The Dallas Mavericks signed Kemba Walker earlier this offseason for some veteran help and depth off the bench. Last night the Mavericks lost at home to the Boston Celtics 124-95. The team announced today that it has waived four-time All-Star Kemba Walker, whose salary will be fully guaranteed starting tomorrow. Walker may not be out of a job, as one of his former teammates took to Twitter after the news broke.
As a Maverick, Walker has only played in nine games this season, averaging 8/2/2/. At least he signed for the Patriots in late November. Former teammate Jayson Tatum took to Twitter today to hint that he might reunite with his teammate following the news of Walker’s demotion.
Massachusetts sports betting sites have the Celtics at (+375) to win the Finals this season.
👀☘️☘️ https://t.co/kijXsvlpd2
— Jayson Tatum (@jaytatum0) January 6, 2023
The Mavs waived Kemba Walker, but his former teammate may want him back in Boston.
Kemba Walker’s bright spot with the Mavs this season was his 32 point game against the Cavs on 12/17. In the tweet above, you can see that Jayson Tatum didn’t say a word in his tweet and instead used three emojis to get his point across, and it really did. Walker spent two seasons with the Celtics where he averaged 20/4/5 in 99 games.
One reason Walker was left by the team was money, but another reason was because the Mavs wanted young players to have more opportunities at playing time and it opened up a roster spot. As of yesterday, all 30 teams can sign free agents to 10-day contracts, and Dallas could explore that option to fill the vacancy.
McKinley Wright is a two-way contract guard who has earned more playing time for the Mavs as he plays fourth-quality defense and adds depth to the rotation. The Mavs will also want to leave room for rookie Jaden Hardy, who scored 15 points in 15 minutes in last night’s loss to the Celtics.
At 32, Walker’s career in the NBA isn’t over yet, but he’ll be looking for a new home in time. He is a 36 percent three-point shooter in this league.
