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PHOENIX — Legendary former UConn coach Jim Calhoun knows one thing about his former point guard, Kemba Walker. He is going to play again.
Battling a balky left knee, the 31-year-old Walker decided to shut it down for the season during the All-Star break, but the Knicks have provided little information about his future. Walker has one year and $9 million left on his two-year deal.
Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau has said he hasn’t shown up at the Tarrytown facility.
“He wants to get himself stronger,’’ Calhoun told The Post in a phone interview. “He wants to continue to play. He needs to be 100 percent who he is. One thing I’m sure of and positive of — he’s going to do everything humanly possible to get back to playing.’’
Calhoun says he has no idea whether it will be with the Knicks, who likely will try to trade his expiring contract this summer. Knicks president Leon Rose was thrilled when he signed the Bronx native in free agency but hasn’t commented on his shutdown — nor commented on any subject since before training camp.
Thibodeau yanked Walker from the rotation in late November, and he didn’t see the floor for nine straight games. In desperation, Thibodeau played Walker in Boston on Dec. 18, when the Knicks were wracked by COVID-19.
“He’s going to get himself healthy again,’’ Calhoun said. “There’s people who really, really want him there [in New York]. It’s that simple. I’m not saying Tom doesn’t, but he pulled him out early. That was their decision. Not mine. I love [Walker] for a lot of things he does beyond jump shots and playing defense. He’s great for a team.’’
Walker played three illustrious seasons in Storrs, Conn.
“I’m not questioning anybody, but I think he creates chemistry with any team he plays on,’’ Calhoun added in his thick New England accent. “Any AAU team, summer league or our championship team. He took us to the [NCAA] national championship [in 2011]. He’s a special guy. They knew who they signed. I would’ve loved to see him play to the end of the season.’’
Once Walker was returned to the lineup, he still encountered knee issues and took a hiatus after tweaking it during warm-ups on New Year’s Eve in Oklahoma City. He also stopped playing back-to-back games.
“He came back, did well and still wasn’t 100 percent in the sense of not being able to play every game,’’ Calhoun said. “The decision was made by him, and the Knicks agreed. One thing I know is Kemba doesn’t like playing two games and then have to take a game off. That’s not much fun. He wants to get back and healthy so he can be there all the time. He doesn’t want to hurt the team. He’s a competitor.
“I’ve had some great players like Ray Allen and Reggie Lewis [at Northeastern]. Reggie loved being in the gym. It was his cathedral. And Kemba is the same way. I can assure you he’s going to give everything to play basketball again.’’
Calhoun, who recently stepped down as coach at the University of St. Joseph in West Hartford, admitted he was surprised with the way Thibodeau handled Walker. For instance, Calhoun noted, if Walker didn’t play a good first half and would sit the fourth quarter.
“[Thibodeau] is a very good coach,’’ Calhoun said. “But like a lot of us, he can be dogmatic at times. He likes big-sized guards who play great defense. And maybe he didn’t want a small guard. All I know is the guy he signed in August was 5-foot-11, 6-foot. He was that when he started training camp. He was that when he was a four-time All-Star. My point being, they knew what they were getting. I just think Thibodeau wasn’t so excited about playing him.”
The Hall of Fame coach knows Walker isn’t the same jitterbug he once was.
“He’s not quite as quick all the time,’’ Calhoun said. “He’s still quick but not all the time. His quickness made him a four-time All-Star and MVP of the national championship. He was super quick, solid, a great competitor, great teammate. The knee was bothering him. I don’t want to go into medical things. It’s not my job. The first five games he had lots of good games and I thought had other good games. I thought he’d try to play it though. But it didn’t work out that way.’’
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