sport.wikisort.org - Athlete

Thomas Ryan Walkup (born December 30, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for Olympiacos of the Greek Basket League and the EuroLeague. He played college basketball for Stephen F. Austin State University. Walkup was named Southland Conference Player of the Year for two consecutive seasons (2015 and 2016). Before playing at the college level, he attended Deer Park High School in Deer Park, Texas. Walkup is a native of Pasadena, Texas.

Thomas Walkup

Walkup with Olympiacos, in 2022
No. 0 – Olympiacos
Position	Point guard / Shooting guard
League	Greek Basket League EuroLeague
Personal information
Born	(1992-12-30) December 30, 1992 (age 29) Pasadena, Texas
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Listed weight	203 lb (92 kg)
Career information
High school	Deer Park (Deer Park, Texas)
College	Stephen F. Austin (2012–2016)
NBA draft	2016 / Undrafted
Playing career	2016–present
Career history
2016–2017	Windy City Bulls
2017–2018	Riesen Ludwigsburg
2018–2021	Žalgiris Kaunas
2021–present	Olympiacos
Career highlights and awards
2× King Mindaugas Cup winner (2020, 2021) 3× Lithuanian LKL champion (2019–2021) 2× LKL Defensive Player of the Year Award (2019, 2021) Lithuanian Basketball League Finals MVP (2021) All-German BBL First Team (2018) German BBL All-Star (2018) Greek League champion (2022) Greek Cup winner (2022) Greek League Best Defender (2022) 2× AP Honorable Mention All-American (2015, 2016) 2× Southland Player of the Year (2015, 2016) 2× First-team All-Southland (2015, 2016) 3× Southland tournament MVP (2014–2016) Lou Henson Award (2016)
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com

High school career

Born in Pasadena, Texas,[1] Walkup attended Deer Park High School in nearby Deer Park. He was a point guard in his junior season for the varsity basketball team and averaged 10.1 points, 5.0 blocks, 4.6 assists, and 1.9 steals per game.[2] Walkup also earned all-district honors after helping the Deer finish the season with a 24–11 record. He also lifted them to a bi-district round victory at the Class 5A playoffs. As a senior, Walkup averaged 25.9 points and 8.9 rebounds with Deer Park.[2] In his years with the school, he faced two ACL injuries and a broken foot.[3][4]

In November 2010, Walkup committed to play college basketball at Stephen F. Austin State University for the Lumberjacks. He chose the school because he aspired to compete in the NCAA Division I tournament and they ran a successful program.[4] Houston Baptist was the only other school that offered him a scholarship.[5] Walkup later said, "There was a reason I didn’t have any other scholarship offers besides those two—I wasn't any good."[5] His father commented on Walkup's recruitment, "I'm sure scouts looked at him and said, 'Well, he's a 6–4 white guy and he can't shoot and he plays the four. And we don't need that.'"[6]

College career

Walkup immediately assumed a big role with the Lumberjacks as the team's sixth man during his freshman season. In 18.5 minutes per game, he averaged 4.4 points and 3.6 rebounds. He recorded a season-best 11 points twice, against Tulsa on November 24, 2012, and versus McNeese State on January 5, 2013. That season, the Lumberjacks won a school-record 27 games, winning their third Southland Conference title of all-time and qualifying for the National Invitation Tournament (NIT).[2]

As a junior at Stephen F. Austin, Walkup averaged 15.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. His teammates began referring to him as "The Snake", after establishing his ability for rebounds, consistently drawing fouls for opposing players, and providing scrappy defense for the Lumberjacks. He was named Southland Conference Player of the Year in 2015.[7]

In the first round of the 2016 NCAA Tournament, Walkup scored 33 points in a 70–56 upset over third-seeded West Virginia.[8] He shot 19 for 20 on free throws.

Professional career

After going undrafted in the 2016 NBA draft, Walkup joined the Golden State Warriors for the 2016 NBA Summer League. On September 26, 2016, he signed with the Chicago Bulls.[9] However, he was later waived by the Bulls on October 21 after appearing in four preseason games.[10] On October 30, he was acquired by the Windy City Bulls of the NBA Development League as an affiliate player of Chicago.[11]

On August 10, 2017, Walkup signed with MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg of the German Basketball Bundesliga for the 2017–18 season.[12] In April 2018, he was named to the All-German BBL First Team.[13] On June 21, 2018, Walkup signed with Žalgiris Kaunas of the Lithuanian Basketball League.[14] Walkup received the LKL Defensive Player of the Year Award in 2019.[15] On 27 November 2019, Walkup extended his contract with Žalgiris until the summer of 2021.[16]

On June 11, 2021, he officially signed a three-year contract with Greek club Olympiacos of the EuroLeague.[17]

Awards and accomplishments

Club career

Žalgiris Kaunas

• 3× Lithuanian LKL Champion (2019, 2020, 2021)
• 2x King Mindaugas Cup Winner (2020, 2021)

Olympiacos

• Greek League: (2022)
• Greek Cup Winner (2022)

Individual

• 2× AP Honorable Mention All-American (2015, 2016)
• 2× Southland Player of the Year (2015, 2016)
• 2× First-team All-Southland (2015, 2016)
• 3× Southland tournament MVP (2014, 2015, 2016)
• Lou Henson Award (2016)
• All-German BBL First Team (2018)
• German BBL All-Star (2018)
• Lithuanian Finals MVP (2021)
• 2× LKL Defensive Player of the Year Award (2019, 2021)
• Greek League Best Defender (2022)

Career statistics

Legend

GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field-goal percentage	3P%	3-point field-goal percentage	FT%	Free-throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	PIR	Performance Index Rating
Bold	Career high

EuroLeague

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG	PIR
2018–19	Žalgiris	34	18	16.4	.485	.295	.806	2.6	2.2	.5	.0	5.2	5.6
Career		34	18	16.5	.485	.295	.806	2.6	2.2	.5	.0	5.2	5.6

Personal life

Walkup was born on December 30, 1992, to Lisa and Raymond Walkup and was brought up in Pasadena, Texas.[6] He has an older brother named Nathan who played as a forward for the Texas A&M Aggies men's basketball team from the 2007–08 season to 2010–11 season.[4] Both players graduated at Deer Park High School and played under Coach Louis Means. Walkup has often been known for his beard, which drew the attention of several media outlets during the 2016 NCAA Tournament.[3][5][6][18] Entering that year's tournament, he had not shaved since November 1, 2015.[6] Walkup claimed that he had been asked to shave it, but he felt that it fit in with Stephen F. Austin's mascot, the Lumberjacks.[3] His appearance has also been compared with Philadelphia Phillies baseball player Bryce Harper. He has also been nicknamed "Fresh Cut" by Barry Knight.[8]

References

External links

• Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks bio

На других языках

---

[de] Thomas Walkup

Thomas Ryan Walkup (* 30. Dezember 1992 in Pasadena, Texas) ist ein US-amerikanischer Basketballspieler. Nach dem Studium in seinem Heimatland versuchte sich Walkup 2016 zunächst ein Jahr erfolglos in der D-League für ein Engagement in der National Basketball Association (NBA) zu empfehlen, bevor er in der Saison 2017/18 für den deutschen Erstligisten MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg spielte. Bei seinem Engagement für diesen Klub wurde er für das BBL All-Star Game 2018 eingeladen und erreichte mit seiner Mannschaft das Final-Four-Turnier in der Champions League. Seit 2021 steht Walkup bei Olympiakos Piräus in Griechenland unter Vertrag.

---

- [en] Thomas Walkup

---

---