Hornets-Spurs Preview
By JEFF BARTL
Coach Steve Clifford isn't denying that Kemba Walker's injury presents a tough situation for a Charlotte Hornets team in the midst of its best stretch of the season, but he's also aware of how well it has played recently with its leading scorer sidelined.
Charlotte presses on without Walker looking to win for the 10th time in 12 tries and avoid an eighth straight road loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday night.
Walker began complaining of left knee pain after finishing with 28 points in a 98-93 loss to the Spurs on Jan. 14. He sat out three of the next five games before it was announced Monday that he'll have surgery to repair a torn lateral meniscus.
There's a chance Walker, averaging 18.8 points, could miss the rest of the season. He'll be out a minimum of four to six weeks depending on the difficulty of the procedure.
"He's been by far our best player," Clifford said. "It always starts at the top of your roster and that's why most teams that are winning have a superstar. He's playing at a real high level."
The rest of the Hornets (19-26) are too, though. They've won all three games Walker has missed during their 9-2 stretch with Brian Roberts starting each. Clifford believes Roberts, who scored 17 points in Saturday's 76-71 win over New York, has what it takes to be a solid replacement as long as Walker is out.
"He played so many games last year as a starter," Clifford said of Roberts, who started 42 games for New Orleans in 2013-14. "I think he's had a difficult role in that Kemba has played so well that he's gotten limited minutes. He's a scoring point guard, so it's hard to find your rhythm when you're not getting big minutes. The more minutes he gets, the better he'll play."
Charlotte is dealing with other injuries, too. Bismack Biyombo could be out more than a week with a bone bruise in his right knee, and reserve Marvin Williams will have to pass the NBA's concussion protocol before he can play. Both injuries were suffered against the Knicks.
"If we continue to defend, rebound the ball the way we have and not turn the ball over, then to me we have more than enough to keep playing well," said Clifford, whose club averages a league-low 11.7 turnovers and is allowing an NBA-low 89.3 points in January.
The Hornets have lost eight straight meetings overall with the Spurs, though the three since the start of last season were decided by an average of 6.3 points. Charlotte has lost seven in a row at San Antonio since Nov. 15, 2006.
The victory over the Hornets earlier this month, led by Manu Ginobili's 27 points, began a stretch during which the Spurs (29-17) have won six of seven.
They've won five straight at home and the first two of a six-game homestand after overcoming a 12-point deficit to beat Milwaukee 101-95 on Sunday. Tim Duncan finished with 20 points and 11 rebounds while Kawhi Leonard added 19 and 14.
Leonard has averaged 16.5 points in six games after missing a month with a torn hand ligament, and the reigning NBA Finals MVP has grabbed at least 14 boards in three of the past four.
"I feel like I could get my conditioning up a bit more, but other than that I feel good," Leonard said. "Still trying to get back in the flow with the games and the schedule, but I feel pretty confident in what I'm doing."