NBA Trade Rumors: Five Teams Likely to Seriously Look Into Trading for Kemba Walker This Offseason
Charlotte Hornets guard Kemba Walker's performance this year would be one of the few bright spots for the team this season, as the team bows out of the race to secure a postseason spot for the third time in the past four years. At least five teams are now reportedly making a bid for Walker this summer.
Kemba Walker is definitely a viable target for this offseason. He's considered one of the stronger point guards in the relatively thin Eastern Conference, and he has been an All-Star for the last two seasons. With Walker turning 28 later this May 8, he may prove to be an affordable acquisition as well.
That's why Walker is, as early as now, a player to watch for this summer. The guard is expected to be at the center of trade rumors this offseason, in the same way that he has been a hot topic for the recent trade deadline, as Fansided Charlotte's Swarm and Sting pointed out.
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To start, five teams are reportedly already interested in making an offer for Walker. All of them, interestingly enough, are in the Eastern Conference — the Cleveland Cavaliers, Milwaukee Bucks, New York Knicks, Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons are all expected to make a bid for the All-star guard.
Hornets team co-owner Michael Jordan may have said that they would only trade Walker for a top asset like, say, Spurs' Kawhi Leonard. Even then, Walker seems to be unwilling to let his career prime go to waste.
"At this point, I want to win. I want to be in the playoffs," Walker told the Charlotte Observer last Monday, March 26, as he vented a bit about the team dropping out of postseason contention.
"I'm tired of not being in the playoffs. ... I hate watching them on TV. I've been there twice in seven years, and it's just not fun," he added.
Walker is, incidentally, on one of the most team-friendly contracts in the league. That could be a big reason why five teams are already gunning for the two-time All-star, with one or two more expected to join in depending on how the postseason goes.
There's one thing that may discourage teams from making an offer on Walker, and it's his expiring contract. With the 27-year old guard having just one year left on his contract, any team that will be able to trade for Walker will now be faced with the possibility that he will go somewhere else once his deal ends after the 2018-19 season.
As for Charlotte, they have some decisions ahead of them too, now that their season is, for all playoffs-related purposes, over and done. The team could try to build around Walker and try to compete again next season, or they could go into full-on rebuilding mode and trade Walker away for draft prospects.
For Walker himself, he's all about the postseason. "I've always felt like I'm a winning player. Like I deserved it to be in the playoffs – to be battling. That's what it will be all about in the future," he affirmed.
