NBA Rumors: Kemba Walker Could Team Up With Devin Booker In Phoenix Next Summer, Per ‘Bleacher Report’
All-Star point guard Kemba Walker is currently playing the final year of the four-year, $48 million contract he signed with the Charlotte Hornets in the summer of 2015. Walker has already said in numerous occasions that he’s planning to re-sign with the Hornets when he becomes an unrestricted free agent, but rumors and speculations continue to swirl regarding his potential departure from Charlotte next July.
Adam Fromal of Bleacher Report is one of the many people who believe that Kemba Walker will be leaving the Hornets in the 2019 NBA free agency. Fromal predicts Walker to sign with the Phoenix Suns to serve as the last piece they need to become a significant team in the Western Conference once again.
In their years of tanking, the Suns have collected young and promising talents like Devin Booker, DeAndre Ayton, Josh Jackson, Mikal Bridges, and TJ Warren. All they need right now is a starting caliber point guard who can lead them back to title contention. The Hornets are in no doubt a much better team than the Suns, but Phoenix undeniably has a higher potential to make a deep playoff run.
“Walker will celebrate his 29th birthday in May, and as a player who relies upon his wheels to create shooting opportunities in space, he might not have too many prime years left. But if he buys into the dizzying upside currently unrealized in the desert, he could view this landing spot as a long-term home with results that could rise higher than the mediocrity endured by the Charlotte Hornets. He’ll just have to suffer some losses in the short term, but that’s nothing new after he could fall to just two playoff appearances in eight Buzz City seasons at the conclusion of this go-round.”
Kemba Walker will be an incredible addition to the Suns, giving them an All-Star caliber point guard who could also help them facilitate the growth of their young players. This season, Walker is averaging 25.2 points, 5.7 assists, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.3 steals on 43.3 percent shooting from the field and 35.9 percent shooting from beyond the arc. The Suns are set to have enough salary cap space to give Walker a decent offer, but it remains a big question mark if the Hornets superstar should be their top target in the free agency market.
Kemba Walker will undeniably address the Suns’ major backcourt issue, but he clearly doesn’t fit the timeline of Devin Booker and their young core. The Suns are better off chasing a younger point guard who will be available in the free agency market like Terry Rozier of the Boston Celtics.
