The Boston Celtics appear to have a Kemba Walker problem.
Since Walker's return from knee rehab, he simply hasn't been able to find any sort of consistency on the court. Through 10 games Walker is averaging 15.0 points and 4.3 assists while shooting an alarming 34.2 percent from the field.
Needless to say, those aren't the numbers the C's were hoping for when they signed Walker to be their star point guard two summers ago. But are these struggles a major concern for Boston going forward, or are they just a blip on the radar?
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Forsberg: Where to go from here with Kemba?
On a new Celtics Talk Podcast with Chris Forsberg, Rick Bonnell from the Charlotte Observer shares his thoughts on the former Hornet.
Celtics Talk Podcast: View from Charlotte - What’s wrong with Kemba? And how Hayward and Rozier found a home with Hornets | Listen & subscribe | Watch on YouTube
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"I think his shooting will straighten itself out over a larger sample size, because it always has," Bonnell said. "I will tell you that I think the wider issue going toward is Kemba's own toughness at times is a detriment. There were times here when the Hornets literally had to sit him down and say 'Look, you need to tell us when you might be hurt enough, you might be in enough pain that you shouldn't be playing. Don't look at this as an act of honor.' ...
"It seems like Danny [Ainge] has made it very clear that this is their investment and they are going to tell him that he doesn't have a choice but to sit down more. If you're going to ride out the rest of this contract, that's important."
No matter what happens with Walker from this point on, Bonnell says we shouldn't expect the 30-year-old to alter his game.
"If you expect Kemba to become Mike Conley, it's not a realistic expectation. The Celtics signed him to that huge contract because he was going to be a scoring point guard. Because he was going to break down defenses off the dribble," Bonnell said. "If he's not taking a minimum 12 shots a game, then he's not Kemba anymore. So I would say certainly there's a middle ground there, and Kemba certainly has never been anything like what anyone would call a Celtics player, but if you try to undo the reason you signed him to the contract, then what was the point?"
Also in the new episode: How surprising is Gordon Hayward’s success with the Hornets? And an interview with Celtics' senior director of community engagement Kash Cannon.
Check out the latest episode of the Celtics Talk Podcast on your favorite podcast app or watch it on YouTube below.