J-Speaks: Historic Performances By Hornets All-Stars

It has been a very difficult season for the Charlotte Hornets, who by season’s end will miss the playoffs for the second straight season, and for the third time in the last four seasons. Inconsistency on both ends, the loss of their head coach due to health reasons for 30 games earlier this season, and inconsistent plays from the entire roster are the main culprits for that. The Hornets though have put their best foot forward in recent games despite the inevitable outcome, and just this past week, their two All-Star players showed that they are finishing this season on a high note. 

In the Hornets (32-41) come from behind 111-105 win at the Brooklyn Nets (23-50) on Wednesday night, eight-time All-Star and three-time Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard had 32 points and a franchise-record 30 rebounds in helping the Hornets overcome a 23-point second half deficit. 

To put into perspective the kind of night Howard, who was 10 for 17 from the field, and 12 for 21 from the free throw line had, Howard is the first player with a 30-plus point, 30-plus rebound game since Cleveland Cavaliers All-Star forward Kevin Love did it for the Minnesota Timberwolves, where he had 31 points and 31 rebounds in the team’s 112-103 win versus the New York Knicks on Nov. 12, 2010. 

Howard became just the fifth player to accomplish this feet in the last 40 seasons of the National Basketball Association (NBA), joining the previously mentioned Love and Hall of Famers Moses Malone, who did it twice and Robert Parrish. He also became just the eighth player in NBA history to record a 30-30 game and the first player to do so against the Nets since Hall of Famer and six-time league MVP Kareem Abdul-Jabbar did it with the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 3, 1978, where he had 37 points and 30 rebounds. 

In the history of the NBA there have been 156 all-time 30-30 games, with 124 of them authored by the late Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlin, which is No. 1 all-time, as mentioned by Nick Wright on the Thursday morning of edition of “First Things First,” on FOX Sports 1 with Cris Carter, Nick Wright and Jenna Wolfe. Second on that list is Hall of Famer Walt Bellamy with four. 

A close friend of Howard’s sent him a text message expressing his displeasure with the center’s effort in the first two quarters. Howard came out with a different mindset in the second half authoring 19 points and 12 rebounds alone in the third quarter, as the Hornets who trailed 62-43 at the break outscored the Nets 68-43 in the second half. 

“I just thought that my energy and effort wasn’t where it needed to be for our team to be successful,” Howard, who had 11 of his 30 boards on the offensive side said after the game. “Got a text at halftime from somebody and it kind of got me motivated and gave me some extra energy.” 

Hornets head coach Steve Clifford echoed those sentiments as he told FOX Sports Southeast’s play-by-play commentator for the Hornets Eric Collins before the team’s tilt versus the Memphis Grizzlies about Howard’s performance, “You know, they [the Nets] had 38 points in the paint at halftime, six in the second half, and those are the stats that people don’t see, but watching that was just him.” 

“With his rim protection, and at the other end of the floor, the rebounding, the scoring and just big play after big play. I mean, it was fun to watch.

While Howard used most of that energy in a positive way on Wednesday night, he had moment of transgression where he picked up his 16^th technical foul on the season. While he did not pick up another that would have ejected him from the game, that 16^th tech equated to an automatic one-game suspension, which he served the next night as his team hosted the struggling Memphis Grizzlies. 

Without their man in the middle, two-time All-Star in starting lead guard Kemba Walker went to work in authoring one of his best performances of his career and was a carry over from what he did on Wednesday night at the Nets. 

After scoring 10 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter at the Nets, Walker recorded his ninth 40-point game of his career with 46 points as he went 13 for 18 from the field, including 10 for 14 from three-point range and 10 for 10 from the free throw line in leading the Hornets to a 140-79 win versus the Grizzlies (19-53) to win their second in a row on Thursday night. 

The win was a historic one for the team and for Walker individually. 

For the Hornets, their 61-point win a little over 48 hours ago it was not only their largest margin of victory in franchise history, but it was the sixth largest in league history. 

Only the Cavaliers 68-point win against the Miami Heat in 1991, the Indiana Pacers’ 65-point win versus the Portland Trail Blazers in 1998, the Los Angeles Lakers 63-point thumping of the Golden State Warriors in 1972, the Warriors 62-point win over the Sacramento Kings in 1991 and the former Syracuse Nationals’ 62-point thrashing over the New York Knicks in 1960 top that of the Hornets. 

The Hornets prior largest victory in franchise history was a 52-point win (136-84) at home against the Philadelphia 76ers on Feb. 27, 1992. 

For Walker, who had 35 of his 46 points in the first half tied an NBA season-high and set a franchise record with 10 three-pointers and became the first player in Hornets history to make 1,000 career threes. 

He began his scoring brigade with 17 in the opening stanza. That was followed by 18 points in the second quarter and 11 came in the third before he was substituted for the final time with 1:48 left in the third period. Walker with his performance became the first player in the shot clock era to score 45 or more points in 28 minutes of work or less.

“It’s crazy,” Walker said after the game to FOX Sports Southeast’s Stephanie Ready about his hot shooting night. “You just in a zone. Just feels like everything you throw up is just going to go in.” 

He added, “I try my best to pick my spots and just see how the defense is playing me, and I knew where I could get my shots and all the ones I took they were pretty open, and I just made them.” 

The Hornets last two games showed what they two leaders of the Hornets are capable of when the opportunity presents itself. It also showed how frustrating it can be that Howard and Walker can have these kind of performances, and the Hornets will be on the outside of the playoff picture again.  

Howard has shown throughout his career first with the Orlando Magic, the Los Angeles Lakers, Houston Rockets, Atlanta Hawks and now the Hornets that having performances like he did on Wednesday night. It is because of injuries, and his unwillingness to improve his game is what has set him back, not to mention his attitude. 

Last season in his hometown was a tough one, particularly in the postseason where he sat out the fourth quarters of the team’s six-game series defeat versus the Washington Wizards in the quarterfinals. That resulted in the team shipping the 2004 Mr. Georgia Basketball and Naismith Prep Player of the Year in 2004 to the Hornets this past summer. 

That wearing out is welcome is what got him traded from the Magic to the Lakers and why he left in free agency from L.A. to join the Rockets. 

By the numbers, Howard has had a stellar career with eight All-Star selections and being named to the All-NBA team also eight times, with five of those on the First-Team (2008-12). He made the All-Defensive Team five times, four of those were on the First-Team (2009-13), while also leading the NBA in rebounds per game five times in his career and led the league in blocks per game twice. 

“I’m glad Dwight did this because it’s a good opportunity to remind people of the player Dwight Howard has been, which is no-doubt first Ballot Hall of Famer, a three-time Defensive Player of the Year, an eight-time All-NBA player, a four-time Top 5 MVP guy, who for some reason was compared—the expectation was oh, he should be Shaq [Shaquille O’Neal],” Wright said. 

“Shaq’s four inches taller than Dwight Howard. Like there are very few similarities between Shaq and Dwight. And if people want to say Dwight didn’t quite live up to what his full potential was, I mean, sure, I suppose. But living up to whatever he lived up to got him to be the best center in this league for nearly a decade, and one of the most dominant defensive players we’ve seen in the last 15 years. So, I’m glad he had—he’s having a great season in Charlotte. Nobody could have seen a 30-30 game coming, but I’m happy for Dwight.”

The problem for Howard is that he never developed the kind of personality of great big men, like Hall of Famers in O’Neal, Patrick Ewing, the previously mentioned Malone and two-time champion and 1994 league MVP with the Rockets Hakeem Olajuwon who right from the opening tip approach the game with a relentless vigor and determination to wear every time the came into the lane offensively there was a good chance they were going to get their shot blocked or their would be a hard legal foul to deter them from coming into the lane again. 

Howard had a playful, angelic, and exuberant personality that was fun and enjoyable, especially early in his career with the Magic. While that personality is good for moments like the Slam Dunk Contest that he won at the 2008 All-Star weekend, it one that turned a lot of people off at times, and mad them feel like he waisted his talent, and never lived up to his potential. 

One person who was impressed as well as frustrated by Howard’s performance was FS1’s “Undisputed” host and NFL Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe, who said on the Thursday edition of the show of him, Skip Bayless and moderator Joy Taylor that a guy with as he said a guy where only Chamberlin had “more God-given natural ability” than Howard  should have averages for his career of around 20, 22 points, and 15 rebounds a night, and not the 17 (17.4) and 12 (12.6) he has averaged in his career. Howard in his eight-year career with the Magic (2004-12) has averaged 18.4 points, 13.0 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks on 57.7 percent 

“Skip he had more God-Given ability than Kareem. I don’t know if he applied it,” he said in debating with Bayless. 

“That’s what he should have been for his entire career, and that’s what make you frustrated with him. Because you know what he could’ve been, given his athletic ability, and I just don’t think he cared enough. I don’t think he worked hard enough on his game.”

Which begs the question, is Howard, who led the Magic to the 2009 Finals, where they lost to future First Ballot Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant and the Lakers 4-1 a Hall of Famer?

Tas Melas, Leigh Ellis and Trey Kerby, and J.E. Skeets during their Up/Down Segment of the Thursday night edition of NBATV's "The Starters" all were thumbs up on that happening. 

"He's a lock," Ellis said. "People don't like Dwight Howard but you can't take away from the actual impact he's head on the game." 

Ellis also said the fact that he led the Magic as mentioned to The Finals in 2009, and he has not been back since has given all his critics the ammunition to criticize what he has not done in the postseason when he has gotten there, but you cannot take way from everything he has accomplished as mentioned earlier, which also includes helping Team USA win Gold in the 2008 Olympics. 

In the case of Walker as mentioned earlier, his performance on Thursday night was the third highest scoring night of his career. The Bronx, NY native of Rice High School in Harlem, NY had a career-high of 52 points in leading the Hornets to a 124-119 win in double-overtime in Jan. 2016, and he had 47 points in a 123-120 loss at the Chicago Bulls (24-48) on Nov. 17, 2017. 

Earlier this season, the Hornets were shopping Walker to acquire as the team looked to get better talent become a better team in the future. 

The reason the Hornets had put the word out of trading their best player is that the team was overloaded with bad contracts that they gave to the likes of Marvin Williams and Nicholas Batum two summers back and those deals have not made the Hornets into a perennial playoff squad. 

Unlike most players who would have written their get out of dodge ticket or demanded that they be traded, Walker took the high road and just let the process play out. They seven-year veteran controlled what he could control and that is his play on the hardwood. 

“I’ve been here for the last seven years, and I’m going to do what I’ve got to do to help my team win games,” Walker, who is building a new home in the Charlotte, NC area told reporters back in January about the rumors. “That’s all I can. I don’t have control over those kinds of things.”

He added about if he had been dealt, “I’ve never been in that situation. I don’t know what it feels like…I’d be pretty upset, but like I said, I’m here and now, and I’ve put my heart and soul into this team and into this city, so that’s what I’m going to do till everything’s over.” 

The Hornets past two wins have shown the individual greatness of All-Star Dwight Howard and Kemba Walker. They also served as a reminder of that individual greatness will not always result in wins, or even consistent seasons where you make the playoffs. The Hornets will enter another off-season where owner Michael Jordan will not only be looking for a new GM, as the former occupier of that position Rich Cho was relieved of his duties earlier this season, but for an identity that can get his team over the hump of making the playoffs, where they have not been since 2016, losing to the Miami Heat in seven games. Whether that will include Walker remains to be seen. Howard is expected to stay as he has two years, and $47 million dollars left on the deal he signed with the Hawks last summer. Batum, has four years, and $100 million left on the five-year $120 million deal he signed two summers back. Williams has three years and $42 million left on his current deal, and defensive ace in forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist has three years and $39 million left on his deal. 

“This is where I got my opportunity,” Walker said in the first month of 2018. “I’m seven years in now. I do a lot with community, of course. I’ve got to know a lot of the fans…Of course I’m going to be tied to this place. It’s kind of where I’ve grown up. It’s definitely home.” 

Information, statistics, and quotations are courtesy of 2/19/18 www.espn.com article, “Hornets Putting Kemba Walker on Trade Market,” by Adrian Wojnarowski; 3/22/18 6:30 a.m. edition of FOX Sports 1’s “First Things First,” with Cris Carter, Nick Wright and Jenna Wolfe; 3/22/18 9:30 a.m. edition of FOX Sports 1’s “Skip and Shannon Undisputed,” with Shannon Sharpe, Skip Bayless and Joy Taylor; 3/22/18 6 p.m. edition of NBATV's "The Starters," presented by Jack Daniel's Tennessee Honey, with Tas Melas, J.E. Skeets, Leigh Ellis, and Trey Kerby;  3/23/18 8 a.m. edition of NBATV's "Gametime," with Matt Winer, Ron Thompson and Carlos Boozer; www.espn.com/nba/standings; www.espn.com/nba/team/schedule/_/name/cha/charlotte-hornets;  www.espn.com/nba/player/gamelog/_/id/3449/year/2011/kevin-love; https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Charlotte_Hornets_seasons; and https://en.m.wikpedia.org/wiki/Dwight_Howard.