Ladies and gentlemen, we got him*.
*The Celtics are the “frontrunner” to sign All-Star point guard Kemba Walker once free agency begins Sunday, June 30 at 6 P.M, according to Adrian Wojnarowski.
As you can see by the title, I don’t wish to get too excited too soon about this news. A lot can happen between now, Thursday afternoon, and Sunday evening. There’s always a chance that this is just a smokescreen of some sorts. But I’m going to take these potential fireworks by Danny Ainge and run with them because I want and need this SO BADLY. Besides, the term ‘frontrunner’ is no adjective to scoff at.
I’m not a Kemba Walker expert; I haven’t spent the last eight years of my life watching him play for the Charlotte Hornets night in and night out and know everything about him as an athlete and as a human being, but I do have a general sense and in this day and age, that’s all you really need at the end of the day. Walker played for UConn and won the national title with them in 2011. Since his arrival in the NBA in 2011, he’s gotten better every single year, and that’s a fact. He isn’t a top-10 player in the league but he’s arguably a top-20. I can’t think of a single time I’ve seen him in the news for something negative as far as leadership goes, either, another massive plus as the Celtics come off of a dysfunctional 2018-19 season both on and off the court.
With Kyrie Irving as good as gone from the Boston Celtics, Ainge did the opposite of hesitating and began looking elsewhere for a starting point guard. In Wojnarowski’s article, he described Kemba Walker as being a top priority for the Celtics with the free agency period beginning this weekend. I personally held out hope for Irving’s return to the Celtics for as long as I could but with Boston’s dominating interest in Walker, it appears Kyrie is officially old news to this team. I’d like to make a couple of things clear about Kyrie Irving while we’re here and on the topic. I would 100 percent have him back on the Celtics and have not an ounce of ill will towards him as a player and as a person.
Yeah, he’s weird, I guess, but aren’t we all? Some are better at hiding their weirdness than others and I personally think it was interesting how Kyrie was and is fine with being himself through and through despite the criticism that he continues to receive.
I would 100 percent be essentially begging Danny Ainge to convince Kyrie to re-sign with the Celtics if he promised to walk away from Terry Rozier. I was fairly confident that this was the road Ainge was eventually going to go down but last week a report surfaced stating, “Re-signing Terry Rozier reportedly still is a priority for the Celtics this offseason.” which virtually confirms that neither Kyrie nor the organization wants him back here. Which, in all honesty, sucks. That team could have been great and there is zero denying that. I know that’s a “could have”, which sounds pathetic, but on paper, that is exactly what everyone hyped them up to be last summer: a genuine threat to the Golden State Warriors. Unfortunately, Terry Rozier ruined that by being a little bitch (presumably) and getting pissy over the fact that Kyrie Irving was getting more minutes than him once he returned from his injury that he suffered, causing him to miss the 2017-18 playoffs, thus causing the tension we all witnessed and heard about. Thanks a lot, ~Scary Terry~.
One last thing: I fully stand by Danny Ainge reaffirming the fact that he would have still made those deals despite things not working out. Trading a first-round draft pick and Isaiah Thomas for Kyrie Irving was the right decision and I, too, would do that without hesitation. Signing Gordon Hayward to a 4-year, $127 million contract that same offseason was the right decision and I, too, would still do that without hesitation. I’ve seen far too many people with a vastly different opinion on this topic. While you’re all entitled to your own opinion, your opinion stinks and it’s wrong. But that’s none of my business. Ainge did everything correctly; it was far from his fault that things played out the way they did. Look where he is now: if he officially lures in Kemba, the Celtics are right back in it and have the chance to become contenders. The sky has yet to fall.
Signing Walker can’t happen in the blink of an eye, though. They still need to make space for his contract, and it’s reported that Boston will offer him a 4-year, $141 million deal.
That means that the team needs to free up just under $34 million in cap space. They can do this by renouncing all Kyrie Irving, Al Horford, Marcus Morris and Terry Rozier, which frees up almost exactly enough space as they need $32.7 million in order to sign Walker. Now, of course, there are plenty of different ways around this and plenty of different loopholes the Celtics could jump through to come up with different scenarios but that is the simplest way to go about it. Two years ago Ainge managed to fit both Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward’s contracts under the cap which required multiple moves to be made, as we know, but things get far too complicated far too quickly for me, so I’m sticking with the simplest option there is, as well as the most logical option.
If Boston does sign Kemba, the starting lineup is everything a basketball fan could want and more, despite them currently not having a center (I’ll get to that in a second). Walker, Hayward, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown is almost unfairly talented on paper. It’s not a contending lineup but depending on a few variables, they could become one. Gordon Hayward will now be further removed and recovered from his broken ankle and we can assume that he will be much more confident and much more healed this season as opposed to last season. He should have a much more defined role with the addition and subtraction of a few players. As for Tatum and Brown, this season could be a major stepping stone for both of them. We all know how talented these two athletes are and their ceilings are extremely high. They must take advantage of this opportunity with the absence of Irving to begin to live up to their potential in Tatum’s third year and Brown’s fourth year in the NBA. As for Walker, he simply needs to do what he’s done his entire professional career. If this lineup turns out to be what it is on paper in real life, over the course of the season, they could very well be a top seed in the Eastern Conference.
As for the center position, there aren’t a plethora of options available. With Horford as good as gone, Boston needs to either trade for a center (but who would they trade, and for who?) or figure out something internally. Boston has been linked to free agent C Enes Kanter as well as Steven Adams, a player poised to be traded. I don’t know how plausible either of these options are, both of which are just okay, so I’m going to suggest an internal one: rotate between Daniel Theis and Semi Ojeleye at the 5. There, I said it. It sounds stupid but with Kemba at PG, I think it could work. Considering Walker’s defensive deficiency the lineup will need to bulk up on defense at other positions. Enter Theis and Ojeleye as big men (positionless basketball remains elite, though – all hail Brad Stevens).
I’ve seen plenty people Mad Online™ in regards to the mere thought of Kemba Walker joining the Celtics. Despite Walker being an All-NBA talent, providing about 90 percent of the production as Kyrie does, being in his prime at 29 years old, coming without an ounce of drama or narcissism attached to him and possesses admirable leadership skills and qualities, people still aren’t happy. One thing I’ve noticed about Celtics fans is how utterly picky they are, for whatever reason. There are so few options that the Celtics have at point guard without Kyrie. Your choices are, essentially, either D’Angelo Russell, Malcolm Brogdon, Terry Rozier or Kemba Walker. Take your pick. The only option that truly brings stability, leadership, experience and pure talent is Walker.
The same people who think that hating Kyrie was/is a personality trait are the same people who are dismissing Walker and think that he sucks. These people want chemistry issues to be resolved at last amongst this team, yet, don’t want the one player who will just about singlehandedly resolve said chemistry issues amongst this team. I don’t know what to tell ya, then. You’re on your own. The idea alone of Kemba Walker in green and white is everything I want, and it’s realistic! That doesn’t come around too often so I’m cherishing this moment. If you’re not excited about this, then it must suck to be you.
Lastly, can you believe that Michael Jordan refuses to pay the best player his franchise has ever seen? What an implosion that is in Charlotte right now. Earlier this month, Walker himself even said that returning to Charlotte was his top priority. It’s not like the player wants out; the team wants him out. ??? Weird stuff. Things have certainly changed in Walker’s mind since he made those comments now that the team has made it clear that they will not offer him $80 million more than the Celtics will just to keep him. Earlier today, Wojnarowski said precisely this on ESPN, “Barring an unforeseen change, Kemba Walker is going to leave Charlotte. He’s going to head to Boston.” Those are strong words coming from the top NBA insider. Again, lots of things can happen between now and Sunday at 6 P.M., but I’m cautiously optimistic and intrigued. It’s going to be a very exciting next few days heading into June 30 and beyond.
KEMBAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Here are some Kemba Walker highlights to consume because you deserve it:
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