Finals cuts
These last five players were the toughest to keep off the list, and figure to be the ones that will make me look very stupid sooner rather than later.
Kemba Walker
A friend of mine who shall remain unnamed once admitted to me that she was always more attracted to guys in relationships than single men. When I asked her why, her answer had to do with the fact that they weren’t available, and as human beings, we always want what we can’t have.
The inverse is also true. When someone is available, there’s an immediate skepticism. Why are they single? What’s wrong with them? Are they a bad breaker-upper? Or maybe they eat their peas one at a time. It’s always got to be something.
The same holds true with NBA players. I originally had Kemba Walker – who is unequivocally a top-30 player in the league – in the mid-40s here. Then word came out that the Hornets were looking to move him and were seeking a young player or a pick along with a team taking back some bad salary.
Sure, Michael Jordan tried to lessen the blow by saying Charlotte would seek an All Star-level player in return, but the damage had been done. I had to drop him. I don’t feel good about it one bit, for any number of reasons.
Let’s start with the fact that Kemba Walker is not one of the 100 highest-paid players in the league, and his blue-plate-special contract runs through the end of next year. His salary of $12 million per is about 40 percent that of Kyle Lowry and Mike Conley, both comparable players. He makes less than Solomon Hill, Brandon Knight, two Plumlee brothers and all the craptastic centers that signed last summer, among other luminaries. He is the sixth-highest paid player on his own team, right behind Cody-freaking-Zeller.
Pound for pound, he’s the best non-rookie deal value in the NBA behind Kawhi Leonard and maybe Draymond Green and Klay Thompson.
Related Story: NBA trade rumors: 7 potential Kemba Walker trades
He’s also really good at basketball, which, for the Hornets, is somewhat important. Charlotte plays like a top-five team when Walker is on the court. Yes, you read that correctly. When he’s off, their net rating is not just bad – it’s “second worst team of the last two decades” bad, behind only the Anthony Davis Tankathon that was the 2011-12 Bobcats.
Kemba Walker was a rookie on that team. To say he’s improved considerably as a player since then is an understatement. He came into the league shooting 30 percent from deep on 3.4 shots per game. This season, he’s shooting 34 percent on double the attempts…and it’s a down year for him.
Walker is the only point guard in the league with a usage rate above 25 and a turnover rate below 8. He gets consistent looks at the rim despite his teammates (only 13 percent of his shots there are assisted, according to CleaningTheGlass.com), and he’s among the most efficient high volume pick-and-roll ball-handlers in the league.
Is he getting much better (or any younger)? No. Are you a contender if he’s your second-best player? Probably not…but we can’t be 100 percent sure.
Here’s hoping that at some point, maybe soon, we all have a chance to find out.
Kelly Oubre Jr.
In the midst of his third year, Kelly Oubre Jr. feels like he might be on the verge of a breakout. Oubre is one of only seven players (along with Kevin Durant, Kevin Love, Karl-Anthony Towns, Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Tatum and teammate Otto Porter) shooting over 40 percent from deep while averaging 20 points, eight rebounds and one steal per 48 minutes.
Thought of as a throw-in in the Paul George trade at the time, Sabonis has blossomed and now looks to be a part of the Pacers’ core moving forward. Check this out for why he’s going to be on a lot more people’s radars very soon.
It’s not his fault he’s been injured for most of his rookie season. We don’t know much about Isaac yet, other than that the Orlando Magic are 8-7 when he’s played and 5-25 when he hasn’t.
The No. 4 pick in this year’s draft has looked a lot better since his coach benched him for a game in early January. The 3-point shot is coming around (39 percent since December 20) and he still profiles as a defensive stopper on the wing. Having him down here may look incredibly stupid in a few months, but that’s how stacked the league is right now. Speaking of which…