Boston Celtics: 2 Cs who are most at fault for devastating season
By Mark Nilon
Boston Celtics member No. 1) Kemba Walker
Truth be told, it always pains me to write something negative about, or pertaining to Kemba Walker. I, along with many others I’m sure, have been a huge fan of both the point guard and the person since his days dating back to even before the NBA when he was suiting up for the UCONN Huskies back in 2008 to 2011.
That said, to not include the former All-Star on this list would simply be wrong for, frankly, his production — or, rather, lack thereof during the year — has been a big deterrent in the team’s overall performance.
Now, the fault doesn’t necessarily fall on Walker himself for, when he’s been healthy and showing glimpses of what he was during the first half of the 2019-20 season, this Boston Celtics squad has been an exciting one to watch.
The problem, however, has been that “Vintage Kemba” has made appearances at a far too inconsistent rate throughout the year which, unfortunately, has taken its toll on the team.
The once elite scoring guard’s field-goal percentage (42) and point-per-game averages (19.3) have both dipped lower than they’ve been since the 2014-15 season while his overall box plus-minus is the lowest it’s been since his third year in the league.
While the 31-year-old is viewed as the team’s X-factor heading into the play-in tournament and (should they advance) the postseason, at $35 million annually, the 4x All-Star should not be viewed as a potential difference-maker but, rather, a definite.
To fault someone for getting injured is not something we’re here to do, for the man didn’t seek out his nagging knee issues.
However, what these ailments have resulted in is a hobbled/ shell of a version of Kemba Walker this season which, in turn, has had a negative impact on the Boston Celtics as a whole.