Hornets makes final decision on veteran sharpshooter
07/06/2024 03:16 PM
The Charlotte Hornets have their work cut out for themselves this offseason. They finished the 2023-24 NBA season with a dreadful 21-61 record that put them towards the bottom of the Eastern Conference with Washington and Detroit. If Charlotte wants to get themselves out of the gutter, they will need to make some smart decisions this offseason to bring in new talent. The Hornets made room for new players by parting ways with one of their veteran sharpshooters.
According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, Latvian forward Davis Bertans has been waived by the Charlotte Hornets. Bertans had a partial guarantee on his contract, which the Hornets will be on the hook for.
Charlotte chose to waive Bertans during the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament semifinal game where Latvia was playing against Cameroon.
The Hornets acquired Bertans in a trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder midway through last season. That trade also involved players like Vasilije Micic and Gordon Hayward.
Charlotte was the sixth NBA team Bertans has played for during his lengthy professional career. Bertans now has a chance to up that number to seven teams. He will likely have to sign a veteran’s minimum deal at his next location.
The 31-year-old sharpshooter has averaged 6.7 points and 1.4 rebounds per game in the NBA with a shooting percentage of 39.3%.
Bertans can now solely focus on the Latvian national team. They will face Brazil in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament finals with the hopes of earning a spot at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Is Kemba Walker the best player in Charlotte Hornets franchise history?
Kemba Walker has officially retired from the NBA after 12 seasons. Walker made his official announcement last week on social media.
“I’m here to share that I am officially retiring from the game of basketball,” Walker said in his social media post. “This has all been a dream. When I look back, I still can’t believe the things I achieved in my career. I know I couldn’t have made it to this point without my incredible support system around me.”
Now that Walker’s NBA career is officially over, we can have a conversation about his legacy. Is Kemba Walker the best player in Charlotte Hornets franchise history?
There is certainly an argument that Walker is the GOAT in Charlotte.
The Charlotte Hornets drafted Kemba Walker with the ninth overall pick in the 2011 NBA Draft. He played eight seasons in Buzz City, which makes up the bulk of his prime years in the NBA.
Walker is also all over Charlotte’s franchise record books, in part due to his long tenure with the team. In fact, Kemba Walker ranks first in four major stat categories for the Hornets:
- 20,607 minutes played (averaging 34 minutes played per game)
- 12,009 points
- 4,164 field goals made
- 1,283 three-pointers made
Walker also ranks towards the top of the leaderboard in over important statistical categories with the Hornets.
If we’re being honest, a decent part of the argument for Walker comes down to loyalty to his team. Other key players to the Hornets in the past (Alonzo Mourning and Larry Johnson come to mind) did not stay in Charlotte for the majority of their best years. Instead, they moved on to contending teams and chased championships.
This doesn’t make Kemba Walker more successful than those players, but it does mean he is more important to the history of the Hornets.
Regardless of where Walker ranks among Charlotte’s best all-time players, he will always be remembered fondly by Hornets fans.
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