Early life and career

Al Horford was born and raised in the Dominican Republic. He is of black ethnicity. In the year 2000 when Horford was 14 years old his family transferred to Michigan. He was enrolled in Grand Ledge high school where he was the star of the school’s basketball team. He holds several of the school records which also comprise the most career points scored. In his senior year he was bestowed the class A player of the year. His team Michigan Mustangs was one step away in winning the Adidas big time national tournament.

The prolific career of Al helped him to enrol in university of Florida. In 2004, Al joined the Florida gators men’s basketball team coached by Bill Donovan. The promising young man made a profound impact by playing a central role in the team and also helping his team to win the South-eastern Conference Tournament in the year 2005.

Horford and team gators were in full swing for the 2006-2007 seasons with high hopes of once again winning the national championship. In December 2006 Al was forced to miss succession of games because of an injury. Coach Bill Donovan held Al out against Stetson team so that the young promising player would be available for the final showdown against Ohio State Buckeyes. In an instant classic game against the Ohio State Buckeyes, Al delivered as promised scoring 14 points and 7 rebound to take the Gators team to the victory stand in finale. Gators achieved another feat of winning back to back national championships. Al was one of the four players of the Gators team to achieve 1,000 career points.

Career Breakthrough

The dream to play in the NBA league came true when Al signed the rookie-scale contract with the Atlanta Hawks on July 9th 2007. Al was reportedly paid a salary of $17 million for a term of four years. Al with his towering height of 6 feet 10 inches, exceptional dribbling skills and pin point accuracy proved most valuable for the team. Out of the 82 games played in that season, Al started in 77 of them and scored at an average of 10 points. He was awarded as the rookie of the month for four times of the 2007/08 season. Al took part in the NBA rookie challenge and stood at second place with 19 points. Al returned to NBA and swept Miami heat in the first round itself. Hawks were eliminated by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the next round.

On November 2nd 2010 Al signed another $60 million contract with the Hawks for a term of 5 years. On January 11th 2012 Horford injured his shoulder. Horford was forced to miss most of the season due to the injury.

Personal life

Al Horford married former miss universe Amelia Vega on December 24th 2011. He and his wife welcomed the birth of their son named Ean Horford Vega on February 23rd 2015. As of 2014, Al Horford has a net worth of estimated $17 million.