As the league prepares for the season to resume, a former star point guard of the Charlotte Hornets may have a minutes restriction.
The Charlotte Hornets and their fans have been without basketball for four months. While Charlotte may not be heading to Orlando, twenty-two other teams will have the chance to finish their season.
When the season resumes, one former Hornets player will have to start the rest of the season with his minutes restricted. On Saturday, Coach Brad Stevens of the Boston Celtics told NBC Sports Boston that Kemba Walker would play under a minutes restriction.
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Stevens told NBC that the team is “going to move very slowly with Kemba Walker and let him strengthen (the left knee).” He also said that they want to “make sure that he’s all good to go as we enter the seeding games and obviously, the playoffs.”
After being out of action for four months, the Celtics will play their first game on July 31st in Orlando, Flordia. Boston will play the Milwaukee Bucks, and this will be the first game where Walker starts his limiting playing time.
During the course of the 2019-20 season, Walker missed 14 games due to a knee injury that hasn’t fully healed. Walker played in 50 games this season for the Celtics, where he averaged 21.2 points and 4.9 assists per game.
Walker heads into his first playoff series since the 2015-16 season when he was still on the Hornets. The Celtics want to make sure Walker is ready for the postseason, as this will be the third time he’s ever been to the playoffs.
While Kemba Walker prepares for his third playoff run, the Charlotte Hornets will only be allowed to watch. However, the Hornets may be allowed to participate in a second bubble in Chicago. This would be similar to Summer League and would include televised games.