Hornets Open to Trade Kemba Walker: The Pros and Cons

Kemba Walker has been Charlotte’s star so why they would want to trade him in the first place?

The Charlotte Hornets are far from being a playoff-bound team, to say the least. At 18-26, they are at the 11th place in the Eastern Conference after a 106-105 defeat at the hands of the Miami Heat. The good news though: they have won 6 of their last 10 games but are they gonna be satisfied with that?

To give credit to the Hornets, they are no longer the same team who used to dwell down the bottom of the standings like they used to do in the previous seasons. They’ve managed to beat the Golden State Warriors and the Oklahoma City Thunder earlier this. Thanks to Dwight Howard, the Hornets are the second-best rebounding team in the league, averaging 46 rebounds per game with Howard averaging 12 rebounds per game.

So why would the Charlotte Hornets willing to trade their long-time leader, Kemba Walker

Yup. You’ve read it right, folks. The Charlotte Hornets are rumored to be willing to part ways with Kemba Walker who is leading this season with his 21 points, 5 assists and 1 steal per game averages. Walker has played 41 games this season, starting in all of them.

So what would be the effects of trading away Kemba Walker?

The Pros

For starters, Kemba Walker, at 27 years-old, is still young and still in his prime years. He could be a valuable asset to any team who would make a run at him. This will give the Hornets the advantage to ask for a  high-tier player in exchange for their star point guard who has been their offense for the past 7 seasons now. In addition to this, the inclusion of Walker to a possible trade package will also give the Hornets the advantage because they can also ask for a first-round draft pick. 

The Cons

Let’s state the painful truth here. Trading Kemba Walker would mean that the Charlotte Hornets are virtually throwing away their future.Walker is now the number 2 all-time in career points and assists in a Charlotte uniform. That would be a big blow because it would also mean that Dwight Howard will need to take over the lead. Not to discredit Dwight Howard but, can he actually lead the Hornets once Kemba Walker is playing elsewhere? Another bad side of trading Kemba Walker is that there would be no assurance that Charlotte will improve.

Conclusion

Kemba Walker is still one of the point guards to watch out for. He will be an additional asset to any of the championship-contending teams who will trade for him. 

Question: Will Charlotte push the panic button and trade Kemba Walker? That depends on how ready they are to go back o the bottom of the standings. 

Forgotten Howard Reminded of His Greatness, Passed Charles Barkley in All-Time Rebounding List

Dwight Howard passed Charles Barkley to move into 18th place on the NBA’s all-time rebounding list.

At age 32 and with 12 years career in the NBA, the former overall first pick of 2004 has wrecked havoc in the NBA and has been one of the dominant big men of the modern basketball. While the spotlight today is not focused on him, Dwight has continued to be an effective basketball player for Charlotte Hornets.

Dwight Howard started his career from 2004–2012 with the Orlando Magic then a had a quick foray with the lakers from  2012–2013. The Houston Rockets once saw him as a savior but decided years later that it was Harden and not him. After spending 3 years, he moved Atlanta Hawks but it was shortlived once again. Today, he is playing for the Charlotte Hornets were he leads the team so far in three categories: field goal at 53.5%, blocks at 1.2 and rebound at 12.1 per game.

Just recently, Howard has tallied 12,550 career rebounds and has moved up to the 18th spot over Charles Barkley and just a little behind Bob Pettit, Jerry Lucas and it his career he could potentially pass the great Shaquille O’Neal’s rebounding record that is not far behind at 13,099.

Howard is a 5× NBA rebounding leader (2008–2010, 2012, 2013) and a 2× NBA blocks leader (2009, 2010).

In my point of view, Dwight Howard is still an All-Star however, he may have lost a lot of charm lately especially after leaving the Los Angeles Lakers.

Celtics back on its Feet for Rockets, Beats Hornets 102 -91

Aside from winning another game, Celtics’ win over Hornets is a huge stepping stone before facing the Houston Rockets in a 3 in a row losing streak.

If consecutive losses will be the Rocket’s drive to take on Celtics, it is the other way around for the green guys. They must step in front of Rockets as strong-looking as they could.

Irving scored 21 points to hold off Hornets but only hit 8 of his 19 shots. It is actually Al Horford who carried Celtics to victory with his efficient 20 points, 11 rebounds double-double performance, hitting 8 of 11 shots from the field including 4 out of 6 from beyond the arc.

On the other hand, Kemba Walker outshone Kyrie in the point guard matchup with 24 points but was seemingly alone during the game in terms of hustle.

Celtics beat the Hornets in three-point shooting, hitting 15 treys while letting Hornets only 7.

It was a good thing that the shaded area wasn’t dominated by Hornets but still, Celtics’ center Aron Baynes is missing in action. Baynes was thwarted by Dwight Howard with 17 rebounds, leaving him only with 9.

Celtics sizzled early to take over the 1st bout. Horford awakened the scoreboard with a trey followed by Baynes’ bank shot both made possible by an assisting Kyrie Irving. The green guys opened a 12 point lead at the end of the opening quarter, 28 – 16.

2nd quarter commenced and the Hornets are trying to sprout mini runs to somehow close the gap but was erased by Celtics effective three-point shooting.

Kemba Walker rained down threes in the 3rd and the Hornets came back within one point to enter the final 12 minutes but it was the trio of Jayson Tatum, Horford and Irving to cease their comeback.

Going back to the upcoming Celtics Rockets game. Will Horford be able to suffice the needed inside control which Baynes lacks? Or would the mighty Clint Capela and James Harden finally recover from their losing streak?

By the Numbers: Houston Take Down Hornets for 11th Straight Win

The Rockets are now 12-0 with Chris Paul in the line-up

While the rest of the NBA are hyped about the Cleveland Cavaliers’ recently rediscovered dominance that was also recently ended by the Indiana Pacers, one team from the Western Conference is also on a streak of their own as they have just nabbed their 11th win in 11 games. 

That team is none other than the West-leading Houston Rockets. 

This is after the Rockets- at one point only leading by a point, went on to score game’s next 25 points- a scoring run that went between the end of the 1st quarter and the early goings of the second, en route to another dominant win over the Charlotte Hornets, 108-96. 

So what enabled the Rockets to keep their winning streak alive? Below are the numbers:

The Chris Paul Effect

As mentioned above, the Rockets have yet to lose a game this season when Chris Paul is in the lineup and IS PLAYING. And he made sure that his presence was felt all throughout. Against the Hornets, CP3 played one of his best games this season, leading the Rockets with his 31 points, 7 rebounds and 11 assists. Having a guy like  Chris Paul helped the Rockets in a game that saw James Harden only scoring 21 points on 8 for 22 field goal shooting. 

Defense in Threes

Sure, the Rockets were shooting 37% from beyond the three-point line but they also forced Charlotte to only make 19% of their attempts from downtown. That’s a big difference, folks. The Rockets also limited the Hornets’ three-point attempts to 21- where Charlotte only made 4. On the other hand, Houston attempted 45 tries from deep, making 17 of them. Now, who said Houston cannot defend?

Conclusion

This win enabled the Rockets to win their season series against the Hornets at 2-0. Their next game? Kawhi Leonard and the San Antonio Spurs. Are going to in? Yes. 

Why?

Chirs Paul is why. 

By the Numbers: Undermanned Celtics Beat Hornets

Bench players to help erase a 12-point deficit in the 4th quarter

Kyrie Irving got hurt early in the game and never returned. 

First, Gordon Hayward is long out after twisting his foot 6 minutes into the Celtics’ opening night game against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Then, Al Horford got hurt and missed the last few games which the Celtics fortunately won. Jayson Tatum also got hurt but was able to play.

Then, this.

Just when everyone thought that from the very moment Kyrie Irving got elbowed in the face during the first quarter, Boston’s winning streak may be over as they fell behind, 26-11 at the end of the first quarter.

Nope!

The Boston Celtics fought their way back into the game and outscored the Charlotte Hornets in the 4th quarter, 26-11, en route to a 90-87 victory over Kemba Walker and the rest of the Hornets. That, folks, is Boston’s 11th STRAIGHT VICTORY. This pundit on wheels emphasized that because the Celtics did it without one of the prized acquisitions during the off-season. 

Just how good the Cs against the Hornets last night? Check out the numbers below:

https://lap.lazada.com/banner/dynamic.php?banner_id=59f0ac16d324f&theme=2&p=3

Balanced Scoring

Unlike the Hornets who had Kemba Walker leading the way with 20 points but no other starters scored in double figures, one of the many things that enabled the Celtics to keep their winning streak going was their balanced scoring:

• Jayson Tatum: 16 points 
• Shane Larkin: 16 points
• Terry Rozier: 15 points
• Marcus Morris: 14 points
• Jaylen Brown: 10 points and 13 rebounds

The best thing about this win for the Celtics: they can win even without anyone scoring above 20 points. Now that’s efficiency at its finest, folks. 

Celtics Took Advantage of their Free Throws

In a game where both teams were having a bad shooting night (Celtics at 35% while Hornets at 38%), another thing that won the game for the Celtics was their free throw shooting. Compared to Charlotte who only made 19 of their 33 attempts from the line, the Celtics hit 21 of their 25 free throw attempts. Given how close the final score was, one could only think: if Dwight Howard could only hit more than just 2 of 9 attempts, the outcome would have been different, right?

Conclusion

If the Boston Celtics can keep up the consistency and the determination that they showed against the Hornets, they can definitely round up more wins especially with the possibility of Kyrie Irving missing the Celtics’ upcoming game against the Toronto Raptors.

And if you were the Raptors,  you wouldn’t want to underestimate a Celtics team that is already without Hayward and Horford to begin with. You have seen what they could do with Irving on board. You have seen what they could do without #11. 

Either way, the Boston Celtics are still the hottest team in the league right now. 

Celtics Keeping it Clean: 4 Wins 0 Loss Preseason Streak

Kyrie Irving and the whole Boston squad stays undefeated after overthrowing Charlotte Hornets 108-100.

Kyrie Irving of the Boston Celtics

The Boston Celtics is in full force to keep their reign as 4 of their 5 starters finished in double digits. (Brown 12, Hayward 13, Horford 15, Irving 16) Kyrie was even more explosive with his double-double performance, 16 points plus 10 assists. Hornets also had 4 starters in double figures that let the match go head-to-head throughout the game.

Both squads opened up the 1st quarter of action with a three-point shootout started by Jaylen Brown, answered by a Kemba Walker, but Kyrie does not want a close game. Irving drills the hoop two in a row to push the Celtics up ahead 14 – 7.

The 1st quarter ended closely 24-20 in favor of the Boston Celtics. But as the 2nd quarter commenced, Hornets was keeping up until the 8-minute mark when Celtics powered their way to start a 7-0 run, Hornets was unable to neutralize and catch up. Celtics pulled away quite far at the half, 57-38.

Hornets tried to start the 2nd half as explosive as they can, with a Frank Kaminsky’s long three plus an Alley-hoop slam of Dwight Howard, Walker with the assist. But their early sizzle was easily crushed by Celtics with two consecutive triples of Hayward and Tatum. Nevertheless, the Hornets somehow chopped down a bit of the deficit. Entering the final quarter down 70-84.

Hornets slowly nibbled Celtics lead at the start and finally making a comeback with less than 4 minutes to play, up ahead by a thread-thin lead at 97-96. But they were nailed at 98 until the 45-second mark, Celtics are up ahead by 4 points. But time had run out and Hornets fell one step short in snatching a win against the undefeated Bostin Celtics.

Scores:

Celtics 108 – Irving 16, Horford 15, Hayward 13, Brown 12, Tatum 8, bench – 44

Hornets 100 – Howard 12,Walker 12, Bacon 12, Kaminsy 10, Williams 2, bench  – 52

Watch: Boston Celtics vs Charlotte Hornets – Full Game Highlights | Oct 11, 10/11 #NBAPreseason

(video courtesy of YouTube/Rapid Highlights)

The Impending Downfall of Dwight Howard

He was one of the most dominant centers. Was.

He has jumped from one conference to another. Twice.

Back in 2009, Dwight David Howard carried his Orlando Magic on his back, defeating LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals – denying us NBA fans the golden opportunity to witness a Finals match-up that would have featured Kobe Bryant going up against the King himself.

Of course, the Magic would eventually lose to the Finals against the Lakers, 4-1. Since then, the Magic has never recovered. Dwight Howard’s career has become a roller coaster ride even when he was traded the Lakers before the start of the 2012-2013 season which ended in nuts, unfortunately.

He signed with the Houston Rockets after a miserable, forgettable stint alongside Kobe Bryant, and enjoyed some significant success as a consistent starter.

Then, he signed with the Atlanta Hawks for the 2016-2017 season which saw his numbers dropping horribly to career lows. He only averaged 13.5 points per game, his 2nd lowest since his rookie season. On the other hand, his field goal percentage has improved. He made 63% of his shots during the 2016-2017 season- 4th in the league in that category. His 12 rebounds per game also put him in the top 5 among the league’s leading rebounders.

Despite his still-respectable numbers and him being an 8-time All-Star, the Houston Rockets once said that nobody would trade for Dwight Howard because he is no longer capable of becoming a dominant franchise player like he once was during his stint with the Magic.

Okay. Let’s say he’s no longer the same “Superman” who defeated LeBron James and the Cavs back in 2009 but ladies and gentlemen, Dwight Howard is still young at 31. Relatively speaking, he still has a few years in his tank and like it or not, he has been working hard to get his dominant self back.Given the chance and the appropriate minutes, he will prove his doubters wrong and he will. 

Now entering his 14th season with his new team, the Charlotte Hornets after being traded, again, “Superman” looks to wear his cape again as he hopes to lead the Hornets, who finished last season in 11th place in the East. Howard may no longer be the same guy we all knew back then but he is still here. He is still healthy. And most importantly, Dwight Howard can still dunk over defenders.

Wow! Dwight Howards Realtor Predicted the Future! Has Found him a new Home in Charlotte since February

We know that this is just a made up video to make fun of Dwight Howard but boy they were right on target to chose Charlotte as an example of a location for Dwight Howard.

What a premonition! I wonder if Dwight Howard saw this video.

When Dwight Howard demands a trade, this guy has to find him a new house.

Dwight Howard is known for becoming unhappy on his team and demanding a trade. But what happens if you’re his realtor?

Meet Ben. He’s the guy responsible for finding Dwight Howard a house every time he’s looking at new teams. In this edition of “Hardest Jobs In Sports”, we explore what it’s like to have to find new real estate every time Dwight Howard demands a trade, leaves in free agency, or just becomes discontent and starts mulling a new team and city. Which happens every few weeks.

Highlights: Charlotte Hornets Lost Sting Against Washington Wizards

April 4 – Washington Wizards defended home court against Charlotte Hornets with a score of 118- 111. Hornets have lost 2 games in a row and has dropped to 36 wins to 43 loss. Meanwhile Washington is on top of the Southeast division at 47 wins and 31 loss.

Leading the Hornets in points is Kemba Walker at 37, Cody Zeller with 10 boards with Batum dishing out 8 assists. 

Wizards got a boost from John Wall who lead the team in both points at 23 and 13 assist. 

Watch the highlights of Charlotte Hornets vs Washington Wizards below.

(video courtesy of Motion Station)

Batum Re-Signs with Hornets on a Huge Five-Year Deal

Nicolas Batum has agreed to a five-year, $120 million deal with the Charlotte Hornets.

The 27 year old small forward was drawing interest from multiple teams, including the Los Angeles Lakers, Dallas Mavericks and Golden State Warriors but the 25th overall pick of the 2008 NBA draft chooses to sign with thd Hornets.

Batum has averaged 14.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.8 assists in 35 minutes per game on his first season with the Hornets.

The Comeback of Baron Davis Soon

Baron Davis, is expected to make a return to basketball for the first time ever since 2012. The former Golden State Warriors’ star plans to sign and play for a D-League team. 

Davis’ last stint on the NBA was with the New York Knicks, where he only played for one season, as the back up for Jeremy Lin at point guard. Davis’ season ended after he tore his ACL and MCL on his right knee during a game vs Miami Heat at the playoffs.

Todd Ramasar, Davis’ agent, said that Davis felt that the timing was right and also Davis had put in the training and was confident in his body to do this comeback and aiming to play again at the NBA.

Davis had played for Charlotte / New Orleans Hornets, the Warriors, LA Clippers, Cleveland Cavaliers and the Knicks.  During his tenure, he averaged 16.1 points per game, and 7.2 assists per game.  

STEPH CURRY SCORED 28 PTS in 1 freaking QUARTER against Hornets. My goodness!!

Yeah Keep flexin those muscles and show them that you don’t have to be built like a tank to be great in this League. Golden State is 20-0 best start in NBA History and seems like Curry has no plans of resting as he unloaded 28 points in the 3rd quarter like no one’s guarding him. 

Curry was doing it inside and out, shooting the lights out from the distance. Curry is the league’s best scorer right now with 32ppg and it seems like he might even keep the scoring title this year and a back to back MVP is within reach.

It is indeed amazing that a guy with this frame is making people like fools. The best shooter in the NBA history is this guy. He set that status as of last year after reeling his warriors to the first NBA ring in 50 years. 

Highlights of this ridiculous game:

Written by:

Aldrin

Team Powcast

LBJ and Kevin Love 43pts 29 rebs Best Duo right now? Beats the Hornets who was undefeated at home prior to this game!

Lebron and Kevin Love

The Cavs have been without a complete roster since the finals of last year, most of them are injured including Love and Kyrie. Now that Love is back, together with LBJ they form possibly the best duo right now and once they get Irving back might be the best Big 3. 

The day after thanks giving LBJ and Love paid a visit to Charlotte Hornets who is quite decent now with a 9-7 record. That didn’t matter at all as the Cavs beat the Hornets with a score of 95-90. It wasn’t easy as the Hornets led pretty much the entire game but the Cavs dominated the fourth quarter thanks to this Monster Duo! 

LBJ had 25 pts 13 rebs and 5 assists

Love had 18 pts and 16 rebs. 

Charlotte was headed by the beastly Kemba walker with just 18 pts followed by Nic Batum with 17. 

Highlights of the SICK DUO!

Written by:

Aldrin

Team Powcast

Kristaps Porzingis "MVP chants from the garden" 29 pts 11 Reb vs Hornets!

Who Would have thought that he can do this over Aldridge the other day?

Thought it was a fluke? Guess what he keeps getting better and stroking them 3’s as if he is a shooting guard. That smooth stroke will definitely be a big threat moving forward to those who would try and defend him. Porzingis gave one hell of a performance today as the Knicks beat the Hawks, He scored 29 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and 1 block. He is the reason why the Knicks won today, he was pretty much all over the place and again that 3 ball is just money most of the time. 2-2 on this one.

here is the highlight of his amazing performance:

Written by:

Aldrin

Team Powcast

Hornets wins over Magic in pre-season match-up

Charlotte Hornets newly acquired guard Jeremy Lin had 17 points, Jeremy Lamb added 16 and leading the team to a 106-100 victory over the Orlando Magic in their exhibition opener.

While Orlando Magic reserve big man Andrew Nicholson made the most of his 21 minutes, scoring 23 points and grabbing eight rebounds.

Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist left in the second quarter with a right shoulder injury after going to the floor following a foul in the second quarter.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist Kidd-Gilchrist sent to hospital for shoulder X-rays

Charlotte Hornets coach Steve Clifford said forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist was taken to the hospital for further evaluation Saturday night after injuring his right shoulder in Charlotte’s 106-100 exhibition win over the Orlando Magic.

Kidd-Gilchrist was curling off a screen late in the second quarter when he tumbled to the ground after absorbing a foul by a Magic player. He stayed down for several seconds and got up holding his right shoulder. He was immediately helped to the locker room.

Hornets’ Jeremy Lin says security didn’t believe he was NBA player

New Charlotte Hornets guard Jeremy Lin says he had trouble convincing a security guard that he’s an NBA player when he showed up at the team’s Charlotte arena.

The 6-foot-3 Lin signed with the Hornets in July.

The NBA’s first American player of Chinese or Taiwanese descent, Lin tweeted about the encounter Saturday afternoon: ”Went to the Hornets arena for 1st time and tried convincing security I’m a player. She said, ‘What team?!?”’

In February 2012, he led a winning streak by New York while being promoted to the starting lineup which generated a global phenomenon known as “Linsanity“. In the summer of 2012, Lin signed a three-year contract with the Houston Rockets, for whom he played two seasons before the Los Angeles Lakers acquired him in a trade. He played one season with the Lakers before signing with the Hornets.