It looks like free agent Kemba Walker has found a new place to play. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Dallas Mavericks will be signing the four-time All-Star and waiving Facundo Campazzo.
The past season was pretty tough for the 32-year-old Walker. Following their first-round loss in the 2020-2021 playoffs, the Boston Celtics traded Walker to the Oklahoma City Thunder in June 2021. Two months later he and the Thunder reached a buyout agreement and just a few days after that, Walker signed with the New York Knicks.
Signing with the Knicks was supposed to be a homecoming for the Bronx native, and it started out well. Notably, he became just the seventh player in NBA history to record a triple-double on Christmas Day. But he wasn’t the spark plug the Knicks hoped he’d be. And knee problems — which had kept him out of Games 4 and 5 of the Celtics’ first-round playoff loss — became an issue again.
The last game Walker played was on Feb. 16, 2022. The next day, he and the Knicks reportedly decided that he’d be sidelined for the rest of the season. He was traded to the Detroit Pistons in July, who then waived him in mid October.
Now Walker is set to be part of the Mavericks, a struggling team that’s lost four games in a row. The 9-10 Mavs could use a boost, and Walker could be the one to provide it — but only if he finds his old form. In 37 games with the Knicks last year he averaged 11.6 points and 3.5 assists, the lowest marks of his career.
