Walker shows how dangerous he can be when efficient as Hornets even series
Three thoughts after the Hornets evened their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series with the Heat at 2-2 behind an 89-85 victory in Charlotte on Monday night.
1. The night belongs to Kemba Walker
Many believe he entered these playoffs as the most underrated point guard in the NBA -- he was the runner-up for the league's Most Improved Player -- but performances like the one Kemba Walker put together in Game 4 will make certain he doesn't hold that place much longer.
Walker scored a playoff career-high 34 points, including a one-man 11-0 run in the fourth quarter after Miami had managed to make it a two-point game with 6:07 to play.
It was the first 30-point game for the Hornets in the playoff since Baron Davis dropped in 33 against the Magic on April 27, 2002.
Before Game 4, the Heat's Goran Dragic -- who has the main defensive responsibilities against Walker -- told the Miami Herald his approach to guarding the Hornets point guard was one of accepting the inevitable. But how would he get there?
"At the end of the day, Kemba, he's going to get his points," Heat Dragic said. "But the important thing is how many shots he is going to take?"
It's a matchup that Walker should dominate through the first three games, Walker shot 36.1 percent from the field, including 4 of 19 in Game 3. In the fourth game of the series, though, Walker showed how dangerous he can be when he doesn't need an excess of volume to do his damage. He shot 46.4 percent from the field (13 of 28), which was his highest rate in nine games dating back to the regular season when he had 34 vs. the Knicks on 11 of 18 shooting.
With Nic Batum out, the Hornets need Walker at his most efficient to get out of the first round, and Monday was a reminder of how potent he can be.
2. Ruling the paint
For the second straight game the Hornets held a major advantage inside, outscoring Miami 44-30 and that included a 28-16 edge in the first half.
Coach Steve Clifford opted to go big, with Al Jefferson getting the start, and while he scored just nine points and grabbed five rebounds and was minus-10 on the night, he committed just one turnover and causes fits for Hassan Whiteside (eight points).
The Hornets also got 25 minutes, four points and four rebounds from rookie Frank Kaminsky, 16 via Spencer Hawes (who had eight rebounds) and 21 minutes out of Cody Zeller (four rebounds).
Going with a bigger lineup may have gone against the gameplan that Clifford utilized throughout the season, but without Batum alongside Walker it was a move that paid off.
3. Back in the Hive, the defense came to play
The Hornets held Miami to 13 second-quarter points in Game 4, coming on the heels of limiting it to periods of 14 and 16 points in Game 3. Back on South Beach, the Heat scored no less than 19 points a quarter, topped by that 41-point outburst in the first quarter of the series.
It was no surprise that this came at home. The Hornets allowed just 99.1 points per game in Charlotte compared to 102.3 on the road, and while that may continue in Game 6 on Friday in North Carolina, what about Games 5 and 7? The Hornets have to match that defensive intensity at least once or it won't matter how good they are at home.
Follow Cory McCartney on Twitter @coryjmccartney and Facebook. His book, 'Tales from the Atlanta Braves Dugout: A Collection of the Greatest Braves Stories Ever Told,' is out now, and 'The Heisman Trophy: The Story of an American Icon and Its Winners' will be released Nov. 1, 2016.
