Free agent Kemba

[pj]

What if his choice is to take less than the supermax to stay in Charlotte, where he is apparently very happy, or getting the supermax from another non-contending team like the Knicks?

As a Knicks fan, I am torn. I would love to have Kemba on "my" team, but I have a hard time believing that the team will ever be truly in contention as long as Dolan is the owner, and I would hate to see Kemba have to bear the burden of being yet another star who came to the Knicks with high hopes that were ultimately unfulfilled.

"A supermax deal ... can only be offered by the team that drafted him or traded for his rookie contract." (Explained: What is an NBA supermax contract and how does it work?) Only Charlotte can offer Kemba a supermax deal. Other teams can only offer him a max deal.

 

[BleedHuskyBlu]

Please leave the Hornets they have shown time and time again they cant build a team around him. If he stays with the Hornets it will only hurt his legacy as a player not making/barely making the playoffs every year. Teams arent loyal to players no need to be loyal to a team

 

[8893]

"A supermax deal ... can only be offered by the team that drafted him or traded for his rookie contract." (Explained: What is an NBA supermax contract and how does it work?) Only Charlotte can offer Kemba a supermax deal. Other teams can only offer him a max deal.

My bad.

 

[Adios]

Please leave the Hornets they have shown time and time again they cant build a team around him. If he stays with the Hornets it will only hurt his legacy as a player not making/barely making the playoffs every year. Teams arent loyal to players no need to be loyal to a team

The greatest pro basketball player for North Carolina's pro franchise would be a UConn player. Not all hope is lost.

 

[Waquoit]

I get the feeling Kemba's keeping his options open. "Sure, why not" doesn't sound iron-clad to me.

 

[Mike Honcho]

I get the feeling Kemba's keeping his options open. "Sure, why not" doesn't sound iron-clad to me.

Yea, I mean there was a long pause before he said that. It seemed like he was thinking of how to avoid getting boxed into a corner.

 

[TheChamps990411]

Id like to see him go to the Knicks and put him next to RJ and sign Anthony Davis next season.

 

[auror]

How much is a Kemba likely to get?

180-220 million over 5 years if he stays with Charlotte.

140 million over 4 years if he goes elsewhere.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Good grief. He should go wherever he will be happy. In every circumstance he will have more money than he, his kids and grandkids can really spend. So it’s irrelevant.

Maybe he wants to win, maybe he loves Charlotte. Neither is more important than the other. I’m surprised more pro athletes in this situation don’t just do what makes them happiest. Obviously some NFL Guard making $1M is in a different situation. But the stars? You get one life. Enjoy it.

 

[auror]

But the stars? You get one life. Enjoy it.

I tend to agree with this. Problem is that he loves winning and also loves Charlotte. What's a guy to do?

 

[HuskyHawk]

I tend to agree with this. Problem is that he loves winning and also loves Charlotte. What's a guy to do?

Who can afford to pay him that also has a chance to win? How appealing (to him) is that place vs Charlotte? NBA turnarounds happen fast. Toronto was nothing a couple of years ago. A lot of it is draft luck.

 

[superjohn]

Good grief. He should go wherever he will be happy. In every circumstance he will have more money than he, his kids and grandkids can really spend. So it’s irrelevant.

Maybe he wants to win, maybe he loves Charlotte. Neither is more important than the other. I’m surprised more pro athletes in this situation don’t just do what makes them happiest. Obviously some NFL Guard making $1M is in a different situation. But the stars? You get one life. Enjoy it.

There is nothing irrelevant about 50 million dollars.

 

[MDHuskFan]

In the large scale view of things, Kembas last contract was a huge bargain and Charlotte couldn’t put a team around him. I have trouble seeing them beig capable of doing it when he’s on a max or near max

 

[Stainmaster]

Kemba should do whatever will make me happy.

 

[nomar]

He is either lying or stupid, and we know he ain't stupid.

It is the nice thing to say. If they could get another top tier free agent to join him, he probably would stay. But they can't, so it is just a nice thing to say.

Yeah, he's just saying he "would" -- not that he "will." They're not going to attract another star in FA or land one in a trade.

 

[8893]

Kemba should do whatever will make me happy.

And that is?

 

[Stainmaster]

And that is?

Doesn’t matter. His desires and values are irrelevant.

 

[8893]

Doesn’t matter. His desires and values are irrelevant.

But I asked about yours.

 

[Waquoit]

180-220 million over 5 years if he stays with Charlotte.

If Charlotte offers that. I love Kemba but if he was on my team I wouldn't be happy if they were paying him $40M+ per.

 

[Stainmaster]

But I asked about yours.

I’ll let him know when I decide.

 

[awfuldan]

The greatest pro basketball player for North Carolina's pro franchise would be a UConn player. Not all hope is lost.

I think for most Charlotte fans, Kemba is already the greatest Hornet of all-time and that would not change if he left. He is the franchise's all-time leading scorer, has delivered them some winning years (which is really saying something, considering the teams he has been on) and is utterly without blame for how mediocre the team has been of late.

Top 5 Charlotte Hornets Players of All-Time

They've got Kemba at #1 all time and that's from before this season, which was the best of his career despite an embarrassing lack of any semblance of a second scoring option.

 

[Kenny11]

Nicolas Batum NBA Salary | NBA player | HoopsHype


This is very ugly. I actually thought this guy was going to be an all star level player at one point too.

 

[Devland]

I would take anything Kemba says to the press with a grain of salt. He has always been non-confrontational and avoided controversy. He is not going to stir the pot and say "I want to sign with team x". He wants to please everyone. That's just who he is.

 

[husky429]

Cost of living in Charlotte is low compared to NYC. He could get paid more in Charlotte and save money. I see the appeal, especially if he's comfortable and happy in the city.

 

[Dream Jobbed 2.0]

Jeremy Lamb as your number 2 was good enough in college. Now not so much. Getting guys like Dwight Howard and Tony Parker 5 years past their prime ain’t good enough. Doing awful in every draft ain’t good enough (Bridges does have some potential though). The fact he’s gotten whatever random scraps they put with him into a couple playoffs is a miracle. I got he loves the team but they don’t deserve him.