KEMBA Walker’s NBA career has gone downhill with the talented scorer’s body failing him over the last few years.

The four-time All-Star made just nine appearances in the 2022-23 NBA season – and there’s been little to suggest teams are interested in his services with the 2023 free agency starting on June 30.

Kemba Walker’s career has gone downhill because of the talented scorer’s knee issuesCredit: Getty

Walker made four NBA All-Star Game appearences while with the Charlotte Hornets and Boston CelticsCredit: Getty
Walker, 33, entered the 2011 NBA Draft as the recipient of the Bob Cousy Award, given to the best point guard in men’s college basketball.

As a junior, the New York native averaged 23.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 4.5 assists and won the NCAA Tournament with the University of Connecticut – while also scooping the Final Four MVP title.

The Charlotte Hornets picked him with the No. 9 pick.

Six seasons later, Walker began his run of four consecutive All-Star selections after a breakthrough 2016-17 season.

But in a worrying trend, the guard’s left knee started to require surgery after surgery.

Still, Walker erupted for 25.6 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 5.9 assists in 2018-19 after, notably, playing in all 82 regular-season games.

He also shot 35.6 percent for 3, his lowest percentage in three years yet still a respectable number, proving to be a slashing playmaker who can also inflict damage from deep.

However, Walker’s career year didn’t convince the Hornets he was worth a supermax contract

In 2019, his time in Charlotte came to an end after eight years as the guard landed on the Boston Celtics in a sign-and-trade deal.

Tasked with filling the void left by Kyrie Irving, who signed with the Brooklyn Nets that summer, the UConn alum kept his scoring average above 20 points per game despite playing alongside Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown that season.

Walker managed to make his fourth and last All-Star appearance before Covid-19 shut down the NBA – and he helped the Celtics make the conference finals once the league resumed in the Orlando bubble.

But in the offseason, Walker received a stem-cell injection – a new treatment that had been gaining popularity at the time – in the problematic left knee.

He was also placed on a 12-week strengthening program, signaling the joint needed more and more attention.

Walker lasted just one more year in Boston before starting to bounce around the league through trades followed by contract buyouts.

Over the past couple of seasons, the guard managed to play in just 48 games for the New York Knicks and, most recently, the Dallas Mavericks.

Desperately searching for a Luka Doncic backup after Jalen Brunson’s offseason departure, Dallas didn’t even hide that Walker’s health issues made his signing a gamble.

“It’s not good,” Mavericks general manager Nico Harris said of the playmaker’s knee.

“It’s not good at all. But he’s rehabbed it and it’s the best he’s felt in the last two years so, we’ll see how long that lasts.”

Walker lasted nine games before the Mavericks waived him in January 2023.

But in his only start for Dallas, he showed glimpses of his old self.

Walker finished with a 32/5/7 in a one-point loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers to prove what he was still capable of – if only his body let him.