All-Star point guard Kemba Walker, the Boston Celtics’ splash signing this offseason, has been ranked as the 17th-best player in the league in ESPN’s Top 100 NBA Players of the 2019-20 season.
The sole Celtic to see his Top 100 ranking improve from last season (he was ranked as the 26th-best player in the league at this time last year), Walker received his first All-NBA selection in 2018-19, a worthy recipient of the honor after averaging 25.6 points, 5.9 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game on a true shooting percentage of 55.8.
Walker started the 2018-19 season on fire, averaging 30.1 points per game on a true shooting percentage of 61.0 through eight games in October and looking like an early MVP candidate. He ended the season on an even better note, averaging 34.2 points per game on a true shooting percentage of 65.8 in April (six games) in his effort to carry the Charlotte Hornets into the playoffs.
A creative scorer with all the guard skills needed to thrive in the NBA today, Walker will be a dynamic playmaker for the Celtics, especially in the pick-and-roll.
Here’s what ESPN’s Tim Bontemps had to say about Walker:
Just how good is Walker? We are about to find out. For years, he has been stuck in the definition of basketball purgatory in Charlotte. Joining the Celtics this summer as a free agent puts him at the helm of a vastly more talented team. And it will engender comparisons to Kyrie Irving all season.
