As you all know, the All-Star Weekend is over.
Shortly after the All-Star end, the Knicks heard the news that the Knicks had reached a deal with Kemba Walker that would miss all of the rest of the season, according to ESPN.
The Knicks' president of basketball operations then confirmed the news in an interview, saying, "We are very supportive of Walker's decision to choose to miss all the remaining games of the season and then use this time to prepare for next season, and we will prioritize his long-term success on the court." ”
Now Walker, it's a bit miserable.
If you remember, last offseason, when Walker gave up $20 million and the Thunder to buy out, and then signed with the Knicks for two years and 18 million, the outside world almost unanimously thought it was a "win-three operation" - the Thunder saved money, Walker returned home, and the Knicks got a starting point guard.
However, from the results, the operation seems to be winning only the money-saving Thunder at present - Walker played the worst season of his career and is now abandoned; the Knicks were fourth in the East last season and only fourth in the East this season.
It is worth mentioning that this is not the first time that Walker has been tactically abandoned by the Knicks, as early as the end of November last year, the poor Knicks hid Walker once, when Thibodeau said very directly in the interview that Walker had fallen out of the rotation.
So, is Walker really that bad?
So far this season, Walker has only played 37 games for the Knicks, averaging 11.6 points, 3.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game, all three of which are career lows.
For comparison, walker averaged 19.3 rebounds, 4.0 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game while playing for the Celtics last season.
In terms of efficiency, Walker's shooting percentage this season has fallen to 40.3%, which is his new personal low since 2016, and the true shooting rate is only 53.7%, also as a comparison, Walker's true shooting rate has never been less than 55% in the past six seasons, and there are 57.5% in the 2019-20 season.
Walker was originally a player who attacked more than defended, and defense could become a loophole, once the offense declined, then his role in the team was completely negative, and the data can also prove this:
—Walker's opposing player, two-point shooting rate increased from 51.8% to 56.6%
—Walker's opposing player, three-point shooting percentage increased from 35.5% to 38.3%
— When Walker was on the floor, the Knicks lost 9.1 points per 100 possessions
When Walker went off, the Knicks beat their opponents by 1.9 points per 100 rounds
Looking at such data, you can probably understand why Walker was discarded by Thibodeau, but is it really just because of Walker that the Knicks play poorly? Obviously not.
In November last year, after Walker fell out of the rotation, the outside world began to expect the Knicks to recover, but the Knicks lost 7 of the next 10 games, followed by Walker's return, four games in a row, he won:
- 29 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists
- 21 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists
- 44 points, 9 rebounds and 8 assists
- 10 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists
Although there were still ups and downs in the games that followed, these games at least proved that his decline in form was not only a personal factor, but also related to the Knicks' system.
In fact, the Knicks' failure this season really can't be blamed on Walker alone, in addition to Walker, the team's other starting statistics are also miserable:
- When Randall was on the floor, the Knicks lost 5.4 points per 100 rounds, and when he was on the field, he scored 7.8 points
- When Barrett was on the floor, the Knicks lost 5.9 points per 100 rounds, and when he was on the field, he scored 2.4 points
- When Fournier was on the floor, the Knicks lost 4.1 points per 100 rounds, and when he was on the field, he scored 0.4 points
Among them, Randall's decline is particularly obvious, he was the most improved player last season, averaging 24.1 points and 6.0 assists per game, shooting 56.7% of the real shooting rate, compared with only 19.8 points and 5.2 assists this season, and the true shooting rate is 51.6%.
Unfortunately, Walker has become such a role twice - Randle, who is the core of the team, should have taken responsibility, and his performance this year is like a "black hole", but Randle just signed a big contract last year, and the Knicks can't hide him.
Back to Walker, it is most appropriate to describe the current Walker with a downfall, you know, walker has been selected as an All-Star four times in the past six years, until two years ago he was still an All-Star, but now he was abandoned by the hometown team and carried a pot, his fuel tank is definitely still oil, but the Knicks, obviously not the right car.