By JACOB POLACHECK
Rising sophomore forward C.J. Walker will transfer from Oregon and elect to play closer to his hometown of Sanford, FL, he announced Wednesday via Twitter.
“As the coronavirus has tragically continued to spread across the country forcing our nation into lockdown it has given me a lot of time to think about my future and what’s in the best interest of my family and our health – both mentally and physically,” Walker wrote via Twitter. “These past few months have been tough on everyone, and I understand this will be a long battle ahead. During this pandemic I’m also heavily dealing with ailing family members who are high-risk with underlying conditions living back in my hometown of Sanford, FL.
“I want to thank everyone at the University of Oregon – especially the fans for the support and the coach [Dana] Altman for the opportunity. I also want to thank the rest of the coaching staff, the team managers, the trainers, my professors, my academic advisers, and everyone on campus that made my year at Oregon so special. To my former teammates, you guys are my brothers – thank you for riding with me on this journey. I will forever cherish my growth as a basketball player, a student, and a person at the University of Oregon.
“There is so much uncertainty surrounding COVID-19, the upcoming season, and even if one will be played next year. I have decided the best decision I can make for both my mental and physical health is to return home to be close to my family and my support system, to continue to train and work at becoming the best person and basketball player I can be, to get back to a positive and healthy mindset, and to keep working towards my ultimate goal of becoming an NBA player one day. During this process I have decided to enter my name into the transfer portal to be able to properly weigh all options while this pandemic continues on. Stay safe & go Ducks.”
Walker, a 6-foot-8, 200-pound small forward, averaged 4.0 points. 2.5 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game during the 2019-20 season. He started in seven games and appeared in 28 games for the Ducks.
As a recruit, Walker was ranked by 247Sports.com as the No. 6 power forward and No. 28 overall player in the Class of 2019.
He was also considering LSU and Miami before ultimately committing to Oregon in November of 2018.
Oregon now has one available scholarship for the 2020-21 season.
The Ducks are expected to return eight players from last season while adding one freshman and three transfers. However, St. Peter’s transfer Aaron Estrada and St. John’s transfer LJ Figueroa may have to sit out next season.
Photo: Oregon Athletics
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