Lucas Walker (born 6 December 1984) is an Australian

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player for the

Illawarra Hawks The Illawarra Hawks (formerly the Wollongong Hawks and The Hawks) is an Australian professional basketball team based in Wollongong, New South Wales. The Illawarra Hawks compete in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball ...

of the

NBL1 East The NBL1 East, formerly the Waratah League, is a semi-professional basketball league in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Terri ...

. He played 10 seasons in the National Basketball League (NBL) between 2010 and 2020. He played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athle ...

for

Montana State University Billings Montana State University Billings (or MSU Billings) is a public university in Billings, Montana. It is the state's third largest university. Its campus is located on 110 acres in downtown Billings. Formerly Eastern Montana Normal School at its ...

and

Saint Mary's College of California Saint Mary's College of California is a private Catholic college in Moraga, California. Established in 1863, it is affiliated with the Catholic Church and administered by the De La Salle Brothers. The college offers undergraduate and graduate pr ...

before joining the

Melbourne Tigers Melbourne United is an Australian professional basketball team based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria. United compete in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at John ...

in 2010. After five seasons with Melbourne, he had stints with the

Adelaide 36ers The Adelaide 36ers, also known as the Sixers, are an Australian professional men's basketball team in the National Basketball League (NBL). The 36ers are the only team in the league representing the state of South Australia and are based in th ...

Perth Wildcats The Perth Wildcats are an Australian professional basketball team based in Perth, Western Australia. The Wildcats compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at RAC Arena, known colloquially as "The Jungle". Aft ...

Cairns Taipans The Cairns Taipans are an Australian professional basketball team based in Cairns, Queensland. The Taipans compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at the Cairns Convention Centre, known colloquially as "The S ...

and

Sydney Kings The Sydney Kings are an Australian men's professional basketball team competing in the National Basketball League (NBL). The team is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The Kings were formed from a merger between the West Sydney Westars and the ...

. He won an NBL championship with the Wildcats in 2017.

Early life and career

Born and raised in

Launceston, Tasmania Launceston () or () is a city in the north of Tasmania, Australia, at the confluence of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River (kanamaluka). As of 2021, Launceston has a population of 87,645. Material was copie ...

, Walker attended West Launceston Primary School, Riverside High School and Launceston College. He played three seasons in the

South East Australian Basketball League The South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL) was an Australian semi-professional basketball league. The league comprised both a men's and women's competition and was run by the country's governing body, Basketball Australia. The league wa ...

(SEABL), with the Launceston Tigers in 2002 and the

North-West Tasmania Thunder The North-West Tasmania Thunder are an Australian basketball team based in Ulverstone, Tasmania. The Thunder compete in the Men's NBL1 South and play their home games at Ulverstone Sports & Leisure Centre. For sponsorship reasons, they are known a ...

in 2003, before moving to

Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ...

to attend the

Australian Institute of Sport The Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) is a high performance sports training institution in Australia. The Institute's headquarters were opened in 1981 and are situated in the northern suburb of Bruce, Canberra. The AIS is a division of the ...

and play for the program's SEABL team in 2004.

College career

Walker moved to the United States to attend

, where as a freshman in 2004–05, he was named the

Pacific West Conference The Pacific West Conference (also known as the PacWest) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Member institutions are located in California and Hawaii. ...

Freshman of the Year after averaging 15.5 points and 5.8 rebounds in 20 games (17 starts). As a sophomore in 2005–06, he averaged 11.8 points and 5.5 rebounds in 22 games (17 starts). In 2006, Walker transferred to

. After redshirting the 2006–07 season due to NCAA transfer rules, he appeared in 25 games off the bench for the Gaels in 2007–08, averaging 3.2 points and 2.4 rebounds per game in 9.3 minutes per game. As a senior in 2008–09, he played 25 games (8 starts) and averaged 2.7 points and 1.6 rebounds per game.

Professional career

Upon returning to Australia, Walker played for the Dandenong Rangers during the 2010 SEABL season before joining the

for the

2010–11 NBL season The 2010–11 NBL season was the 33rd season of competition since its establishment in 1979. A total of nine teams contested the league. The regular season was played between October 2010 and April 2011, followed by a post-season involving the to ...

. He played five seasons with Melbourne, with the 2014–15 season marking his final season with the club. In 131 games, he averaged 5.1 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. During this time, he played for the

Ballarat Miners The Ballarat Miners are an Australian basketball team based in Ballarat, Victoria. The Miners compete in the Women’s and Men's NBL1 South and play their home games at the Selkirk Stadium. The team is affiliated with Ballarat Basketball Associa ...

in the SEABL in 2013. For the 2015 SEABL season, he returned to the Dandenong Rangers. For the

2015–16 NBL season The 2015–16 NBL season was the 38th season of competition since its establishment in 1979. A total of eight teams contested the league. The regular season was played between 7 October 2015 and 14 February 2016, followed by a post-season featuri ...

, Walker played for the

. He returned for another season with Dandenong in 2016. After having a pre-season stint with the

Brisbane Bullets The Brisbane Bullets are an Australian professional men's basketball team in the National Basketball League (NBL) based in Brisbane, Queensland. They competed from 1979 to 2008, and returned to the league in 2016. Brisbane were one of ten NBL fo ...

, Walker joined the

in September 2016 as an injury replacement for Matthew Knight. On 20 October 2016, after Knight was given the all-clear to return to action, Walker was removed from the active 11-man playing roster. Despite being unable to return to the court for the Wildcats for the remainder of the 2016–17 season, Walker remained a big part of the playing group, completed every training session and excelled in his community work off the court. He was subsequently a member of the championship-winning team in March 2017, and at the Wildcats MVP Ball, he was named the recipient of the Coaches' Award. After playing in the

Queensland Basketball League NBL1 North, formerly the Queensland Basketball League (QBL), is a semi-professional basketball league in Queensland and Northern Territory, Australia, comprising both a men's and women's competition. In 2020, Basketball Queensland partnered wit ...

with the Mackay Meteors during the 2017 off-season, Walker re-joined the Wildcats for the 2017–18 season as a full-time player. On 8 December 2017, Walker had 12 points and 16 rebounds in an 88–79 win over the Adelaide 36ers. Twelve of his 16 rebounds were offensive, the most ever recorded in the NBL's 40-minute era. After a short off-season stint with the

Frankston Blues Frankston Blues is a NBL1 South club based in Melbourne. The club fields a team in both the Men's and Women's NBL1 South. The club is a division of Frankston & District Basketball Association (FDBA), the major administrative basketball organisa ...

in the SEABL, Walker joined the

for the 2018–19 NBL season. Following the season, the Taipans cut ties with Walker. In April 2019, Walker joined the

Nunawading Spectres Nunawading Spectres is a NBL1 South club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club fields a team in both the Men's and Women's NBL1 South. The club is a division of Melbourne East Basketball Association (MEBA), the major administrative basketball o ...

of the

NBL1 NBL1 is a semi-professional basketball league in Australia, consisting of South, North, Central, West and East Conferences with both men's and women's competitions. Each conference is run by their respective state governing body, with the leag ...

. In August 2019, he helped the Spectres win the NBL1 championship. On 2 September 2019, Walker signed with the

for the

2019–20 NBL season The 2019–20 NBL season was the 42nd season of the National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. Teams Nine teams competed in the 2019–20 Season with the addition of South East Melbourne Phoenix. Off-season changes *Th ...

. Walker announced his retirement from the NBL on 1 February 2021. In March 2022, Walker joined the

of the

. He returned to the Hawks for the 2023 NBL1 East season.

National team career

Walker helped Australia win silver at the 2023 FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup and then competed at the 2023 FIBA 3x3 World Cup.

Personal life

Walker is the son of Robert and Sharyn, and has a sister named Ashleigh.

References

External links

Saint Mary's bioTake 40: Lucas Walker
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Lucas 1984 births Living people Adelaide 36ers players Australian men's basketball players Australian expatriate basketball people in the United States Basketball players at the 2018 Commonwealth Games Cairns Taipans players Commonwealth Games gold medallists for Australia Commonwealth Games medallists in basketball Forwards (basketball) Melbourne Tigers players Melbourne United players Montana State Billings Yellowjackets men's basketball players Perth Wildcats players Saint Mary's Gaels men's basketball players Sportspeople from Launceston, Tasmania Sydney Kings players Medallists at the 2018 Commonwealth Games Sportsmen from Tasmania