Boston Celtics: 3 key reasons to target Kemba Walker in fantasy basketball

With the tip-off of the premiere basketball league in the world just three days out, there will be thousands of fantasy basketball leagues launching across the globe simultaneously. The Houdini gives you three reasons why Boston Celtics point guard Kemba Walker is a top option in both real life…and fantasy.

The Boston Celtics have had a murky fantasy basketball outlook the past few seasons. Though the team’s top options are real life positives in actual basketball games–as evidenced by their third and second round finishes in 2018 and 2019– when it comes to raw counting stats there has only been one man who has been seen as a “must-roster” in Fantasy Basketball.

And he has been replaced.

Kemba Walker is now the main ball-handler in Beantown. He will be tasked with orchestrating the offense. Whether or not he can prop up his Team USA mates or the nefarious Gordon Hayward is a legitimate question.

What we know, however, is that he can prop himself up…no matter the circumstances. That includes a poorly-run Charlotte Bobcats-turned-Hornets franchise from 2011 to this past June.

Walker’s fantasy value has always been high as a result of his heavy usage. Last season, he put together efficiency with a high volume by any era’s standards. He has always been an impact player in points-based leagues, but the resident rotisserie crowd finally was rewarded in 2018-19.

While his usage rates are all but guaranteed to go down this upcoming season, the point guard should still be seen as a top-tier option in all fantasy leagues and scoring platforms. Here are three reasons why you should target Kemba Walker for the 2019-20 fantasy basketball season.

1) Increase in Scoring Efficiency

Throughout his entire nine-year NBA career, Kemba Walker has never had as good of a supporting cast as he currently does with this year’s Boston Celtics squad. While some may be hesitant to acquire the 29-year-old, as a majority of his fantasy relevance has come during his days as the “high-usage” guy with the Hornets, in many ways, the sharing of the wealth this season could do wonders for both his real life output, as well as his fantasy.

While he may see a dip in his per-game shot attempt averages, with the amount of talent surrounding the point guard, opposing defenses will surely have their work cut out for them. In turn, the quality of looks Walker will be getting will likely be the best he’s ever seen and, thus, will do wonders for his scoring efficiency.

As the sole offensive weapon during his heyday in Charlotte, Walker was able to shoot at about a 40% clip from 3 on multiple occasions. With the amount of offensive weapons the Boston Celtics currently have at their disposal, defenses will no longer be able to key-in on the All-Star guard.

With this, it may be a safe bet to say Kemba Walker’s scoring efficiency should reach career heights during his first season in Boston.

***Not to mention, Kyrie Irving and Isaiah Thomas both saw their best shooting percentages of their career when with the Boston Celtics.***

2) Increase in Assist Totals

Speaking of his upgraded supporting cast…

Not only should the All-NBA talent’s scoring efficiency increase with this current Celtics squad, but so too should his assist totals. During his time in Charlotte, Kemba Walker made headlines with his impressive scoring prowess which, ultimately, bestowed him with the label of a scoring guard.

However, with the constant lack of scoring options found on the team’s roster, it’s no surprise the gifted point guard picked up the slack in that category. When a player has no real scorers around them, it’s hard to reach the 8+ assist totals “true point guards” strive to attain on a nightly basis.

Now, with Boston, Walker should find minimal trouble recording assists throughout the season. Coming into 2019-20 the Boston Celtics seemingly posses offensive firepower all across the board. From Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Gordon Hayward in the starting lineup to Enes Kanter, Carsen Edwards and Marcus Smart (with his ever improving 3-point shot) coming off the pine, Walker will have his pick of the litter when it comes to ‘dishing and swishing’ this upcoming campaign.

He managed to average 5.9 assists last season with Jeremy Lamb as the team’s second best offensive weapon. You’re telling me Walker can’t find more than that with Boston’s current core of contributors?

Not for nothing, but Kyrie Irving, a man widely known for his isolation game, put up 6.9 assists last season for the Boston Celtics. I’m just sayin’!

3) Brad Stevens

Quite possibly the biggest draw for spectators this season — both in real life and in fantasy — in regard to Kemba Walker’s inaugural campaign with the Boston Celtics is his fit within Brad Stevens’ system.

The seventh-year Celtics coach is known for running a scheme that is very friendly to the point guard position. We’ve seen many players lineup at the one guard in Stevens’ system and produce in phenomenal fashion over the years.

Perhaps the biggest success story to date during Stevens’ tenure with Boston is Isaiah Thomas‘ jump from rotation contributor to a legitimate MVP candidate. In his finest season as a pro — second full season with Boston — Thomas saw career averages across the board: 28.9 points, 5.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game on 46% shooting from the field. In regard to fantasy relevance, Thomas finished that season as a unanimous top-20 player on the season and was a top-5 player at his position in nearly every format.

Last season, while many Boston Celtics fans may want to forget about the contentious campaign, Kyrie Irving too saw (arguably) his best season to date. With averages of 23.8 points, 6.9 assists and 5 rebounds per game on 49% shooting from the field and 40% shooting from downtown, the estranged point guard had himself not only a fantastic real life season but also in fantasy land, where he finished as a top-10 player overall in nearly every scoring format as well as top-5 at his specific position (in some cases coming as high as number 3).

In regard to Kemba Walker, we’ve already seen him put up fantastic fantasy seasons on numerous occasions throughout his career. This, however, was done with both lesser supporting casts and lesser head coaches.

Brad Stevens has made a name for himself as “the point guard whisperer.” Boston Celtics fans will certainly stand by this sobriquet.

Over the years, with many at the position seeing career highs playing in such a point guard friendly system, a talent like Kemba Walker should certainly be expected to reap the same benefits, no? A career year could very easily be on the horizon for Walker in 2019-20 which should, in turn, translate into a fantastic fantasy basketball season for the the tantalizing guard.