Early July is a hectic time not only for NBA teams, but also the tireless insiders who cover the league across the various media platforms. A handful of the more prominent sources always seem to be ahead of the curve on the most recent signings and trades, although they were all recently outdone by Hornets veteran guard Nicolas Batum.
In the early afternoon on July 6, Batum tweeted “Number 9, I see you soon in Buzz City my big bro…” followed by a pair of French flags in reference to the shared nationality of he and his future teammate. Not even five minutes later, the biggest names in the NBA news-breaking business began alerting their followers that after 17 years with the San Antonio Spurs organization, point guard Tony Parker would indeed be leaving to sign a contract with the Hornets.
“We were trying to find a player in free agency that had experience, that had wisdom, that had winning DNA,” said Borrego, who was in San Antonio with Parker from 2003-10 and 2015-18. “We’ve identified a player for our roster that could really help us grow, take that next step, bring credibility, accountability, wisdom, experience. That’s what we went into free agency looking for and we believe we’ve found something.”
To date, Parker – who officially joined the Hornets on July 23 – is one of the most accomplished foreign-born players in NBA history. Selected 28th overall in 2001, he is a six-time All-Star, four-time All-NBA honoree and four-time NBA Champion. He is one of only two players trained outside the United States to earn NBA Finals MVP honors, becoming the first to accomplish this feat in 2007.
Parker is additionally a four-time medalist at the European Championships and helped guide France to its first-ever gold at the competition in 2013, while also winning MVP honors at the Slovenia-hosted tournament. He is currently the second all-time leading scorer in EuroBasket history with 1,104 points.
Today, Parker’s 18,943 career points are the fourth-highest total by any international player in NBA history, trailing only Dirk Nowitzki, Hakeem Olajuwon and Pau Gasol. Only two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash has more career assists (10,335) amongst all-time foreign-born players in the league than Parker (6,829).
The Frenchman is coming off a season in which he averaged 7.7 points on 45.9 percent shooting, 1.7 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 19.5 minutes across 55 games, which included 21 starts. He missed the beginning of the year while recovering from a ruptured left quadriceps injury he suffered in the playoffs in May 2017.
“The biggest thing for Tony coming off a major injury, the fact that he was even playing for us and playing at such a high level [last year] is just a credit to who Tony is,” added Borrego. “The fact that he wanted to come back, prove to himself, his team, his coaches, his teammates that he could come back from this injury, be healthy, help our team. The credit goes to Tony how hard he worked and he’s such a valuable piece and has been for that San Antonio organization, but we’re very fortunate right now.”
Parker is expected to slide into the backup point guard position behind Kemba Walker and take on a leadership role with regards to the younger ball-handlers like Malik Monk and Devonte’ Graham. The last two seasons, the Hornets have struggled to find a consistent and reliable understudy to Walker, a problem that was especially magnified anytime the two-time All-Star was off the floor.
“We’re looking for somebody in the back court that could play 15 to 18 minutes a game. I think the bonus with him would be his presence in the locker room, his leadership and his experience in terms of winning,” stated Hornets President of Basketball Operations and General Manager, Mitch Kupchak.
He added, “It’s great to have somebody like Tony in the locker room, but first and foremost, we did need somebody to play minutes. I mean, he wasn’t just brought in as a presence. We need a player that can play and he wants to play.”
As mentioned, Parker will be linking up with his fellow countryman in Batum, who he’s shared a “big brother, little brother relationship” since they first met in 2009, as told to Hornets.com in November 2016. Parker stated he took Batum under his wing when the latter first entered the league and has helped him navigate his NBA and French National Team career ever since.
Although Parker retired from international play following the 2016 Summer Olympics, his relationship with Batum has continued to flourish away from the NBA courts. Parker is the majority owner and club president of ASVEL Basket in the French LNB Pro A League, while Batum is a shareholder and director of basketball operations for the team.
When Parker confirmed his departure from San Antonio, Spurs Head Coach Gregg Popovich issued a statement thanking the long-time veteran for his 17 years with the organization.
“It’s difficult to put into words how important Tony Parker has been to the Spurs franchise over the past two decades,” said Popovich. “From his first game in 2001 at age 19, TP has impressed and inspired us – day-after-day, game-after-game, season-after-season – with his passion, dedication and desire… All of us in the Spurs organization will miss having Tony in our program and wish him and his family the best as he continues his remarkable career in Charlotte.”
Electing to leave the only city he’s ever called home as an NBA player was understandably difficult for Parker. San Antonio’s recent blockbuster trade of superstar Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green to the Toronto Raptors as well as the emergence of younger guards like Patty Mills and Dejounte Murray probably meant his role was going to be somewhat undefined (or at the very least, more limited) heading into training camp. The time had simply come to move on and the unique opportunity to follow Borrego and play with Batum will undoubtedly made the transition more seamless.
Make no mistake about it though – Parker’s not looking to ride off into the sunset and just fade away quietly even at this advanced stage of his career. Fully healthy, he’s expected to contribute significantly in more ways than one to a Hornets team looking to bounce back from consecutive 36-win seasons. He’s accomplished about as much as any NBA player of his generation, but the future Hall-of-Famer still has enough left to be a difference-maker in Charlotte this season.