William Henry Walker (born October 9, 1987) is an American professional

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 (appro ...

player for Gladiadores de Anzoátegui of the

Superliga Profesional de Baloncesto The Superliga Profesional de Baloncesto, commonly known as the SPB, is the Venezuelan first division national professional basketball league. Founded in 1974 as the Liga Especial de Baloncesto, it adopted the name Liga Profesional de Baloncesto i ...

(SPB). Previously known as Bill Walker, the 6-foot-6-inch-tall (1.98 m) player was selected out of

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant coll ...

by the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

with the 47th overall pick in the second round of the

2008 NBA draft The 2008 NBA Draft was held on June 26, 2008, at the The Theater at Madison Square Garden, Washington Mutual Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. In this NBA draft, draft, National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took t ...

and traded shortly thereafter to the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

in exchange for cash considerations.

High school career

Walker was a three-year starter at

North College Hill High School North College Hill High School is a public high school in North College Hill, Ohio. It is the only high school in the North College Hill City Schools district and has an enrollment of approximately 400 to 450 students. Innovative new buildings ...

North College Hill, Ohio North College Hill is a city in Hamilton County in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Ohio approximately ten miles north of downtown Cincinnati. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 9,663. The city takes its name from its proxi ...

, where he was a consensus Top 10 high school recruit and a teammate of future NBA lottery pick

O. J. Mayo Ovinton J'Anthony "O.J." Mayo (born November 5, 1987) is an American professional basketball player who last played for Zamalek SC of the Egyptian Basketball Super League and Egyptian Basketball Federation. He played a single season of colleg ...

. His achievements include: * 2006 Second-team ''Parade'' All-American * 2006

USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...

All-USA High School Boys' Basketball All-Junior Team * 2006

EA Sports EA Sports is a division of Electronic Arts that develops and publishes sports video games. Formerly a marketing gimmick of Electronic Arts, in which they imitated real-life sports networks by calling themselves the "EA Sports Network" (EASN) ...

High School Boys' Basketball First Team *

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

High School Basketball Coaches Association All-State First Team *

Cincinnati Enquirer ''The Cincinnati Enquirer'' is a morning daily newspaper published by Gannett in Cincinnati, Ohio, United States. First published in 1841, the ''Enquirer'' is the last remaining daily newspaper in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, altho ...

All-State First Team As a sophomore and junior in 2005 and 2006, Walker helped North College Hill to back-to-back Ohio Division III state titles and was named the Most Valuable Player of the 2006 State Tournament. In 2006, North College Hill finished third in the USA Today Super 25 High School rankings, with Walker averaging 21.7 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. He was selected the USA Today National Player of the Week on March 27, 2006. In the fall of 2006, Walker graduated early after it was ruled that he had used all of his high school athletics eligibility the previous year. Walker also helped the USA White team to a 5–0 record at the 2005 USA Youth Development Festival in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

, where he played alongside

Ohio State The Ohio State University (Ohio State or OSU) is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States. A member of the University System of Ohio, it was founded in 1870. It is one of the largest universities by enrollme ...

freshman

Greg Oden Gregory Wayne Oden Jr. (born January 22, 1988) is an American former professional basketball player. Oden, a 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) center (basketball), center, played college basketball for the Ohio State Buckeyes men's basketball, Oh ...

and

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

freshman

Darrell Arthur Darrell Antwonne Arthur (born March 25, 1988) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Kansas Jayhawks for two seasons where he was part of the 2007–08 national championship team. He was draf ...

. He was the only three-time

Most Valuable Player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

at the

Reebok Reebok International Limited ( ) is an American footwear and clothing brand that is a part of Authentic Brands Group. It was established in England in 1958 as a companion company to J.W. Foster and Sons, a sporting goods company which had bee ...

ABCD Camp The ABCD Basketball Camp was a youth basketball camp founded by Sonny Vaccaro that was held from 1984 to 2006. The camp gathered the highest ranked high school players of the United States, and was considered one of the top events of high school ...

Teaneck, New Jersey Teaneck () is a Township (New Jersey), township in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is a bedroom community in the New York metropolitan area. The town is know for their pancake throwing contest held ...

College career

After receiving interest from many

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

teams, including

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

Syracuse Syracuse most commonly refers to: * Syracuse, Sicily, Italy; in the province of Syracuse * Syracuse, New York, USA; in the Syracuse metropolitan area Syracuse may also refer to: Places * Syracuse railway station (disambiguation) Italy * Provi ...

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and Cultural area, cultural List of regions of California, region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its densely populated coastal reg ...

and

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, Walker enrolled at

as a part-time student in order to be eligible to play on December 16, 2006, the start of the second semester. He had an immediate impact on the team, averaging 11.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per game in his first six games. However, he ruptured the

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation. In ...

(ACL) in his left knee early in a game against

Texas A&M Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, TA&M, or TAMU) is a public university, public, Land-grant university, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas, United States. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of ...

on January 6, 2007, which required surgery and abruptly ended his freshman season. This was the second time he suffered this type of injury, going through surgery and rehab in his right knee in 2003. In the 2007–08 season, Walker averaged 16.1 points and 6.3 rebounds in 31 games. He tied his career-high with 31 points in a 92–86 loss at Baylor on February 23, 2008, and combined with teammate

Michael Beasley Michael Paul Beasley Jr. (born January 9, 1989) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). He played college basketball for Kansas State University for one ...

to score 75 of the

Wildcats The wildcat is a species complex comprising two small wild cat species: the European wildcat (''Felis silvestris'') and the African wildcat (''F. lybica''). The European wildcat inhabits forests in Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus, while th ...

' 86 points in that game. On April 14, 2008, Walker announced along with Beasley that he would enter the 2008 NBA draft and thus forgo his last three years of eligibility.

Professional career

Boston Celtics (2008–2010)

Many considered Walker a lottery pick, but he suffered the third knee injury in his career during a workout at the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. Founded in 1946 i ...

facility on June 15, 2008. He remained in the draft despite the injury, and was selected on June 26, 2008, by the

with the 47th overall pick in the 2008 NBA draft, but was subsequently traded to the

for cash considerations after visiting the Celtics three days earlier. He was expected to have minor surgery in July that would keep him out for three to four weeks. In November 2008, Walker was sent to the Celtics'

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of the 2024–25 season, ...

affiliate, the

Utah Flash Orem, Utah Orem Orem, Utah Orem is a city in Utah County, Utah, United States, in the northern part of the state. It is adjacent to Provo, Utah, Provo, Lindon, Utah, Lindon, and Vineyard, Utah, Vineyard and is approximately south of Salt Lake ...

, and was recalled on January 8, 2009. On November 21, 2009, the Celtics assigned Walker to the

Maine Red Claws The Maine Celtics are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Portland, Maine, and are affiliated with the Boston Celtics. The Maine Celtics play their home games at the Portland Expo Building. The Boston Celtics pu ...

in the

. On December 23, 2009, Walker was recalled from the Red Claws by the Celtics.

New York Knicks (2010–2012)

On February 18, 2010, Walker, along with

J. R. Giddens Justin Ray "J. R." Giddens (born February 13, 1985) is an American former professional basketball player. He was selected to the 2003 McDonald's All-American team, then initially played for the University of Kansas but transferred to the Unive ...

Eddie House Edward Lee House II (born May 14, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player. A guard known for his three-point shooting, House played for nine NBA teams in 11 seasons in the league. He was a member of the Boston Celtics team that ...

and a future conditional second round draft pick, was traded to the Knicks for

Nate Robinson Nathaniel Cornelius Robinson (born May 31, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. Born in Seattle, Robinson played college basketball for the University of Washington in Seattle and was the 21st pick in the 2005 NBA draft. ...

and

Marcus Landry Marcus Landry (born November 1, 1985) is an American professional basketball player who last played for Goyang Orions of the Korean Basketball League. Landry attended Harold S. Vincent High School, Vincent High School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and ...

. Walker was released by the Knicks on April 20, 2012.

Austin Toros (2013)

On February 19, 2013, Walker was acquired by the

Austin Toros Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

. On March 25, he was waived by the Toros. On April 3, he was acquired by the

Sioux Falls Skyforce The Sioux Falls Skyforce are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and are affiliated with the Miami Heat. The team has played its home games in the Sanford Pentagon since the 2013–14 ...

. However, he never played a game for Sioux Falls.

Trotamundos de Carabobo (2013)

On May 20, 2013, Walker signed with

Trotamundos de Carabobo Trotamundos B.B.C. (), also known as Trotamundos de Carabobo, is a professional basketball team based in Valencia, located in the Venezuelan Carabobo State. The team currently plays in the Venezuelan SuperLiga. The team has won the Venezuelan cham ...

of Venezuela.

Sioux Falls Skyforce (2013–2014)

On October 31, 2013, Walker was reacquired by the

Alaska Aces (2014)

In April 2014, he signed with the Alaska Aces for the 2014 Governors’ Cup.

Second stint with Sioux Falls Skyforce (2014–2015)

On November 3, 2014, Walker was again reacquired by the Sioux Falls Skyforce.

Miami Heat (2015)

On February 21, 2015, he signed a 10-day contract with the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern C ...

. In his first game with the Heat, Walker recorded 11 points, and made 3 out of his 4 3-pointers in a 119–108 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. He then signed a second 10-day contract with the Heat on March 3, and for the rest of the season on March 13. On July 27, 2015, Walker was waived by the Heat.

Cedevita Zagreb (2015–2016)

On November 7, 2015, Walker signed with the Croatian club

Cedevita Zagreb Košarkaški klub Cedevita Junior (), also known as Cedevita Junior, is a men's basketball club based in Zagreb, Croatia. The club is named after its main sponsor Cedevita, and competes in the Croatian HT Premijer liga. Before its merge to Slove ...

for the rest of the season.

NLEX Road Warriors (2016)

On June 8, 2016, Walker signed with the

NLEX Road Warriors The NLEX Road Warriors is a professional basketball team owned by Manila North Tollways Corporation, NLEX Corporation, a subsidiary of Metro Pacific Investments Corporation, playing in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) since the 2014 ...

of the

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines, composed of twelve company-branded Franchising, franchise teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia ...

as the team's import for the

2016 PBA Governors' Cup The 2016 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Governors' Cup, also known as the 2016 Oppo-PBA Governors' Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the third and last conference of the 2015–16 PBA season. Due to the preparations of the Philippines ...

Third stint with Sioux Falls Skyforce (2016–2017)

On November 16, Walker was reacquired by the

Galatasaray (2018)

On January 2, 2018, Walker signed with Turkish club

Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club''), more commonly referred to as simply Galatasaray and familiarly as Cimbom, is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul including basketball, wheelchair ...

Defensor Sporting (2018)

On March 30, 2018, Walker was reported to have signed with

Defensor Sporting Defensor Sporting Club is a sports club based in Montevideo, Uruguay. Founded in 1913, Defensor has several sports sections, with football and basketball being the most important and the ones in which the club has achieved significant achievement ...

Second stint with Blackwater Elite (2018)

On May 21, 2018, Walker signed again with the

Blackwater Elite The Blackwater Bossing is a professional basketball team owned by Ever Bilena, Inc. that is playing in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) beginning in the 2014–2015 season. The franchise started as one of the founding teams in the ...

for the

2018 PBA Commissioner's Cup The 2018 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner's Cup, also known as the 2018 Honda commonly known as just Honda, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate automotive manufac ...

as a replacement for

Jarrid Famous Jarrid Jerome Famous (born July 16, 1988) is an American professional basketball player who last played for NSH Mountain Gold Timika of the Indonesian Basketball League (IBL). He played college basketball at both Westchester Community College and ...

. He only just appeared in 5 games with the Elite in the

. In those 5 games, he averaged 13 points per game, 10.2 rebounds per game and .6 blocks per game.

Shiga Lakestars (2019–2021)

On February 11, 2019, he signed with the

Shiga Lakestars Shiga Lakes (滋賀レイクス), officially Shiga Lakestars, is a Japanese men's basketball team playing in the Western Conference of the B.League. They are based in the Shiga Prefecture. Arenas * Shiga Daihatsu Arena * Ukaruchan Arena * Mori ...

in the Japanese

B.League The B.League is a men's professional basketball league in Japan. The league is operated by the Japan Professional Basketball League and was formed as a result of a merger between the National Basketball League that was operated by the FIBA-affi ...

Club La Cancha (2021)

On October 22, 2021, he signed with Club La Cancha.

Rain or Shine Elasto Painters (2021–2022)

In November 2021, Walker signed with

Rain or Shine Elasto Painters The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters are a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association owned by Asian Coatings Philippines, Inc. It debuted in the league in the 2006–07 PBA season after acquiring the franchise righ ...

of the

NBA career statistics

Regular season

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Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

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Playoffs

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