Erving Walker close to shooting his way into UF's 1,000-point club
Thursday, January 6, 2011 | Men's Basketball, Softball, Scott Carter
First impressions can be difficult to overcome. That hasn't been a problem for Gators junior guard Erving Walker.
What did teammate Chandler Parsons first think when he met Walker?
“This guy is little,'' Parsons said Thursday.
Florida coach Billy Donovan has heard that assessment many times over, including when he was recruiting Walker out of Christ the King High in New York City. While others backed off because of Walker's height – or lack thereof – Donovan made room for him on the roster.
“Everybody's first concern is: this guy is 5-foot-8 – on a good day,'' Donovan said. “Erving has really come in here and earned his way.''
Walker, who for the record is listed at 5-8, 171 pounds, is nearing a milestone that only 46 players in school history have reached: 1,000 career points. Walker needs 14 points entering Saturday's SEC opener against Ole Miss at the O'Connell Center.
Based on his recent production, Walker is a good bet to reach the milestone against the Rebels. He has averaged 18.3 points and shot 50 percent (13 of 26) from three-point range over the last four games.
Walker leads the Gators in scoring at 13.9 points, which might not be ideal for a team's point guard, but Walker's role has always been defined by grayness. He played both point guard and shooting guard in high school, and the same has unfolded at Florida.
He spent most of his freshman season at shooting guard, backing up starters Walter Hodge and Nick Calathes. When Calathes left to play professionally in Greece and Hodge graduated, Walker became the Gators' point guard last season.
When he arrived on campus, Walker was behind Hodge, Calathes and Jai Lucas on the depth chart. He also arrived in the same recruiting class as guard Ray Shipman, Florida's Mr. Basketball in 2008.
Two and a half years later, Walker is the only one still around.
“He has handled it all very, very well,'' Donovan said. “He's a great kid to coach. He works very, very hard. He has a toughness about him, a competitiveness about him, that I love. He is shooting the ball well and playing with a high level of confidence.''
It didn't take Parsons long to become a believer that Walker's height was not a detriment.
“I saw him shoot the ball, and he could really shoot the ball,'' Parsons said. “I'd always played with Nick, so I had always played with a 6-5, 6-6 point guard. So it was different at first, but he has really held his own. He has hit some huge shots for us.
“He's a point guard but he can score the ball. He has incredible range and he can really put the ball in the bucket. Game on the line, he's got ice in his veins on the free-throw line.''
Walker has scored in double-figures in 11 of Florida's 14 games this season. Donovan wants him to cut down on his turnovers so he can rack up more assists.
When Walker records five or more assists like he did in Monday's win over Rhode Island, the Gators are 22-2.
As for joining the Gators' 1,000-point club, Walker isn't interested in tooting his own horn. That's not his style. He's not only the shortest player on the team, but perhaps the most soft-spoken.
“That really doesn't like mean a whole lot to me,'' Walker said. “I play a lot of minutes, since I was a freshman, so that kind of comes along with the territory. I mean, it's nice to have, but it's not a big deal to me.''
