Antoine Walker
Antoine Devon Walker (born
August 12 1976, in
Chicago, Illinois,
U.S.) is an American professional
basketball player with the
Miami Heat in the
National Basketball Association. He has played for four different teams during his NBA career.
Walker grew up in
Dolton, Illinois and went to
Mount Carmel High School in Chicago. He was a key factor in the
University of Kentucky Wildcats
1996 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship-winning team. As a freshman at Kentucky he was named
SEC Tournament MVP. In his sophomore year Antoine was named All-SEC First, All-SEC Tournament and to the All-NCAA Regional Teams. After his sophomore season he declared for the
1996 NBA Draft and was picked sixth overall by the
Boston Celtics. Walker later teamed with
Paul Pierce to help Boston reach the
Eastern Conference Finals one year, defeating, Philly, Detroit, but then losing to New Jersey Nets (where Walker was critiscised for being outplayed by Kenyon Martin). Walker was selected to three
NBA All-Star Game appearances, including the year when they reached the conference finals were he was voted onto the All-Star starting 5 by the fans.
Nine days before the start of the
2003-04 season, Antoine Walker was traded to the
Dallas Mavericks. Walker was used in a relatively limited capacity on his new team due to the plethora of high-caliber players populating the Mavericks' roster. Included on that team was
Antawn Jamison, newly acquired from the
Golden State Warriors. On
August 8,
2004 Walker and
Tony Delk were traded to the
Atlanta Hawks for
Jason Terry, longtime Hawks member
Alan Henderson and a draft pick. On
February 24,
2005, Walker was traded back to the Celtics in a deal that sent
Gary Payton,
Tom Gugliotta,
Michael Stewart, and a first round draft pick to the Hawks. Gary Payton was released by the Hawks and re-signed with Boston for the remainder of the season.
On
August 2, 2005, Walker was involved in a 5-team, 13-player deal (the largest trade in NBA history) that sent him from the Celtics to the
Miami Heat. On
June 20, 2006, he won his first
NBA Championship with the Miami Heat contributing 14 points and 11 rebounds in the final game of the series.
Over the years, Walker's game has been widely criticized, mainly because of his questionable shot selection. Though no more than an average three-point shooter, by the
2000-
2001 campaign he had become the NBA's leader in three point attempts. Throughout that season, Walker shot 37% from beyond the arc and 41% overall, a poor field-goal percentage for a power forward.
Walker's penchant for shooting three-pointers is thought to stem from his playing for coaches
Rick Pitino and
Jim O'Brien, whose offensive techniques of shooting high volumes of three-pointers became known as the "Bombs Away Offense" among Celtics fans. Walker again led the league in 3PA's in
2001-02 with 645 (and finished shooting an anemic 39% overall). In
2002-03 he attempted 582 three-point shots. However, Walker has improved this in his days with the Miami Heat, shooting a 43.3% from the field. This is possibly due to the fact that teammates
Shaquille O'Neal and
Dwyane Wade often draw double-teams, so Walker frequently has wide-open shots.
Asked once why he shoots so many threes, Walker replied, "because there are no fours."
In addition, Walker has also made complaints over his playing time and role in the offense during his time with both the
Dallas Mavericks and the
Miami Heat. In both cases, the teams' rosters were filled with numerous other all-star and skilled role-players which marginalized his minutes.
Walker was also notorious for performing "The Shimmy" - a move that involves raising one's hands up to chest height while simultaneously shrugging one's shoulders. He used often in his early Boston days after completing a difficult play or a big shot. This was toned down as he matured but was stil brought out once during the Miami Heat Championship run in 2006.
Walker holds two NBA records. In the 2002 playoff first round series against Philadelphia, Walker knocked down six 3 pointers in the second quarter alone, the most ever in one quarter of a playoff game. His other record is a more dubious distinction: In a game against Cleveland during the
2002-03 season, Walker shot 0-10 from
three-point range
[http://www.basketballreference.com/teams/boxscore.htm?yr=2002&b=20021221&tm=cle], the most 3 point attempts by a player in one game without a successful conversion. He is also the Boston Celtics' all-time leader in three-point field goals attempted (2,815).
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NBA.com - Antoine Walker*
ESPN.com Antoine Walker
