Boston Celtics: B/R believes Kemba Walker is C’s biggest ‘X-factor’

The Boston Celtics find themselves surging of late as we approach the final few games of the 2020-21 campaign.

Finding themselves several games below .500 a few weeks back, the shamrocks have now managed to rattle off eight wins in their last 10 games, including a six-game win-streak in between, and are now slotted in at the conference’s sixth seed with a record of 31-27.

Between now and game 72, Boston finds itself with a real chance of finishing with a top-5 record and perhaps even a top-3, as they are a mere four wins behind the third-seeded Milwaukee Bucks.

On the flip side, however, while a hot streak can thrust them up the leaderboard out East, a cold streak could plummet them in the standings, as the difference between the sixth seed and the tenth seed is separated by just six wins.

Either way, no matter where they wind up finishing the year — though, obviously, we hope for the former outcome — should the Cs find full health, they’ll be a problematic matchup for any potential foe come the postseason.

With Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown in tow, the team has the star power necessary to strike fear in the hearts of any opponent.

However, what could possibly be the biggest difference-maker for the team come the playoffs is the type of production that Kemba Walker will have, which is why Bleacher Report writer, Zach Buckley, believes the point guard is unequivocally Boston’s biggest X-factor.

B/R believes Kemba Walker to be the biggest X-factor for the Boston Celtics

Citing his All-NBA track record coupled with his flashes of pre-injury Kemba Walker throughout this current campaign, Buckley believes that, should the team’s $140 million man find his rhythm, the team’s ceiling automatically raises up quite a few levels:

"The 31-year-old’s All-Star days could be behind him—lost both to Father Time and knee problems—as the one-time elite shot-creator is now just a 59th percentile player as a pick-and-roll ball-handler. His field-goal percentage (40.1) and true shooting percentage (53.8) have both dipped lower than they’ve been since 2014-15.But when the Shamrocks get “Vintage Kemba,” they’re almost unstoppable (10-5 when he scores 20-plus). They also need his playmaking now more than ever with Gordon Hayward having relocated to Charlotte, and it’s no coincidence Walker’s best month as a distributor (6.5 assists per game in March) has been Boston’s strongest as a team (8-1 with a plus-8.6 net rating).The Celtics’ roster has a slew of question marks surrounding star wings Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. If Walker moves into the certainty category, this group just might find a way to factor into the Eastern Conference race again."

Despite his injury woes and a widely perceived “down year” for the former All-Star, Kemba Walker is still finding averages of 17.8 points, 5.1 assists, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.1 assists on 40 percent shooting from the floor and 35 percent shooting from deep.

Truth be told, if the 30-year-old can’t find his stride come the playoffs, it likely could spell an end to his tenure with the Boston Celtics, and there are a few organizations that could be interested in his services.

However, should he tap into “Vintage Kemba,” as Buckley deemed it, Danny Ainge and co. could find themselves hard-pressed to hold onto the point guard this coming offseason.