C.J. Walker Will Continue To Be Buckeyes' Sixth Man

Walker has become one of the most reliable reserve players in the country, despite playing through injury this year.

Author:
Brendan Gulick
Feb 16, 2021 8:30 PM EST

C.J. Walker is arguably the most steady player for the Buckeyes.

Walker tends not to panic in chaotic situations and despite the fact that Ohio State nearly won every game without him while he nursed a hand injury, his presence on the floor was definitely missed.

As the season progressed and his pain tolerance enabled him to get back on the floor, the Buckeyes have found a way to keep heavily him involved - but he hasn't started a single one of the six games since returning from that injury.

That said, he's playing approximately 25.5 minutes per game in the last six games, while contributing eight points and four assists per game. His defense has been terrific and he continues to make good decisions with the ball; only once all season has he posted more turnovers than assists.

But the fact of the matter is, the Buckeyes have found a starting rotation that seems to be working quite well - even if they aren't out there on the floor all that often as they game progresses.

“He’ll start on senior day, but I think for us, he’s in a really good rhythm right now and his minutes are about the same (as if he was starting),” head coach Chris Holtmann said yesterday on his weekly radio show. “I think for him, as long as he stays in that rhythm than I could see us continuing that for sure. It’s always game-to-game and moment-to-moment. Our other guys, we are playing a lot of guys right now. As long as guys continue to embrace what’s being asked of them and play their role at a high level, want to continue to play a large number of guys.”

Even though he's contributing on a nightly basis, Walker is still dealing with the injury. He torn several ligaments in his non-shooting hand during an intra-squad scrimmage back in November and he hasn't been able to get healthy ever since then. There were high expectations for Walker this year because of losing Abel Porter before the season started, and because Walker and Kyle Young were the team's best returning leaders.

Even when he hasn't been able to be on the floor, Walker was still a vocal leader on the bench and was actively involved in team huddles. Holtmann praised him earlier in the season for his willingness to hang in there mentally. Now, it's all about pain management and figuring out how he can best handle the rigors of preparing for the next opponent while getting appropriate rest and rehab.

“Some of that was a situation where he thought he might be able to be out for a little bit and manage it all right,” Holtmann said. “I think he just missed it so bad that he was like, ‘Hey, if I've got to come back a little bit early, I've got to come back a little bit earlier. I don't want to be out.’ I think everybody understands this is his last year. He's going to go on and play professionally after this. He wanted to play in every game. So I think he was balancing that with the normal health. And he had to get cleared by the doctor and reevaluated by the hand surgeon, all that. But once he got the OK, I think he was just anxious to get back.”

Even though his is one of the most respected voices on the team, Walker will still continue to come off the bench now that the Buckeyes are on a roll and currently boast a No. 4 national ranking. They have two huge matchups this week with a Penn State team (in a classic trap game) before hosting No. 3 Michigan on Sunday.

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