'07 OH SF Bill Walker (Kansas State Verbal)

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

LINK

Walker admitted to Kansas State

By HOWARD RICHMAN

The Kansas City Star

MANHATTAN, Kan. | According to Kansas State?s Pat Bosco, there are 23,141 students enrolled in the fall semester.
Wildcat basketball fans cross their fingers that five-star recruit Bill Walker is No. 23,142.
As first reported Wednesday morning by The Star, Walker has been admitted to the university but had not enrolled yet in classes, said Bosco, associate vice president/dean of student life. K-State athletic director Tim Weiser said Wednesday that he has been in Indianapolis this week, meeting with the NCAA at its offices about Walker, a 6-foot-6 small forward from Cincinnati and the No. 6-rated player in the country by Rivals.com.
If Walker breaks through any remaining NCAA red tape, he could sign in the early period that starts Nov. 8 and play as soon as Dec. 17, GoPowercat.com reported. That?s the first game of what would be considered the start of second semester on the athletic calendar. The Wildcats play host to Kennesaw State in the first round of the Las Vegas Holiday Classic. First- and second-round games are on campus sites.
ESPN.com?s Andy Katz said by phone that Walker would be a ?huge? addition, but added, ?It doesn?t solve their point-guard issues.?
How did Walker get here? This summer it was ruled his high school eligibility had expired in the state of Ohio. The next step for him to go to a college like K-State was to accomplish at least one of these three: score at least a 21 on the ACT, finish in the top one-third of his graduating class or score at least a 2.5 or higher grade-point average in the prescribed curriculum.
?He met or exceeded admission requirements for the university,? said Bosco, adding that Walker submitted an application and was admitted to the university about two weeks ago.
?We would never have any of our student-athletes positioned for admission, practice or competition unless we first received what we considered to be an approval or authorization from our governing body (NCAA),? Weiser said.
Walker, who averaged 21.7 points and 10.7 rebounds last season for North College Hill High School, was a teammate of O.J. Mayo, who now is attending high school in Huntington, W.Va. Mayo, a 6-5 point guard and the No. 5 ranked player, also could end up at K-State.
Stay tuned on that one.

[osugrad21]

Link

Walker update -- Bill Walker, the acclaimed 6-foot-6 guard/forward from Cincinnati, has been admitted to K-State, according to Pat Bosco, the university's associate vice president/dean of student life.
He might be on campus soon, but he won't be joining the basketball team just yet.
According to gopowercat.com, Walker has been cleared by the NCAA and will enroll at K-State. But the issue was too late in being resolved for Walker to enter the school's short fall semester, so he can't be a member of the basketball program.
He can attend school and officially join the team at the end of the school's fall semester, in time for K-State's Dec. 17 game against Kennesaw State in the Las Vegas Holiday Classic opener at Bramlage Coliseum. In the interim, he can work out on his own and get in shape for his debut.
"He's a prospective student-athlete," K-State athletic director Tim Weiser said on Wednesday, meaning he couldn't comment further.
The Ohio State High School Activities Association ruled Walker, the No. 6 player in the Class of 2007 according to Rivals.com, had exhausted his eligibility, so Walker opted to graduate early from North College Hill High in an effort to enroll in college in an effort to play this year. He passed his ACT, and he submitted an application to K-State.
"He met or exceeded our criteria," Bosco said Wednesday.

[osugrad21]

Dispatch

SPORTS WIRE
Thursday, October 26, 2006

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

North College Hill?s Walker to play for Huggins

Former Ohio high school basketball standout Bill Walker has been admitted to Kansas State, the school said yesterday.
Walker teamed with O.J. Mayo to win two consecutive Division III championships at North College Hill High School near Cincinnati, where he is now a senior but has been ruled ineligible to play. He has close ties with Kansas State coach Bob Huggins, the former University of Cincinnati coach who took over the program in March.
Pat Bosco, associate vice president/dean of student life at Kansas State, said Walker was admitted about two weeks ago but had not yet enrolled.
Walker, 6 feet 6, averaged 21.7 points and 10.1 rebounds last season.
The Ohio High School Athletic Association ruled Walker ineligible in August, saying that he already had completed the maximum eight semesters of eligibility.

[sandgk]

And so the Huggins era at K. State "officially" gets under way with its biggest commitment to date.
I'm sure the rest of those Big 12 schools will be watching these events with more than idle interest.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Cincy

Walker officially a K-State Wildcat

Notebook

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Former North College Hill star Bill Walker, one of the players Bob Huggins pursued during his hiatus from coaching, signed a financial aid agreement with Kansas State and will join the team next month.
Walker, a 6-foot-6, 220-pound small forward, was considered one of the nation's top high school players last year at NCH.
"I think you'd have a hard time going anywhere and saying Bill's not the best athlete on anybody's team," Huggins said Friday.
Walker, 19, who earned his high school diploma this fall through an accelerated program, has enrolled at Kansas State.
Walker will be eligible to join the team Dec. 16, meaning he could play the next day against Kennesaw State.
"He's going to have to play himself into shape," Huggins said. "He's been running on his own, but that's not the same thing."

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Rivals.com (Free)

Huggins talks about Walker and what he brings to their program.

[BuckWrestler141]

If he graduated in the Fall of this year does that mean Walker will have to play at least two years in college? If that is the case it has to make K-State look pretty inviting to Mayo knowing he'd get a full year to play with his teammate who already knows the system.

[JohnnyCockfight]

Originally Posted by BuckWrestler141

If he graduated in the Fall of this year does that mean Walker will have to play at least two years in college? If that is the case it has to make K-State look pretty inviting to Mayo knowing he'd get a full year to play with his teammate who already knows the system.

Andy Katz has reported that Bill Walker will not be eligible for the NBA draft this spring under the current rules and that he will have to stay at Kansas State for an additional year.

I agree with you that this helps Kansas State's chances at landing O.J. Mayo.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

Coming Sunday: Bill Walker

BY JEFFREY MARTIN

The Wichita Eagle

Here's what is certain:
Bill Walker will begin practicing Saturday. He will play in his first basketball game at Kansas State the next day, against visiting Kennesaw State. He will see time at off guard and small forward.
And Bob Huggins expects Walker to have a big impact.
"He gives us stuff we don't have," Huggins said Monday. "We don't have anybody who can make the plays he can make. He's going to have to play himself into shape and has an awful lot to learn in a short period of time, but he's got a very good basketball IQ.
"I think we're going to be able to teach him things faster than maybe you could some other people."
He's probably right, based on the results across the country from rookies regarded as Walker's peers.
Look at Rivals.com's preseason freshman All-America first team, which probably would have included Walker if his status had been clear.
North Carolina point guard Ty Lawson is averaging 10.3 points and 4.0 assists for the Tar Heels, No. 3 in the country with a 7-1 record. Ohio State guard Daequan Cook (16.3 points, 6.3 rebounds) is the Buckeyes' best player right now, the key there being "right now."
Syracuse forward Paul Harris (11.3 points, 7.0 rebounds) wowed the locals in a loss to Wichita State with his athleticism, but that jump shot? Yikes.
Texas forward Kevin Durant (21.6 points, 9.6 rebounds) is, as the kids say, the goods.
And then there is center Greg Oden (15 points, seven rebounds and four blocks), the No. 1 pick in the NBA Draft whenever he decides to come out. Despite a broken right wrist that hasn't healed completely, he's been dominant since making his Ohio State debut last weekend.
Walker is on that level, considered at worst equal to those names.
Truth is, most believe he's superior, and that's why the expectations are so high in anticipation of his first minutes in a K-State uniform.
"We're not very athletic, and he brings a degree of athleticism that we really need," Huggins said. "He can go get it in a crowd, make athletic plays defensively and offensively. We don't have anybody who can do that right now."

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

K-State braces for the Bill Walker era

Freshman says he?s only concerned about his coach?s expectations.

By HOWARD RICHMAN

The Kansas City Star

MANHATTAN, Kan. | The legend of Bill Walker stretches beyond these city limits that include Kansas State University.
Think continents.
?He dunked from almost the free-throw line over two people against China,? recalled Kansas freshman Darrell Arthur, Walker?s roommate in the 2005 USA Youth Development Festival in San Diego. ?I think he can be an impact player right away.?
Walker ? who is expected to play his first game at 2:30 p.m. today against Kennesaw State at Bramlage Coliseum ? is being called in some circles the greatest talent K-State has acquired. At least until Michael Beasley, who is signed for 2007, arrives.

Continued......

[osugrad21]

Cincy

Walker's first start upbeat
Former NCH star scores 15 in debut with Wildcats
ENQUIRER NEWS SERVICES


MANHATTAN, Kan. - Bill Walker, the most highly sought freshman ever to play for Kansas State, scored 15 points in an eagerly anticipated, crowd-pleasing debut Sunday and the Wildcats swamped Kennesaw State 82-54.

[osugrad21]

Link

Walker winded in debut

Ballyhooed freshman sparks K-State to 82-54 victory
Associated Press
Monday, December 18, 2006

Manhattan ? Only one person seemed slightly disappointed in the debut of the most highly sought freshman ever to play for Kansas State.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

cnnsi.com

New age

K-State's Walker part of the next youth movement

We know that Kansas State will be a better team with Bill Walker in the lineup, but the Wildcats will be hard-pressed to make the NCAA tournament in March. Still, Walker's impact on this program can't be measured just on this season alone.
Walker's decision to come play for Bob Huggins in Manhattan has already created an unprecedented buzz for K-State.

Continued.....

[NYBuckeye]

Walker apparently injured his left knee in yesterday's game.

http://msn.foxsports.com/cbk/story/6345662

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

NOTEBOOK
Injury KO?s Kansas State?s Walker
Tuesday, January 09, 2007

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Kansas State freshman Bill Walker, a 6-foot-6 forward, will have surgery on his left knee to repair a ruptured ligament and be out for the rest of the season.

Continued.....