After picking up an offer from Kansas earlier this week, the UAA’s leading scorer, MJ Walker continues to have the summer of a lifetime. Already attending the Steph Curry Select Camp last month and being invited to the Under Armour All-American Camp, Walker has left no doubt that he is an elite player in the Class of 2017. “I don’t really worry about rankings because that’s somebody else’s opinion,” explained the 6’5” shooting guard. “What I can control is how hard I work. I’m going to keep doing that and the results will show.”

 

This summer, the results have shown. With offers from over 25 schools already, Walker has his fair share of schools to choose from, but that won’t stop him from taking his time with the process. “I’m thinking about committing towards the end of the next school year or maybe even after that.”

Last month, Walker named Maryland, Ohio State, and Florida State as the schools recruiting him the hardest, and has visited all three schools. As the July evaluation period heats up, Walker is focused on perfecting his game, while leaving the recruiting to his father. “My dad handles most of it.” Walker continued. “Now, he’s starting to put it on me now, as far as talking to the coaches.”

As Walker begins to take more control over the recruiting process, expect him to be more active in his talks with coaches. While three schools are recruiting him the hardest now, there is definitely time for other schools to improve their standing.

 

Between his time focusing on the recruiting process, and playing with his UAA team, Atlanta Xpress (GA), it is amazing that Walker is also a highly recruited football player. With offers from schools such as Clemson, Florida, Miami, among others, Walker has the opportunity to play college football, but right now, it doesn’t look likely, as he says, “I don’t think I’m gonna play football in college.  I’m not saying that I’m done playing football, but just not right now. Who knows? I may go back.”

While not ruling out the possibility of playing college football, it is clear that basketball is his main priority. When Walker first began playing basketball at the age of two, nobody could’ve expected he’d make it this far. Taught the game by his father, Walker had to overcome some early struggles in his game. “When I was younger, I used to turn the ball over a lot and my handle wasn’t as strong.” explained the high school senior. “My dad was on my side and he kept telling me to keep working, regardless of what people say. Just keep working and it will all work out for you.”

 

Playing better than he has before, Walker is showing the nation that he can compete with anyone in the country. Ranked by ESPN as being the 18th ranked player in the Class of 2017, Walker is gearing up for his senior season at Jonesboro High School (Jonesboro,GA), where he hopes to become more involved in the recruiting process and finish off his high school career with a bang. With numerous schools in the mix for the 5-Star guard, it will be interesting to see where he ends up.

MJ Walker may be a top-20 player in his class, but if he hopes to continue this success, the journey starts now. However that journey is definitely something that he is prepared for, as he says, “, I’m doing this for my family. I don’t come from a lot, so I’m working as hard as I can to better myself, not only on the court but off the court as well. I’m trying to be a great person and be great at everything I do.”