Walker Flowing Through Changes

By Dan Woods - NBL Media
Photo - Brisbane Bullets

It could be a case of third-time lucky for Brisbane import Devondrick Walker. An elite combo guard/forward, his time in the NBL so far has been beset by injuries and a lack of continuity – but in NBL23, the 30-year-old is back and ready to fire.

Originally signing for the Perth Wildcats way back in 2017, a pre-season foot injury meant Walker had to wait until 2020 to step out onto an NBL floor – however his league debut came in South East Melbourne colours, incidentally against the Wildcats.

After an exceptional season in NBL1 West with Rockingham in which he won League MVP, Finals MVP, the Scoring Title and All-Star Five honours, Walker has taken his talents to Queensland to fill the Bullets’ high-profile final import slot.

During his time with the Rockingham Flames, Walker was invited to train with his former team in the Wildcats – an opportunity that helped him prove to both himself and league scouts that he could still be a deadly player at the highest level.

Despite returning to Australia to play with the Flames in the recent NBL1 campaign, Walker has had a career so far that’s taken him on a journey across the globe.

After beginning his career in the NBA G-League he moved onto Italy, France and Latvia around his stints in the NBL, but he credits his time back in Australia with helping him rediscover his love for the game.

“I was in a really dark space mentally in terms of basketball, just in and out of not playing,” Walker told NBL Media. “'Do I like it? Do I want to do this?', I kind of just wanted more of a refresh, [to] just get around some good people, get around some good weather and just enjoy basketball again.

“Towards the middle of the season you started to hear the hype and the rumble and then you’re like ‘maybe that’s (playing in the NBL) something I want to do’. So, originally no, it wasn’t my goal, but over time it started to build into something that I thought was very possible.

“By the time I started talking about training with the Wildcats, I had already found my energy and love and passion back. It was more so an open invite to come and just play. Go play again at a high level and get back to the NBL and just get in that environment. They reached out and opened their arms to me to come in and train.

“It kind of helped me during that little playoff stretch that we had (with Rockingham) because I was getting in shape and playing a little harder, so it helped me get over a couple of those humps in the playoffs. Shoutout to Wildcats.

“Signing for Brisbane wasn’t a long, ongoing process. It was something that I felt needed to happen and I guess so did the Bullets, so it happened in a timely fashion … it was kind of out of the blue for me.”

Thanks largely to the recruitment of Aron Baynes and Tyler Johnson, the Bullets have pulled together one of the most, on paper, remarkable periods of off-season recruitment. Names like former Wildcat and NBL Champion James Ennis and NBA veteran James Johnson were even being bandied around as potential signings before Walker came on board.

While Walker may not necessarily have the reputation of an Ennis or a Johnson – players who forged strong roles for themselves in the NBA for a number of years - his recruitment looks to be an inspired piece of business.

In Brisbane’s two pre-season fixtures against Melbourne United they were without their star trio of Baynes, Johnson and Nathan Sobey, and it was Walker who stepped up and led the scoring for his side in back-to-back wins with 17 and 18-point performances.

“When you’ve been playing as long as I have, the first time I came out here I was 24 years old, there was more pressure then. In basketball there’s no pressure, I just put my best foot forward at this point and you just live with the results whether it’s good or whether it’s bad,” he said.

“If you work on it enough, just put enough time in it’s no pressure. They could have been talking about LeBron James coming in, it’s no pressure for me - I just go and play. Whoever wants that pressure, they can have it.

“Just my experience throughout this league and multiple leagues around the world, my high IQ and obviously my ability to play basketball. That’s what I want to bring.

“I’m not looking to change anything by myself, just play the role that needs to be done on this team and I’ll make it happen.”

Walker’s time with the Bullets has been vastly different his experiences in the NBL so far. From missing an entire season through injury with Perth to linking up with the Phoenix late in the 2019-20 season he’s hoping a near full pre-season with the Bullets can set him up for an exciting campaign on these shores, half a decade after it was first promised to fans.

Devondrick Walker lines up a free throw during his time with South East Melbourne.

NBL Blitz will be the first time fans will be able to get a handle on not just Walker, but this entire Bullets squad – whether they have their full complement of players remains to be seen though.

Regardless of who might play and who might not, Walker is happy he has a chance to help form the identity of this exciting, new-look team.

CHECK OUT THE NBL BLITZ SCHEDULE HERE.

“It's very important,” Walker said of playing in pre-season. “I came in on the back end of the season with the Phoenix who had their core group and their identity with what they were trying to do, and just trying to find your spots, find your position [was hard]. Here, it’s more in that pre-season role so you get to create it.

“Coming into the end of a season, you have to find your place in a system that’s been changed maybe six, seven, or however many times, and when you’re in that moment you have to adjust to that change. On the flip side now I get to flow through every change if that makes sense.

“Everybody can probably attest to this, you won’t be the same team in pre-season that you are in February. To be able to change with the flow, just over the course of the season is positive.

“The Blitz is another practice against formidable opponents, it’s a chance to work on the stuff we’ve been working on over the weeks and see if we can get another win.

“Obviously you want to win, but once you can see the things you’re working on in practice on film against another opponent, that’s always really exciting to go through that grind.

“I’m looking forward to it personally and the different challenges for me to just see that we’re learning and put it out on the court.”