Kenneth Walker (born August 18, 1964) is an American former professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player. He played primarily for the

New York Knicks The New York Knickerbockers, shortened and more commonly referred to as the New York Knicks, are an American professional basketball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The Knicks compete in the Na ...

of the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA). Nicknamed "Sky" Walker, he won the

NBA Slam Dunk Contest The NBA Slam Dunk Contest (officially known as the AT&T Slam Dunk) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) competition held during the NBA All-Star Weekend. The contest was conceived of and started by the American Basketball Associat ...

in 1989. He is currently a radio host for WVLK in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

. Walker played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Kentucky Wildcats The Kentucky Wildcats are the men's and women's intercollegiate athletic squads of the University of Kentucky (UK), a founding member of the Southeastern Conference. The Kentucky Wildcats is the student body of the University of Kentucky. 30, ...

. He was a first-team consensus

All-American The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...

as a senior in 1986, and twice he was named the

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in the

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...

(SEC). He was selected by the Knicks in the first round of the

1986 NBA draft The 1986 NBA draft was held on June 17, 1986. Overview and aftermath This draft holds the record for the most players (out of prospects chosen) who later debuted in the NBA, with 66. Drug and health issues involving drafted players There were ...

with the fifth overall pick.

Early life

Walker was born in

Roberta, Georgia Roberta is a city in Crawford County, Georgia, United States. The population was 1,007 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Macon metropolitan statistical area. History Creek Agency In the early nineteenth century, Indian agent Benjamin H ...

, where he attended Crawford County High School. He was named Mr. Basketball in his home state of

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

in 1982.

College career

Walker chose to play collegiately at the University of Kentucky, where he was named to an All- SEC team four times and the All-American team twice. Walker's 1984 Kentucky team made it to the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament before losing to the

Georgetown Hoyas The Georgetown Hoyas are the collegiate athletics teams that officially represent Georgetown University, located at Washington, D.C. The Georgetown's athletics department fields 24 men's and women's varsity level teams and competes at the Natio ...

. In 1986, Walker set a record by scoring 11 times on 11 field goal attempts in the NCAA tournament.

Professional career

Walker was selected with the 5th pick of the

by the New York Knicks. Walker played for five coaches in five years with the Knicks. On February 11, 1989, Walker won the

, competing three days after the death of his father. He also secured third place in the 1990 contest. However, his success on the court was dwindling, and knee injuries forced him to leave the NBA and join the ACB league in Spain. Walker returned to the NBA in 1993 to play two seasons with the

Washington Bullets The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

as a role player. He played a season (c.1998) for the Isuzu Motors Lynx/Giga Cats in Japan before retiring from professional basketball.

Post-retirement

From 2000 to 2021, Walker was the co-host of "Cat Talk," a syndicated radio call-in show with Wes Strader. Walker lives in Lexington, and is active in the community, doing local radio and promoting childhood literacy. Walker is a member of the 2018 Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in a class that includes former NFL star Champ Bailey, and Atlanta Falcons owner

Arthur Blank Arthur Morris Blank (born September 27, 1942) is an American Businessperson, businessman. He is best known for being a co-founder of the home improvement retailer Home Depot, The Home Depot. Blank owns three professional sports teams based in At ...

References

External links

*
Kenny Walker
– NBA statistics @ basketball-reference.com

– UK statistics {{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Kenny 1964 births Living people Akita Isuzu/Isuzu Motors Lynx/Giga Cats players All-American college men's basketball players American expatriate basketball people in Italy American expatriate basketball people in Japan American expatriate basketball people in Spain American men's basketball players American sports announcers Basketball players from Georgia (U.S. state) Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball players Liga ACB players McDonald's High School All-Americans New York Knicks draft picks New York Knicks players Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball) People from Crawford County, Georgia Small forwards Washington Bullets players 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen