Before committing to Florida State University last June, CJ Walker was one of the most highly sought out point guards in the Class of 2016, but it hasn’t always been that way. “It was a really good adventure to come from having no offers to having 18 and being able to play in the ACC at Florida State.” said the 6’0”, Senior from Arsenal Technical High School (Indianapolis Indiana). Now, as Walker awaits his start at FSU, he is ready to make his name known to college basketball fans all over the country.

 

Born in Indianapolis, Indiana on March 23, 1997, Walker going to Florida State will be quite a journey for the Indiana native. Although most teenagers would be nervous to make such a transition, Walker is ready for the new experience: “To be honest, I’m just excited to be there. I never really thought that I would be somewhere this big or this far from home, so I’m just really excited to be there period,” Walker continued, “They have really good guys there, coaches take care of their players. I want to be comfortable away from home. I’m really excited just to be there.”

Walker’s excitement is also met with high expectations. Not only is he thrilled to get to Florida State, he wants to step in and contribute. “When I get to FSU, I want to get better, try to get to the tournament my first year in college, be a good ACC player for my team, and just win games.” the aspiring player said.

 

Playing college basketball has been on Walker’s mind ever since he picked up the game at four years old, playing with his father. Walker’s father has played a huge role in his meteoric ascent through the Class of 2016. There is no doubt that having a family that supports him has helped Walker in his basketball career, as he says, “My family has always been there for me, my mom, my dad, my little brother. They’ve always been there for me, supporting me through the ups and downs, especially when I decommitted,” Walker continued,  “With the recruiting process, my mom really knew what was best, so she broke down what I’m going to major in and which school had what, what school was better. My dad really helped with the coaching staff and always had good talks with the coaches and myself. We discussed what would be better for me, whether each place would be a place where I could really fit in.”

Even though he held offers from local schools such as Butler and Indiana, Walker made it clear that he didn’t want to stay close to home: “I felt really comfortable with Florida State when I went on my visits, it felt really good. Also, the distance. It’s far away from home. I wanted to get away from home and make decisions for myself. So, those were the two major things in making my decision..” he said.

 

Despite committing to Florida State and being ranked by ESPN as the #84 prospect in the Class of 2016, Walker has had his fair share of hardships. “First of all, just having confidence in myself, knowing that I’m better than anybody else is and just keeping the faith, because I never would’ve thought that I’d have all the offers that I have. I never thought that I’d be able to go to any college I want to go to,” said Walker. “So, it was just keeping the faith and decommitting, having to overcome that. People were just talking about it and I was always getting interviewed about it. I just had to keep the faith that I was going to go somewhere that’s really going to benefit me.”

 

This season, Walker was phenomenal, leading Arsenal Tech to a strong 18-5 record with the chance to improve upon that as they continue through the Indianapolis Section 10 tournament. Earlier in the year, Walker said, “For the rest of this season, I just want to win another state championship for my school and lead my school as far as I can. I also want to prepare for college.”

On March 1st, Walker and Arsenal Tech lost to Lawrence Central High School(Indianapolis,Indiana). Despite the loss, Walker proved to be an incredible leader for his team this year. Leading is undoubtedly an attribute that stands out in his game, as he said, “My greatest strength is probably being a leader and getting my team involved. I’m a high-energy person, and I can shoot very well from the perimeter.” His leadership skills have helped Arsenal Tech become one of the best teams in all of Indiana.

As CJ Walker’s high school career comes to a close, it will be interesting to see how he handles the transition to Florida State and how his game translates to the next level. He is undeniably a player to look out for in the Class of 2016 and in high school basketball altogether.