Meet The New Knicks Starting Point Guard; Same As The Old Starting Point Guard

 

Three games. That's all it took for New York Knicks head coach Tom Thibodeau to realize that his new starting point guard should be... Kemba Walker. 

After being benched and out of the rotation for three weeks, Kemba was forced back into action with the Knicks fresh out of healthy point guards. All he did in his first three games back was average 31 points, 7.7 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and shoot 44% from beyond the arc. 

Capped by his 44-9-8 point performance (with ZERO turnovers) in the Knicks' last game, Coach Tibs had enough data to convince him that Walker should be back as his starting PG for Christmas. And his brethren around the league were taking notice. 

They was really giving KembaDNPs. Sick sick world. Keep serving brotha 🤝 get 50 @KembaWalker

— CJ McCollum (@CJMcCollum) December 24, 2021

Caged lion @KembaWalker

— Jamal Murray (@BeMore27) December 24, 2021

Jamal Murray called him a "caged lion" (released), while CJ McCollum said "They was really giving Kemba DNPs. Sick sick world. Keep serving brotha."

And then Kemba gave the whole basketball world a Christmas present, with no less than a triple-double in the Knicks' X-Mas Day win over the Atlanta Hawks. 

The Knicks were HYPED after Kemba got a Christmas Day triple-double 🧡pic.twitter.com/Uf1aUCW6J3

— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) December 25, 2021

As usual, through his benching, and his stunning return, Kemba's classy attitude has remained intact.

You can believe whatever you want about the decision to bench Kemba Walker. There are legitimate arguments on both sides. But it’s undeniably impressive how someone of his stature has handled this with so little ego, supporting teammates to this degree and staying this ready.

— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) December 19, 2021

The Knicks went 2-7 in the nine games Walker warmed the bench, and are now 2-2 in his first four games back; there's no doubt the 31-year-old has proven he's still got plenty in the tank to help lead this Knicks team.

If you ain't rooting for Kemba, what are you doing? True class act and silencing the doubters. (via @nba) pic.twitter.com/F13udPqaa8

— SLAM (@SLAMonline) December 24, 2021

Photo Credit: Dennis Schneidler-USA TODAY Sports