The Most Impactful Kentucky Wildcat Basketball Players (1981-1982-Present): #10 Antoine Walker
By Danielle
Antoine Walker
1994-1996
Mount Carmel (Chicago, Illinois
Prior to attending Kentucky, Antoine Walker was named both a McDonald’s and Parade All-American. He was also the Gatorade Player of the Year for Illinois.
At Kentucky, he was named as the SEC Tournament MVP during his freshman season.
The next year, in which UK would take home their 6th NCAA Basketball championship trophy, Walker was named to the All-NCAA Regional team, the All-SEC First Team by the AP and Coaches, and the All-SEC Tournament team for the second season in a row.
UK Stats
1994-95: 7.8 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 259 points
1995-96: 15.2 PPG, 8.4 RPG, 547 points
The power forward would leave Kentucky after his sophomore season for the NBA, where the Boston Celtics drafted him with the 6th overall pick. He was named to the 1996-97 All-Rookie Team (1st).
In his NBA career, he would play in 3 All-Star games (1998, 2002, 2003). His sole NBA Championship game with the Miami Heat in 2006.
Walker’s NBA career lasted from 1996 until 2008. He tried making a comeback to the NBA, as recently as this past year when he played for the Idaho Stampede in the D-League but ultimately, he decided to retire this past year. SI had a feature story that focused on Walker this past March.
NBA Stats:
Points: 15,647 (17.5 PPG)
Rebounds: 6,891 (7.7 RPG)
Assists 3,170 (3.5 APG)