Kemba Walker is bound to enter the 2018-19 season facing plenty of questions about his future, and while he's committed to staying with the Charlotte Hornets, the incessant rumors about making a return to his native New York will come in a matter of months.
Yet the two-time All-Star is hoping to have an easy and painless process with the Hornets upon hitting free agency, hoping to swiftly hammer out a deal with the team he's played for during the first eight seasons of his career.
“I don’t get distracted,” Walker said at during a visit to the NBPA camp, according to Marc Berman of The New York Post. “It’s the nature of the game, nature of the media. They’re going to ask me. I’ll answer it as best as I can, try to play as best as I can so when my time comes, I’ll have great options. Or hopefully the Hornets will get something done [July 1] before any team can even approach me.”
Walker has been connected to the New York Knicks and the Brooklyn Nets — two teams that will have ample cap space to make some moves during a very busy 2019 free agency window next summer, with names like Kyrie Irving, Jimmy Butler, and Klay Thompson leading the market.
The Bronx native has yet to figure out what it's like to be a free agent, but will get his chance this upcoming summer — even though he's already getting plenty of questions about his future with every visit.
“I’ve been hearing it for years now — the Knicks,” said Walker. “Every time I come home, it’s, ‘When are you coming home to the Knicks?’ MSG is a special place, man. The Knicks are a special team. Of course, I’ve been a Knicks fan growing up, always rooted for the home team. But I really can’t see myself in a Knicks jersey — only because I’ve been in one jersey. I really don’t know.”
The shifty 6-foot-1 point guard has an extremely team-friendly contract at $12 million per year, but he's bound to command a boon as he strides into the prime of his career.
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