Charlotte Hornets rumors: Mavericks inquire about Kemba Walker
Over the past few weeks, the Dallas Mavericks have shown interest in trading for Charlotte Hornets star guard Kemba Walker.
The rumor mill has been extremely active recently. The trade deadline is fast approaching, and it appears that one team is trying to land Charlotte Hornets star Kemba Walker in a trade.
That team would be the Dallas Mavericks. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Mavericks have inquired about Walker, but were shut down by the Hornets, who want to keep the All-Star guard in Charlotte.
You’re going to hear more and more rumors regarding Walker as we approach the trade deadline, which is on February 7th. Even though the Hornets appear adamant on keeping him in Charlotte, that’s not going to stop teams from calling and giving it a shot.
Not trading Walker could be risky, considering he’ll be an unrestricted free agent after this season. He has stated repeatedly that he wants to remain a Hornet and continue playing in Charlotte, but a lot can happen between now and free agency, so it’s not a guarantee that he re-signs by any means.
Walker has proven himself to be one of the best point guards in the league this season, as he is averaging an incredible 25.0 points to go with 4.3 rebounds and 5.6 assists. He’ll make his third straight All-Star appearance this season.
Getting back to the Mavericks, they have been a team deeply involved in trade rumors recently. Dennis Smith Jr, the second year guard out of North Carolina State, has been involved in trade rumors, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he was one player that the Mavericks would be willing to deal in a trade for Walker.
I wrote about the idea of acquiring Smith from the Mavericks just three weeks ago.
As I noted in the article, Smith would be an interesting piece to have in case Walker eventually does leave as a free agent. He’s very talented, but his fit in Dallas with Luka Doncic is questionable at best.
Smith is averaging 12.7 points, 2.8 rebounds and 3.9 assists for the Mavericks this year. He scored 17 points against the Clippers last night after a six-game absence from the team.
It’s very unlikely that Dallas ends up trading for Walker, but their interest in him could rise when we get into the off-season. The Mavericks could look to sign him as a free agent at that point in time.
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All signs are pointing towards the Charlotte Hornets keeping Kemba Walker past the trade deadline, which is music to Hornets fans ears. Now, the key will be re-signing him during the off-season.