During a basketball game, the versatile 6-foot-7 Cameron Walker might check the clock to determine what kind of play he needs to call next.
On Nov. 12, the 17-year-old Ernest Righetti High School varsity basketball player was off the court when he checked the clock for a much bigger play. He sat between his parents in the high school’s College and Career Center surrounded by coaches, teammates, and news cameras, as he checked the clock to record the exact time as he signed a Letter of Intent for a full-ride scholarship to Stanford University.
“[Basketball] has opened up a lot of doors for me,” Walker said.
The room broke out into applause. News photographers clicked their cameras and a feeling of pride swelled up from the tightly packed people in the room.
“This is something he’s been working hard for, for a long time,” Walker’s father, Eric, said.
As he flipped through the pages of the contract, Eric explained that the scholarship covered the entire cost for his son’s college education as well as traveling fees to play on the school’s basketball team. The scholarship was worth about half a million dollars, Walker’s father said.
“That’s a lot of money, son,” he said.
Stanford’s yearly tuition alone is about $63,000, according to Righetti’s head varsity basketball coach, Kevin Barbarick.
Before Walker signed the Letter of Intent, Barbarick addressed the audience and spoke about Walker’s hard work and determination, explaining that Stanford had been looking at Walker ever since the senior was playing club ball as a freshman.
“It really is a wonderful moment,” Barbarick said. “It’s a tribute to all of his hard work on and off of the court.”
The Holdout
Before making the choice to go to Stanford, Walker had received letters from universities around the country. It seemed like every school wanted him. He received letters from Florida State University, UCLA, and Vanderbilt University, Barbarick said.
“I’m still getting letters,” Barbarick said.
Even though Walker was getting offers from other schools, he held out to receive an invitation from Stanford, where he was recruited to be a small forward. The university not only holds a high athletic reputation, but incredibly high academic standards as well, and Stanford didn’t make Walker an offer until his test scores came out after his junior year.
Stanford has a small recruiting pool, so the athletes must also be exceptional students. Walker manages to perform at a high level in the classroom as well as on the court, currently maintaining a 4.0 grade point average.
“Cameron has a great head on his shoulders,” Barbarick said. “If basketball doesn’t work out as a career, he’ll be set.”
Stanford is one of the world’s most prestigious universities, making it one of the toughest schools to get accepted to. In 2013, the university extended offers to only 5.7 percent of its applicants, according to an article published by the Stanford Daily on March 28, 2014. Out of 42,000 applicants, Stanford only admitted about 2,100. The article also states that the admitted students hailed from all 50 states and 71 countries.
Driving the Lane
Walker’s recruitment into Stanford has been in the making for a number of years. The head coach of the Cardinals, Johnny Dawkins, took notice of Walker as a freshman when Walker played for a travel team with the Compton Magic Elite club, according to club founder and director Etop Udo-Ema.
The two programs have a longstanding relationship because Dawkins’ son played for the Magic, and Stanford’s picked up a number of Magic players in the past, Udo-Ema said.
It’s important for talented high school athletes to play on club teams because often that’s where they can get the most exposure. Club teams are essentially all-star teams, so college recruiters usually check out the talent at club tournaments.
“Scouts go there to watch instead of [going to] 15 different high schools for 15 different kids,” Barbarick said.
Walker’s parents learned about the importance of getting their son exposure in Los Angeles after they went through a similar situation with Walker’s older brother, Hunter, who got a scholarship to UC San Diego, Walker’s mother, Trish, said.
Once a week during the Magic’s season, which runs from March to August, Trish picked Walker up from school and drove him to LA and back for practice.
“She’s like my backbone,” Walker said. “She’s always there for me.”
With Righetti’s basketball season about to begin, Walker hopes the team will go undefeated. The Warriors practice for two hours every day, and the team lifts weights together twice a week. Walker lifts an additional two days per week on his own and also takes 500 shots at the hoop every day
“I see him working the hardest he’s ever worked,” Walker’s mother said. “I see him maturing in a lot of ways and realizing how important this all is and not taking anything for granted.”
Contact Staff Writer Aaron Salazar at asalazar@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Nov 20-27, 2014.