Kemba Walker wasn’t right.
The Toronto Raptors and Miami Heat keyed on him with their defenses, which meant Walker was always going to have to work extra hard to be productive. In many games, he was great, and he came out of the playoffs averaging 19.6 points per game on better than 44% shooting, an uptick from his regular season percentage.
But, it was also clear through a three-game stretch of the semifinals, and through late-game stretches in the conference finals, that the Boston Celtics point guard was missing something. His 3-point shooting dropped seven percentage points from the regular season, and he couldn’t summon his step-backs as often as he wanted.
“I could see, even when he was here before the bubble started, which is why he was shut down a little bit and doing strength training and trying to prepare himself for the playoff run... but he was definitely not himself,” Danny Ainge said Thursday morning. “In fairness to Kemba, he doesn’t want to say that. He doesn’t say that to our coaches, he doesn’t say that to you, the media, he doesn’t say that to me. I haven’t heard one excuse from him. But watching the games, even the games we won, even the games where he played well, I could tell he wasn’t the same physically as he was in October, November, December.”
Walker’s left knee has been a concern throughout his career. He had three minor arthroscopic procedures on that knee before joining the Celtics and he had his knee drained earlier this year when it flared up after the All-Star game. According to Ainge, there doesn’t appear to be another in Walker’s future.
“I don’t know the offseason answers yet. Probably over the next week to two weeks we will have a full plan for Kemba in the offseason, regardless of what the medical tests come back and everything else,” he said. “There’s no surgery needed or anything else that I’m aware of at this time.”
Whatever Boston’s plan, they need Walker to be his old self if the team runs it back next season.
“We’re going to try to get that Kemba back," Ainge said. "And I know Kemba wants to be back 100 percent, and playing his best basketball. Even not his best he still averaged 19 or 20 points per game in the playoffs, he still is a really good player. But he’s not what he was.”
Ainge understands the frustration for someone like Walker, who had never advanced past the first round, to go through this stretch at less than 100%.
“There’s nothing more frustrating for an athlete to be on the biggest stage in the world in your sport and not be able to be yourself," Ainge said. "I’ve been there before as a player. It’s not fun. It’s stressful.”
Hindsight makes you wonder if the Celtics hadn’t blown Game 3 of the semifinals against Toronto, would Walker have been able to get some more rest and be healthier for the Miami Heat? We’ll never know for sure. For now the Celtics are just hoping to get Walker back because he’s been such a positive influence on this team.
“He didn’t make any excuses, he came to play, he realized the moment he was in. He’s a player who understood how special it is to be here, and to never have those opportunities he’s had in his career,” Ainge said. “But he has a smile on his face, he brings joy to the game and the team and the entire organization on a daily basis. He’s just great to be around, and that’s why I feel so bad. It’s his first time on this big of a stage and this huge of a stage and he gave everything that he had. He played well, but we know that he wasn’t himself. But he’s a terrific leader, and a terrific teammate, and an amazing person.”
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