Charlotte Hornets star Kemba Walker is currently enjoying the best season of his career, and it couldn't come at a better time, as Walker is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer.
He is averaging 25.2 points, 5.7 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 1.3 steals over 34.7 minutes per game while shooting 43.3 percent from the floor, 35.9 percent from three-point range and 83.1 percent from the free-throw line.
But, in spite of his efforts, the Hornets are languishing at 29-33 and are not even remotely close to resembling any sort of threat in the Eastern Conference.
This is nothing new for Walker, who has spent his entire eight-year career in Charlotte and has never made it past the first round of the playoffs. As a matter of fact, the Hornets have only made the postseason twice during his tenure.
Walker has not given any indication that he wants out of Charlotte, and the Hornets will likely pony up a max deal for the guard this summer. But is it time for Walker to search for greener pastures?
The unfortunate reality is that Walker is probably never going to win a title in Charlotte.
The Hornets play in a very small market and cannot attract big-name free agents, and it's not like their front office has such a sound history of good drafting and trading.
It seems hard to imagine Charlotte ever being a whole lot more than it is now with Walker aboard, and that has to be crossing the 28-year-old's mind as he approaches free agency.
It's obvious that Walker needs more help, and the Hornets probably cannot provide that for him. They haven't done it at any point throughout his eight years with the franchise, so why should we believe that they are going to start doing it now?
Walker is truly one of the most dynamic guards in the game and is not all that far off from Kyrie Irving and Damian Lillard in terms of his skillset. Sure, Irving may be more efficient and Lillard my be smoother, but Walker is a terrific scorer in his own right and has shown that he can carry a team for stretches.
The main difference between Walker and those guys, however, is that Irving and Lillard actually play on good teams. Walker? He is in the midst of a bunch of mediocre players who are either on bad contracts or don't have much of a ceiling.
The worst part is, it's hard to see this changing anytime soon if Walker chooses to exercise his loyalty to the Hornets organization by signing a long-term deal with the club.
So, just how should Walker handle being a free agent this summer?
Well, obviously, Charlotte wants him back, but outside of a fat contract, there is not much else it can offer him. Walker can demand that the team change its ways and actually start scouting and drafting well and not handing out bad deals, but a tiger doesn't typically change its stripes.
The Hornets are the Hornets. We can say it's not their fault because they just don't bring in the revenue that the Los Angeles Lakers or New York Knicks do, but in a way, it is their fault, because a lack of revenue does not prevent them from making good draft picks, shrewd trades and wise free-agent signings.
Charlotte has put itself in this position because of its ineptitude as a franchise. Sure, playing in a large market helps, as it serves as a bigger free agent draw, but that isn't the be-all-end-all. Just ask the aforementioned Knicks how that has worked out over the last two decades, for example.
If your front office is bad, then your front office is bad. Period. Seriously. Other than Walker back in 2011, when was the last time Michael Jordan and Co. even made a good draft pick?
To be fair, the jury is still out on Miles Bridges, but that draft night trade where the Hornets traded Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to the Los Angeles Clippers for Bridges is not looking too hot at the moment.
You just can't trust this Charlotte organization to do anything wise at this point. It's not even a case of giving benefit of the doubt anymore. We have given that to the Hornets for years, and they have still not produced.
This isn't to say that Walker should leave. Maybe he loves it in Charlotte, and the fans surely love him. This is more of a statement that the Hornets aren't going to be winning anything anytime soon, regardless of whether or not Walker stays.
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