Why The Hornets Should Bring Back Kemba Walker
The 2023/24 NBA Season has been an absolute disappointment for the Charlotte Hornets. There is so much disappointment with this squad to the point where the fanbase is calling for the organization to get rid of Kupchak and Clifford. That is a different topic on its own. The season is going nowhere for this Hornets squad. You know what the Hornets should do, and this is no joke; they should bring back Kemba Walker.
I know I sound crazy as Kemba Walker has not played a game this season. He is still playing basketball but with A.S. Monaco Basket of the LNB Pro A League. So, he has not been on the couch, and to be honest, it's time for Charlotte to bring Kemba back home. There are three main reasons why the Charlotte Hornets should bring back Kemba to the team.
1. Kemba Walker would be a good influence in the Locker Room
There is a culture problem in that locker room. Not only with Terry Rozier's comments calling the Hornets a team that has losing in the DNA, but also when the entire locker room was laughing and seemed happy when Steve Clifford, their head coach, got ejected from the game. Which is never a good look and it is stunning that Clifford is still there, to be honest.
One way to potentially fix the Hornets locker room is by adding a veteran to bring leadership into the locker room. The Hornets started that by adding Kent Bazemore to the Greensboro Swarm team. Why not add Kemba to the list as well? With the growing amount of injuries on the team, why not add Kemba to fill in the vacancies?
2. It Would Be A Better Way To End Kemba's Career and His Time With The Hornets
Let's be honest with ourselves, the way Kemba Walker left the Hornets was not in the best way. Especially when former owner Michael Jordan lowballed Kemba Walker in contract extensions multiple times. Then he decided to massively overpay for Terry Rozier after the fact. Now long term it ended up being the right decision, but Kemba did not leave on the best of terms.
Bringing him back will write the wrong of how poorly he was treated. With new ownership fully taken over, this will be a much easier process since it was clear Kemba Walker had some sort of heat/problem with Jordan. It would create a big opportunity for this organization to make things right with Kemba and for Kemba Walker to end his career as a Hornet.
3. The Hornets Have Nothing To Loose Bringing Him Aboard
Will he be a full-time starter with Charlotte? Probably not. But Walker's role could be as a rotational player for Charlotte, similar to a Vince Carter-type role in his final seasons with the Atlanta Hawks. Why not give Kemba a shot? The Hornets are going nowhere this season, and they have nothing to lose. A past-his-prime Kemba is likely to be more impactful than the Summer League and G-League players currently on the team.
If the Hornets play this smart, they can give Kemba an opportunity by signing him to an NBA league minimum deal. The outcome could go in two directions: Kemba impresses and continues his career with the team, or Kemba struggles but gets to end his career as a Hornet, where he had the best years of his career.
No matter what, it would be the right move for Charlotte to bring back the best player this franchise has ever had and excite the fanbase with his return. Look at how the Carolina Panthers handled the return of Cam Newton. A move like that would help bring fans to games, significantly improving the atmosphere at Charlotte basketball games for the rest of the season. Especially as the team is currently going nowhere, and it seems like this season is yet another wasted one.
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