[Skeating12345Participant]

Kemba Walker is going into his 5th year with the Charlotte Hornets, and despite leading them to the playoffs a couple years ago, they continue to be a fairly dysfunctional franchise. Walker averaged 17.3 ppg/5.1 apg/3.5rpg on 39% from the field and nearly 31% from 3. Though his shooting numbers are sub-par, this is largely in part to his somewhat erratic shot selection, streaky shooting ability, and being forced to carry most of the offensive load for the Hornets.

Despite a lot of the criticism Walker receieves due to his inefficiency, I am still a believer. He just turned 25 not too long ago, so he is still young and has time to continue to improve his shot and his decision making, as well as brush up on his PG skills. I think the addition of Jeremy Lamb, Nicholas Batum, and even Frank Kaminsky will really benefit Walker. The Hornets did have anyone who could stretch the floor last year and were the worst 3-point shooting team in the NBA, which I believe has really, negatively affected Walkers play. 

I think he is going to have a better 2015-2016 season. I do not think he will make the ASG and he may never make it, but I think he can be a sort of similar caliber player as Mike Conley in the future. 

 

[esperanzafleet69Participant]

 kemba is a decent player, but i dont think he will ever be as good defensively as conley.

[esperanzafleet69Participant]

 kemba is a decent player, but i dont think he will ever be as good defensively as conley.

[JR RyderParticipant]

I think if Kemba were surrounded by better players, he would be in the same level as Ty Lawson and Mike Conley. Put Kemba in place of Conley on the Grizzlies, and he would do just as well.

[JR RyderParticipant]

I think if Kemba were surrounded by better players, he would be in the same level as Ty Lawson and Mike Conley. Put Kemba in place of Conley on the Grizzlies, and he would do just as well.

[Stephen A. BaylessParticipant]

 I don’t think Kemba’s a bad player, he’s just in a terrible role or wrong one for him. He’s probably a bit more suited to be a 25-30 mpg combo-guard 6th man that could come in for the point or two and play alongside them in small lineups.

He’s trapped in a 6’1, 170 frame so it forces him as a starter to be a point guard. I think that limits his value and I don’t think he has the court vision that a point guard needs to run a successful team.

With that said, his shooting numbers are horrible. Sub 40% from the field and 31% on 3pt attempts while jacking them up. 17 points on 16 shot attempts, and he’s terrible at rim (below 50% last year is Rubio territory). He has a decent PER because he gets to the line at a solid rate and is good coverting, but also because PER has a fundamental design flaw that rewards players for shooting more even if it’s inefficiently (http://www.chicagonow.com/bullsville/2013/09/the-bulls-per-and-the-idiots-who-live-by-it/).

The only thing that has kept Conley from an all star game is Westbrook, Curry, CP3, Lillard, Parker all being in his conference, but he has played at an ALL-Star level the past two years. He is the 2nd best player on a 55 win team and a top 10 point guard. Kemba is somewhere in 18-22 range. 

 

[Stephen A. BaylessParticipant]

 I don’t think Kemba’s a bad player, he’s just in a terrible role or wrong one for him. He’s probably a bit more suited to be a 25-30 mpg combo-guard 6th man that could come in for the point or two and play alongside them in small lineups.

He’s trapped in a 6’1, 170 frame so it forces him as a starter to be a point guard. I think that limits his value and I don’t think he has the court vision that a point guard needs to run a successful team.

With that said, his shooting numbers are horrible. Sub 40% from the field and 31% on 3pt attempts while jacking them up. 17 points on 16 shot attempts, and he’s terrible at rim (below 50% last year is Rubio territory). He has a decent PER because he gets to the line at a solid rate and is good coverting, but also because PER has a fundamental design flaw that rewards players for shooting more even if it’s inefficiently (http://www.chicagonow.com/bullsville/2013/09/the-bulls-per-and-the-idiots-who-live-by-it/).

The only thing that has kept Conley from an all star game is Westbrook, Curry, CP3, Lillard, Parker all being in his conference, but he has played at an ALL-Star level the past two years. He is the 2nd best player on a 55 win team and a top 10 point guard. Kemba is somewhere in 18-22 range. 

 

[GBeeParticipant]

 Great post and I agree. He’s best served as a 6th man. He’s got a lot of issues offensively, many of which you covered, but one which you did not is how inherently ball-dominant, clock killing his style is.  Kemba likes to dribble a lot.  He’s one of the league leaders in time of possession on the ball and for someone who’s as inefficient as he is with mediocre playmaking, why would a team want that type of player running the first team?

I see Conley’s name in this thread and for 2 players who are similarly sized, they couldn’t be more opposite as players.  Conley is pass first with solid playmaking, almost conservative to a fault offensively.  A lot of that is on him where he’s just not aggrssive enough, but some of it is the fact that they run a ton of their offense through the post.  He’s the quintessential system PG and I don’t mean that in a bad way.  On the contrary, Kemba’s a score first, ball-dominant, dribble-heavy player who relies on creating his own looks.  I honestly don’t think it would matter who he plays with.  That’s just his game. I mean he’s played with Al Jeff who requires a lot of post touches and time with the ball, yet Kemba was still top 8 in the league in time of possession.  There’s also the defensive end where Conley is one of the more fundamentally sound PGs in the game.  I think he’s a tad overrated on that end, which could be influenced by the nagging injuries that he seemingly is always dealing with, but he’s still a solid defender nonetheless.  For all the quickness and feistiness is in Kemba’s game, along with playing for a defensive minded coach, he’s a mediocre defender.

 

[GBeeParticipant]

 Great post and I agree. He’s best served as a 6th man. He’s got a lot of issues offensively, many of which you covered, but one which you did not is how inherently ball-dominant, clock killing his style is.  Kemba likes to dribble a lot.  He’s one of the league leaders in time of possession on the ball and for someone who’s as inefficient as he is with mediocre playmaking, why would a team want that type of player running the first team?

I see Conley’s name in this thread and for 2 players who are similarly sized, they couldn’t be more opposite as players.  Conley is pass first with solid playmaking, almost conservative to a fault offensively.  A lot of that is on him where he’s just not aggrssive enough, but some of it is the fact that they run a ton of their offense through the post.  He’s the quintessential system PG and I don’t mean that in a bad way.  On the contrary, Kemba’s a score first, ball-dominant, dribble-heavy player who relies on creating his own looks.  I honestly don’t think it would matter who he plays with.  That’s just his game. I mean he’s played with Al Jeff who requires a lot of post touches and time with the ball, yet Kemba was still top 8 in the league in time of possession.  There’s also the defensive end where Conley is one of the more fundamentally sound PGs in the game.  I think he’s a tad overrated on that end, which could be influenced by the nagging injuries that he seemingly is always dealing with, but he’s still a solid defender nonetheless.  For all the quickness and feistiness is in Kemba’s game, along with playing for a defensive minded coach, he’s a mediocre defender.

 

[Skeating12345Participant]

 I said he can be that caliber of a player. I never compared his play style to Conley’s. 

[Skeating12345Participant]

 I said he can be that caliber of a player. I never compared his play style to Conley’s. 

[GBeeParticipant]

 Either way, can’t agree. I think Kemba’s destined to be a 6th man. Conley’s the caliber player that he is because he’s a pro’s pro, a true extension of the coach.  His lack of game changing dynamic qualities keeps him away from the top, whereas Kemba is a bit more dynamic with his penchant for creating his own, he’s just not that good at it and with him dominating the ball as much as he does, it hurts his team’s entire offense. Unless Kemba changes his whole approach, playing more within himself and picking his spots better, I don’t see him approaching mid-tier status.  He hasn’t shown enough signs of progression towards that either.  IMO, if a starting player isn’t at least mid-tier and doesn’t see much progression then that team needs to start looking for an upgrade or at least someone who has the potential to surpass the incumbent.  I think that’s the case with Kemba and the Hornets.

[whiteflashParticipant]

 Walker’s got game, but he epitomizes the post early 2000’s AAU movement. A lot of flash, a little result. The Hornets are obviously not that good, but if he could learn to rein it in he could definitely be a scoring combo off the bench on a winning team. I’ll give him this though, the kid’s got confidence and he wants [and usually makes] the big shot.

[whiteflashParticipant]

 Walker’s got game, but he epitomizes the post early 2000’s AAU movement. A lot of flash, a little result. The Hornets are obviously not that good, but if he could learn to rein it in he could definitely be a scoring combo off the bench on a winning team. I’ll give him this though, the kid’s got confidence and he wants [and usually makes] the big shot.

[GBeeParticipant]

 Either way, can’t agree. I think Kemba’s destined to be a 6th man. Conley’s the caliber player that he is because he’s a pro’s pro, a true extension of the coach.  His lack of game changing dynamic qualities keeps him away from the top, whereas Kemba is a bit more dynamic with his penchant for creating his own, he’s just not that good at it and with him dominating the ball as much as he does, it hurts his team’s entire offense. Unless Kemba changes his whole approach, playing more within himself and picking his spots better, I don’t see him approaching mid-tier status.  He hasn’t shown enough signs of progression towards that either.  IMO, if a starting player isn’t at least mid-tier and doesn’t see much progression then that team needs to start looking for an upgrade or at least someone who has the potential to surpass the incumbent.  I think that’s the case with Kemba and the Hornets.

[JordanC20Participant]

 I like Kemba I think he’ll have a long successful career in the NBA…never will be a super star but will definitely be a difference maker down the road.

[JordanC20Participant]

 I like Kemba I think he’ll have a long successful career in the NBA…never will be a super star but will definitely be a difference maker down the road.

[Memphisboy14Participant]

I think the best role for him is to make him a Jason Terry or Jamal Crawford type player.

[Memphisboy14Participant]

I think the best role for him is to make him a Jason Terry or Jamal Crawford type player.

[HitsterParticipant]

 Kemba had an excellent college career culminating in helping UConn win the 2011 NBA title. He came to the NBA as a very good NBA ready player who may not have had as much upside as slightly younger guys in the draft.

He has had a successful and solid NBA career so far and is a very good NBA starter/2nd or 3rd best player on a team type player. I don’t see him being a superstar or the sort of person to carry a team on his own but he has proven to be a good all round player and I could see him playing to this sort of level for several more years. He may not have a great deal of upside to come given that he is 25 now, but I don’t see him having a huge ammount of downside either.

I quite like the Jason Terry type comparison and I could see Kemba sticking around the NBA for another decade or so if he stays injury free. Given his slight lack of size and not blinding pace or lights out shooting, he’ll never be considered a very top level PG but I could imagine him being a starting PG for several years to come.

He hasn’t been overpaid on his extension IMO so he hasn’t got that price tag to live up to either.

 

 

 

 

[HitsterParticipant]

 Kemba had an excellent college career culminating in helping UConn win the 2011 NBA title. He came to the NBA as a very good NBA ready player who may not have had as much upside as slightly younger guys in the draft.

He has had a successful and solid NBA career so far and is a very good NBA starter/2nd or 3rd best player on a team type player. I don’t see him being a superstar or the sort of person to carry a team on his own but he has proven to be a good all round player and I could see him playing to this sort of level for several more years. He may not have a great deal of upside to come given that he is 25 now, but I don’t see him having a huge ammount of downside either.

I quite like the Jason Terry type comparison and I could see Kemba sticking around the NBA for another decade or so if he stays injury free. Given his slight lack of size and not blinding pace or lights out shooting, he’ll never be considered a very top level PG but I could imagine him being a starting PG for several years to come.

He hasn’t been overpaid on his extension IMO so he hasn’t got that price tag to live up to either.

 

 

 

 

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