I’m a four-time NBA All-Star who was forced to retire aged 34 – I found a new job just 24 hours after ending my career
KEMBA Walker has announced his retirement from basketball - and already has a new job in the NBA.
The 34-year-old former Charlotte Hornets guard hung up his cleats on Tuesday after 13 seasons.
Walker was the No. 9 overall pick by Charlotte in the 2012 draft and is a two-time winner of the NBA Sportsmanship Award.
The 6-foot guard spent the last season playing in France for Monaco.
After announcing his retirement from the court, Walker is returning to the Hornets and the NBA.
He is taking up a coaching role in new HC Charles Lee's staff, per The Athletic.
READ MORE ON NBA
Walker spent 8 years in Charlotte and was a fan favorite, twice reaching the postseason and three All-Star appearances.
He played in over 600 games for the franchise.
Walker has now returned to North Carolina where he will serve as a player enhancement coach at the Spectrum Center.
"Congrats to Kemba, appreciate for what he did for the game." wrote one Hornets fan on X.
Most read in Basketball
"Wish the injuries avoided him, Charlotte Kemba was so tough," said another.
"Kemba can still be a PG for the Hornets tbh," joked a third.
"He has a lot of basketball knowledge to offer the next generation of players," added a fourth.
"Future head coach for sure," commented a fifth.
Before being drafted in the first round by Charlotte, Kemba was a star for the UConn Huskies in college.
He won the NCAA title with Connecticut in his junior year, emerging as one of the nation's most talented stars.
Walker became a franchise player with the Hornets and remains their all-time leading scorer with 12,009 points, per NBA.com.
What the new TV deal means for the NBA?
By The U.S. Sun's Assistant Sports Editor Damian Burchardt.
THE new TV rights deal is promising to be a humongous win for NBA players.
The league is set to more than double the revenue coming from its media partners, pocketing about $6.9 billion per year, which will inevitably lead to a huge salary cap spike in 2025-26.
That is going to send the value of player contracts skyrocketing.
Projected figures suggest we might see the first $100 million-per-year deal being signed soon.
Currently, Boston Celtics All-Star Jayson Tatum is projected to earn the highest single-season salary in NBA history, collecting $71.5 million in 2029-30.
It does feel like basketball fans would be on the losing side of the fight if the NBA and TNT indeed parted ways, though.
Inside the NBA is a one-of-a-kind sports entertainment show, as evidenced by ESPN's ongoing failure to come up with its own version of the program in recent years.
The NBA won't be the same without Kenny and Ernie trying to make sense of Shaq and Chuck's never-ending bickering every Tuesday night.
He left Charlotte in 2019 for the Boston Celtics in a deal worth $141 million over four years.
But injuries caught up with the talented guard, who landed at the New York Knicks two years later, before joining the Dallas Mavericks in 2022.
"Basketball has done more for me than I could’ve ever imagined," Walker wrote in a social media statement on Tuesday.
Read More on The US Sun
"I am super thankful for the amazing journey I’ve had. With that, I’m here to share that I am officially retiring from the game of basketball.
"This has been a dream. When I look back, I still can’t believe the things I achieved in my career."