The RamRoll

CATCHING UP WITH… B.A. WALKER
8-13-09

If you want to teach your kids how to shoot a jump shot, show them video of B.A. Walker. From the dead-on footwork, to the seemingly effortless release, he’s a walking shooting clinic. Every shot looks like the last, and looks like the next one. It’s that jumper that helped Walker drain a school-record 269 3-pointers during his VCU basketball career from 2003-07. No other Ram has more than 182.  

Walker was a senior and the leading scorer on the VCU’s record-setting 2006-07 squad that advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. He also ranks 11th on the school’s all-time scoring list with 1,480 points.

Since his graduation, the 25-year-old Walker has played professionally in Iceland, Holland and Belgium. This past season, he averaged 18.8 points and 3.0 assists per game for the Rotterdam Challengers of the Dutch Eredivisie League.
Around The Horns caught up to the former Ram and Onancock, Va. native, recently.
ATH: How has the offseason been treating you?  
BW: The offseason has been treating me real good. My time is split between training for next season, and spending time with my family, girlfriend, and catching up with friends I haven't seen in a long time.

ATH: You spent last year playing professionally in Holland, as well as in Belgium. Where will we see you next year? 
BW: Actually I signed a contract to play this season in Germany, for the Dusseldorf Giants. So, I will be headed there on the 24th of this month.
Note: Walker will be playing in the same German league that features former Rams Domonic Jones (ENBW Ludwigsburg) and Jamal Shuler (Trier).

ATH: How did this season go with Rotterdam? 
BW: The season was up and down, but the team made it to the first round of playoffs.

ATH: How big of an adjustment is living in Europe during the season? 
BW: It's a real big adjustment. It's like you're there on your own and you have to do your job or you will be sent home. So the focus is magnified because this is the way I'm making a living for myself right now.

ATH: Give me a couple of cool things you’ve seen or done in the last two years living abroad.
BW: Well, my first year in Iceland I was lucky enough to be on a team that won the championship, so that was big to me, to win a championship at the professional level my first year. In Rotterdam, one situation stands out where it was a close game, and I was able to get an offensive rebound and dunk on somebody and get fouled, which switched the momentum in our favor. The same game, with three seconds, left I hit the game-winning shot from nearly half court. It’s on Youtube (9:04 mark).

ATH: What is the biggest drawback to playing overseas? 
BW: To me the biggest drawback is only being able to be home 2 1/2 months out of the year.  It’s a long season.

ATH: What is the biggest difference in the way basketball is played outside of the U.S.? 
BW: I don't think it's a big difference, I think it’s just getting used to the players and coaches on your team, and learning how to play with the European rules and players.

ATH: When you’re not playing ball, how do you spend your time? What do you like to do to get away from the game? 
BW: It's not a lot of time when I’m not playing, but if I have some free time I just chill out, maybe catch a movie, I don't do much.

ATH: Who had the greatest impact on your basketball career and why?
BW: My brother had the greatest impact on me as far as my career, because he actually showed me how to play, and he didn’t have the opportunities that I had. So I try to use that as motivation to go hard, and he supports me 100 percent.

ATH: B.A. stands for Bobby Anthony. Why the abbreviation? Any chance you told someone it stood for Bachelor of Arcs or dressed as B.A. Baracus of the A-Team for Halloween?  
BW: (Laughs) No, not at all. It's just a nickname my mother gave me, and everyone knows me by that nickname, and it just stuck with me until now.

ATH: You were a senior during VCU’s magical 2006-07 season. What was it about that team that made it so great?  
BW: The way we bonded made it more special than anything, especially since it was my senior year. I used to always tell everyone on that team that I wanted to win a championship for my last year, and I was fortunate enough for that to happen. To this day I try to keep up with everyone that was on that team.

ATH: Outside of VCU, not many people gave the Rams much of a chance in the first round of the NCAA Tournament against Duke. What was the feeling amongst the players heading into that game?
BW: We didn't want to lose. We knew going into the game people didn't give us much of a chance against Duke. However, we took the approach that at end of the game those people's bracket would be changed a little.

ATH: That game was also the nation’s introduction to Eric Maynor. Did you guys have any idea at the time how good Eric was going to become? 
BW: Of course, I was able to play two seasons with Eric, so I could see how well he was developing and when he had the opportunity he took advantage of it. That's what good players do.

ATH: How much are you able to follow VCU while you’re abroad? 
BW: I followed VCU every game last season. After every game I was checking the box scores. Also, I have a Slingbox, which allows me to watch all the games that are broadcasted for the Rams. During the NCAA Tournament I stayed up all night to catch the whole UCLA game.

-- Chris Kowalczyk

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