Horford Is Getting Preseason Reps at Center While Golden State Waits

Kristaps Porzingis remains out with no timetable, and the preseason is now actually happening. That combination has pushed Al Horford into the starting center role by default, which is a reasonable stopgap — Horford is a veteran who can space the floor and make the right read — but it is not what the Warriors signed Porzingis $40 million to do.

This is the fourth note I've filed on this situation since camp opened, and the through-line is the same each time: no new information, just more preseason minutes ticking by without the player who was supposed to anchor the frontcourt. Golden State let Quinten Post walk to Memphis specifically because Porzingis was coming in to hold that position. Horford filling the gap is fine. It is not the plan.

Jimmy Butler's ACL recovery adds a second layer of uncertainty in the frontcourt and wing. The Warriors are essentially running preseason with two of their most important offseason acquisitions unavailable, which makes it hard to evaluate anything they're doing right now. What the coaching staff is learning about this group is incomplete by definition.

None of this is necessarily alarming yet — preseason absences happen, and Porzingis has time to return before games count. But the window to build chemistry around a new center is shrinking, and Golden State still hasn't given any indication of when that window opens.