Jabari Walker's decision to forego his junior season at Colorado and instead declare for the 2022 NBA Draft paid off Thursday night, albeit with a razor thin amount of time to spare.
The Forever Buff was selected 57th overall (out of 58 picks) by the Portland Trail Blazers.
CUSportsNation spoke with Tad Boyle Thursday afternoon ahead of the 2022 NBA Draft, during which time Boyle shared his thoughts on Walker.
“We’re hoping for him to go as high as he can, but more important than how high he goes, we want him to get with the right team, in the right situation," Boyle said. "I learned it with Spencer (Dinwiddie), I learned it with Andre (Roberson) — Andre was picked by the right team for the right reasons and he stuck as a result of it. Spencer wasn’t drafted by the right team and kind of had to find his way.
"Everybody’s different in terms of their journey once they leave here. Jabari is going to be no different. My hope for him is that he gets aligned with the right organization that values what he brings. We want him to do as well as he can for himself and his family, but more importantly, because we care about him.”
For Boyle, Walker's selection represents the seventh player he's coached to be drafted into the NBA.
Walker joins Roberson and Alec Burks (2011), Dinwiddie (2014), Derrick White (2017), George King (2018) and Tyler Bey (2020) as the Boyle-coached Buffs to hear their names called on Draft Night.
Walker will now prepare to join Blazers head coach and Buffaloes legend Chauncey Billups, who enters his second season at the helm in Portland.
In two seasons at CU, Walker 11.5 points and 7.2 rebounds per game, playing in 59 contests with 33 career starts.
The 6-foot-9 forward burst onto the scene as a true freshman in 2020-21, shooting 53% from the field on the year and averaging 7.6 points and 4.3 boards per game.
At the end of the year, he was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman Team.
Walker's most memorable performance in his first year in Boulder was undoubtedly during the Buffs' NCAA Tournament matchup against Georgetown.
In the first-round game, Walker shot 9-of-10 from the field, including a perfect 5-of-5 from downtown, torching the Hoyas for 24 points in Colorado's blowout 96-73 victory.
Heading into this past season, Walker's role was destined to become a lot bigger, with the Buffaloes saying goodbye to a multitude of seniors, including point guard McKinley Wright IV, wings D'Shawn Schwartz and Jeriah Horne, plus big man Dallas Walton and guard Maddox Daniels.
Walker did not disappoint in shouldering a bigger load; he earned First-Team All-Pac-12 honors, averaging 14.6 points and 9.4 rebounds per game, the latter of which led the entire Pac-12 Conference.
His 17 double-doubles also led the Pac-12, while Walker led the Buffs in scoring and rebounding.
