| Samaki Walker at the White House in 2002. | |
| No. 5 Al-Jalaa Aleppo | |
|---|---|
| Power forward | |
| Personal information | |
| Date of birth | February 25, 1976 |
| Place of birth | Columbus, Ohio |
| Nationality | American |
| High school | Eastmoor Whitehall-Yearling |
| Listed height | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) |
| Listed weight | 250 lb (113 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | Louisville (1994–1996) |
| NBA Draft | 1996 / Round: 1 / Pick: 9th overall |
| Selected by the Dallas Mavericks | |
| Pro career | 1996–present |
| Career history | |
| 1996–1999 | Dallas Mavericks |
| 1999–2001 | San Antonio Spurs |
| 2001–2003 | Los Angeles Lakers |
| 2003–2004 | Miami Heat |
| 2004–2005 | Washington Wizards |
| 2005–2006 | Indiana Pacers |
| 2006 | UNICS Kazan (Russia) |
| 2007 | Santa Barbara Breakers (IBL) Al-Jalaa Aleppo (Syria) |
| 2008–2009 | Club Sagesse (Lebanon) |
| 2009 | Shandong Lions (China) |
| 2009–2010 | Seoul SK Knights (South Korea) |
| 2010–2011 | Al-Jalaa Aleppo (Syria) |
| Career highlights and awards | |
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| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
Samaki Ijuma Walker (born February 25, 1976) is an American professional basketball power forward and center. Walker played college basketball at the University of Louisville and was drafted in 1996 by the Dallas Mavericks, where he played until 1999. Walker continued to play for the NBA with the Los Angeles Lakers (2001-2003), Miami Heat (2003-2004), Washington Wizards (2004-2005), and Indiana Pacers (2005-2006). Since 2006, Walker has played for various international and minor leagues.
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Walker was born in Columbus, Ohio, the youngest of seven children.[1] He attended Eastmoor High School and Whitehall-Yearling High School.[2]
The 6' 9" power forward was selected ninth overall by the Dallas Mavericks in the 1996 NBA Draft out of Louisville. Walker became the youngest-ever Maverick to appear in a regular season game.[3]
Walker went on to play for the Mavericks, San Antonio Spurs, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Washington Wizards and the Indiana Pacers from 1996-2006, having had very limited playing time in his final three years in the league. He averaged 5.3 points and 4.7 rebounds during his 10-year tenure, including 6.7 points per game and 7.0 rebounds in 2001-02, as the Lakers eventually won the NBA Finals.[4][1] On February 19, 2002, Walker entered the injured list because of a hyperextended elbow.[5] In Game 4 of the 2002 Western Conference Finals on May 26, 2002, Walker made a 3-pointer at the end of halftime, and by then the Sacramento Kings led over the Lakers 65-51. Although the shot counted, television replays showed Walker had released the ball after the buzzer went off.[6] The Lakers won the game 100-99 on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Robert Horry that tied the series at 2. The Lakers won the series in 7 to advance to the Finals. This shot influenced the NBA's decision to institute instant replay for review the following season.[7]
After the Indiana Pacers released him in January 2006, Walker played in four games with the Russian Professional Basketball League team UNICS Kazan, averaging 7.0 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.[8]
In 2007, Walker joined Syria's Al-Jalaa Aleppo after signing with the Milwaukee Bucks in September of that year.[8][9] With Al-Jalaa, Walker won the Syrian D-1 championship in 2008.[9]
In 2009, Walker signed with Chinese league's Shandong Lions. Walker later played with the Korean Basketball League's Seoul SK Knights.[10]
In January 2010, Walker was released from Korean Basketball League's Seoul SK Knights after averaging 14.1 points and 8.9 rebounds.[4] In October 2010 he signed again with Al-Jalaa Aleppo.
In Swahili, "Samaki" means "fish" and "ljuma" means "beautiful river".[1] Walker has two children: son Dabaji and daughter Sakima.[1] After his 17-year-old nephew Deandre Hillman died from cardiac arrest in 2001, Walker joined the non-profit organization Start-A-Heart, which provides automated external defibrillators to schools and other public facilities.[11] He spent the 2006-07 season forming Life Choices Foundation, a nonprofit aiming to keep youth in inner-city Los Angeles out of trouble.[12]
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