when you’re able as a group to find how to play together,” Horford said. “Everybody’s understanding that there’s a goal at task and nothing else matters. There’s no individual numbers, anything else like that. You’re playing to win, and when everybody’s moving in that same direction and looking in that same direction, I feel like that’s when you have a pretty special team.”