CJ Walker (basketball) explained

CJ Walker (basketball) should not be confused with C. J. Walker (basketball).

CJ Walker
Height Ft:6
Height In:1
Weight Lbs:195
Birth Date:24 March 1997
Birth Place:Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
High School:Arsenal Tech
(Indianapolis, Indiana)
College:
Draft Year:2021
Career Start:2021
Career End:2022
Career Position:Point guard
Career Number:11
Years1:2021–2022
Team1:Phoenix Hagen

CJ Walker (born March 24, 1997) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Florida State Seminoles[1] and the Ohio State Buckeyes.[2]

Early life and high school career

Walker was raised in Indianapolis, Indiana and attended Arsenal Technical High School in Indianapolis.[3] During his senior season, he won the Indianapolis Coaches Association Player of the Year. His senior season averages were 24.3 points, 5.6 assists and three steals per game.

Recruiting

Walker committed to Florida State on June 20, 2015, over offers from Walker's future head coach at Ohio State Chris Holtmann at Butler, Illinois, and Cincinnati.

College career

Florida State

Walker played in 33 games off the bench during his freshman year, averaging 4.9 points, 1.3 assists, and 0.6 steals per game.[4] His season-high in points during the season was 13, against Illinois and Wake Forest.[5] He started every game except for one during his sophomore season at Florida State, averaging 8 points, 2.4 assists, and 1 steal per game. He started every game of Florida State's Elite Eight run during the 2018 NCAA tournament, averaging 17.5 minutes per game.[6] Following the season, on March 27, 2018, he transferred from Florida State.[7]

Ohio State

Walker committed to Ohio State on April 8, 2018.[8] Walker sat out the 2018–19 season due to NCAA transfer rules.[9] He had a solid season during his junior season, averaging 8.7 points, 3.5 assists, and 1.3 steals per game. He scored a season-high 18 points in a game against Nebraska on January 14, 2020.[10]

Walker missed four games during mid-January due to a nagging hand injury.[11] In Ohio State's Big Ten tournament championship loss, Walker scored 16 points and made a buzzer-beating three-pointer, although the three-pointer did not affect the result of the game as Illinois won the game by three points.[12] He averaged 9.5 points, 4.4 assists, and 0.9 steals per game. His free throw percentage of 94.0% ranked second in the country.[13]

Walker declared for the 2021 NBA draft on April 12, 2021, forgoing his option to return to college by hiring an agent.[14]

Professional career

On August 13, 2021, Walker signed his first professional contract with ETHA Engomis of the Cyprus Basketball Division A.[15] However he parted ways with the team before playing a game. On September 27, Walker signed with Phoenix Hagen of the German ProA.[16]

Career statistics

College

|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2016–17| style="text-align:left;"| Florida State| 33 || 0 || 12.5 || .397 || .304 || .655 || 1.4 || 1.3 || .6 || .1 || 4.9|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2017–18| style="text-align:left;"| Florida State| 35 || 34 || 23.2 || .412 || .355 || .732 || 2.5 || 2.4 || 1.0 || .1 || 8.0|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2018–19| style="text-align:left;"| Ohio State| style="text-align:center;" colspan="11"| Redshirt|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2019–20| style="text-align:left;"| Ohio State| 31 || 29 || 29.0 || .427 || .321 || .812 || 3.1 || 3.5 || 1.3 || .1 || 8.7|-| style="text-align:left;"| 2020–21| style="text-align:left;"| Ohio State| 27 || 12 || 30.0 || .410 || .265 || .940 || 3.2 || 4.4 || .9 || .1 || 9.5|- class="sortbottom"| style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career| 126 || 75 || 23.3 || .413 || .321 || .799 || 2.5 || 2.8 || .9 || .1 || 7.7

Personal life

Walker has a daughter, Summer, in 2019 from a previous Relationship. He is married to Taylor Ramey in 2022 and they had a son in 2023, Skylar.[17] Walker serves as an assistant coach for the Girls Varsity basketball team at North Central High School in Indianapolis, Indiana.

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Florida State's Elite Eight run is shocking. This is how it's happened. Caroline. Darney. SB Nation.
  2. Web site: Florida State Seminoles express admiration for Ohio State transfer CJ Walker. Adam. Jardy. BuckeyeXtra.
  3. Web site: Arsenal Tech's C.J. Walker Selected as Indianapolis Coaches Association Player of the Year. MyIPS.org.
  4. Web site: CJ Walker College Stats. Sports Reference.
  5. Web site: CJ WALKER. Florida State Athletics.
  6. Web site: C.J. Walker given release to transfer by Florida State. Wayne. McGahee III. Tallahassee Democrat.
  7. Web site: C.J. Walker to transfer from Florida State basketball program. David. Visser. Tomahawk Nation.
  8. Web site: Ohio State men's basketball: Florida State transfer CJ Walker commits to Buckeyes. Adam. Jardy. The Columbus Dispatch.
  9. Web site: Watch: CJ Walker biding his time waiting for next season. Steve. Helwagen. Bucknuts.
  10. Web site: Nebraska vs. Ohio State - Basketball. ESPN.com.
  11. Web site: Ohio State Senior C.J. Walker to Miss Time With Torn Ligaments in Right Hand. Brendan. Gulick. Buckeyes Now FN.
  12. Web site: Ohio State's C.J. Walker thrills, kills bettors with bad beat 3-pointer at Big Ten tournament buzzer. Nathan. Baird. Cleveland.com.
  13. Web site: NCAA College Basketball Statistics. NCAA.com.
  14. Web site: Ohio State Guard C.J. Walker Declares For NBA Draft. Andrew. Lind. Buckeyes Nation FN.
  15. Web site: CJ Walker signs first pro deal with Etha Engomis Nicosia . Sportando . August 13, 2021 . August 13, 2021.
  16. Web site: Poerschke . Daniel . Hagen tabs CJ Walker, ex Etha . Eurobasket . September 27, 2021 . September 27, 2021.
  17. Web site: Men's basketball Ohio State's CJ Walker enjoying down time to be a dad. Adam. Jardy. The Columbus Dispatch.