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Knicks goaltender Kemba Walker was officially introduced to the media in New York on Tuesday.
NEW YORK (AP) – The “Welcome to New York” signs decorating the exterior of Madison Square Garden and hanging behind it were cool, if unnecessary.
Kemba Walker does not need to be introduced here.
He’s a New York native who previously played Madison Square Garden in high school and made a memorable buzzer-beater at a historic Big East tournament while playing for Connecticut.
Now he can see what he can do playing there for the New York Knicks.
“It’s going to be better,” Walker said. “Ten times better.”
The Knicks held a press conference on Tuesday to announce the additions of Walker and Evan Fournier, his teammate last season with the Boston Celtics who was acquired as part of a signing and trade deal.
“Everything is perfect. Perfect timing. I’m really motivated. Super excited for these guys to believe in me. – Kemba on the opportunity
– NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) August 17, 2021
Fournier, like many around the NBA, called Madison Square Garden his favorite arena. But few players – Knicks or otherwise – can match Walker’s story in the building.
The flagship video montage that aired before start of press conference included Walker’s jump back to beat Pittsburgh in the quarterfinal of the 2011 Big East tournament, when he led the Huskies to a stunning five-game winning streak in five days.
“It was just a special, special race,” Walker said.
They followed him by winning the NCAA Championship, with Walker the Most Outstanding Player. He went on to play eight seasons with the Charlotte Hornets and believed there was a chance he would sign with the Knicks in 2019 as a free agent before heading to Boston.
Now, a decade after lighting up the arena, the arena was lit up with her photo.
“I think everything is perfect. Everything, ”Walker said. “Perfect timing. “
It happened after the Celtics traded him to Oklahoma City in June. Walker agreed to a buyout so he could sign elsewhere, while saying the Knicks were his only choice.
At 31, the 6-foot-1 Walker may not be the same player who averages 19.9 points and was selected for four All-Star Games. He has suffered from knee pain in each of the last two playoffs, but said on Tuesday he is feeling well now.
Regardless, his signing was popular in New York City, where the Knicks have long sought a point guard and may have finally found one in town. Walker has been besieged by messages from friends, former coaches and beyond following news that he will be a Knick.
“I was planning on telling everyone I only have four tickets,” Walker joked to a small crowd at MSG that included his mother and sister.
Fournier accepted his four-year contract worth around $ 78 million while in Tokyo, where he was France’s top scorer at the Olympics. The French beat the United States in their opener and lost to them in the final, tying their best result with a silver medal.
Kemba LOVES to play with @EvanFourmizz
“He’s really fun, he loves basketball, he loves competition and the New York fans are going to love him.” pic.twitter.com/x1z59Y19tD
– COUPONS ON MSG (@KnicksMSGN) August 17, 2021
The swingman averaged 17.1 points last season for Orlando and Boston and should provide a punch to a Knicks team that defended well under Tom Thibodeau but were looking for more offense in the offseason.
Fournier spoke to Thibodeau during the tournament, with the coach not only wooing the player but also telling him garbage, telling Fournier that after winning a silver medal he needed to come to New York and talk.
“Unfortunately that is what happened,” Fournier said, even though he knew at the time that the Knicks were his destination.
“It was pretty clear to me that New York was going to be the team for me,” he said.
Kemba Walker (left) and Evan Fournier are two of New York’s key additions this offseason.
The Knicks announced Tuesday that they had acquired Fournier as well as two second-round draft picks for money considerations.
They hoped at one point that Frank Ntilikina, Fournier’s teammate with the France team, could be their leading solution. But Phil Jackson’s final lottery pick just before his ouster as Knicks president never developed and the search continued.
This led them to Walker, who was on vacation when he learned he had transferred to Oklahoma City.
The holidays are over. Now he’s home.
“I can’t really express how amazing this feeling is to be at home,” Walker said.
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