Chet Walker

Chester "Chet" Walker (born February 22, 1940) is an American former professional basketball player.

Chet Walker
Walker in 1975
Personal information
Born (1940-02-22) February 22, 1940
Bethlehem, Mississippi
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)
Listed weight212 lb (96 kg)
Career information
High schoolBenton Harbor
(Benton Harbor, Michigan)
CollegeBradley (1959–1962)
NBA draft1962 / Round: 2 / Pick: 12th overall
Selected by the Syracuse Nationals
Playing career1962–1975
PositionSmall forward / Power forward
Number25
Career history
19621969Syracuse Nationals / Philadelphia 76ers
19691975Chicago Bulls
Career highlights and awards
Career statistics
Points18,831 (18.2 ppg)
Rebounds7,314 (7.1 rpg)
Assists2,126 (2.1 apg)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Basketball Hall of Fame as player

Born in Bethlehem, Mississippi,[1] Walker played high school basketball for the Benton Harbor High School boys basketball team. He graduated from Bradley University in 1962 as the school's all-time leading scorer. The Bradley Braves[2] won the NIT Championship in 1957 and 1960. Walker's speed and agility on the court earned him the nickname "Chet the Jet." He probably is best remembered as a starting forward on the 1966–67 Philadelphia 76ers team, which some consider the best NBA team of all time.

NBA career

Walker was drafted by the Syracuse Nationals in the 1962 NBA draft, and was named to the NBA's first All-Rookie Team in 1963. He followed the team to Philadelphia after his rookie season. A seven-time participant in the NBA All-Star Game, Walker averaged over 19 points and eight rebounds a game for the 1966–67 76ers, who won 68 games and lost just 13—the best record in NBA history at the time. That Alex Hannum-coached team, which also featured center Wilt Chamberlain, guards Hal Greer and Wali Jones, and sixth man Billy Cunningham, ended the eight-year championship run of the Boston Celtics. Walker played his final six seasons with the Chicago Bulls, and never averaged less than 19.2 points and 5.0 rebounds a game. In his 13-year career, Walker scored a total of 18,831 points. The 6–6 forward was an outstanding free-throw shooter, especially in his later years with the Bulls. He led the NBA with an accuracy rate of 85.9 percent in 1970–71, and ranked among the top-10 free-throwers five other times.

On February 24, 2012 (two days after Walker's 72nd birthday) it was announced that Chet Walker was elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame by the veterans committee. He was formally inducted into the Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts on September 7, 2012.

Post playing career

After his playing days, Walker became a moderately successful TV movie producer. He is the author of a memoir entitled Long Time Coming: A Black Athlete's Coming-of-Age in America (1995). Walker also appeared in The White Shadow in Season 3's "If Your Number's Up, Get it Down" as a former Chicago Bulls' teammate of Coach Ken Reeves (Ken Howard)

NBA career statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field goal percentage  3P%  3-point field goal percentage  FT%  Free throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game  Bold  Career high
   Won an NBA championship

Regular season

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1962–63 Syracuse 7825.5.469.6997.21.112.3
1963–64 Philadelphia 7636.5.440.71110.31.617.3
1964–65 Philadelphia 7927.7.403.7426.71.713.2
1965–66 Philadelphia 8032.5.451.7168.02.515.3
1966–67 Philadelphia 8133.2.488.7668.12.319.3
1967–68 Philadelphia 8232.0.460.7267.41.917.9
1968–69 Philadelphia 8233.6.484.8047.81.818.0
1969–70 Chicago 7834.9.477.8507.72.521.5
1970–71 Chicago 8136.1.465.8597.32.222.0
1971–72 Chicago 7833.2.505.8476.12.322.0
1972–73 Chicago 7931.1.478.8325.02.319.9
1973–74 Chicago 8232.5.486.8755.02.40.80.019.3
1974–75 Chicago 7632.3.487.8605.72.20.60.119.2
Career 1,03232.4.470.7967.12.10.70.118.2
All-Star 7117.9.435.8502.61.30.00.08.1

Playoffs

Year Team GP GS MPG FG% 3P% FT% RPG APG SPG BPG PPG
1963 Syracuse 526.0.509.7339.41.815.2
1964 Philadelphia 538.0.390.73910.42.618.8
1965 Philadelphia 1142.6.480.7607.21.620.3
1966 Philadelphia 536.2.375.8067.43.014.6
1967 Philadelphia 1536.7.467.8077.62.121.7
1968 Philadelphia 1337.3.410.6797.41.819.1
1969 Philadelphia 427.3.535.6675.82.013.5
1970 Chicago 535.6.422.8188.42.219.4
1971 Chicago 733.4.440.7087.13.115.0
1972 Chicago 424.3.421.8133.51.011.3
1973 Chicago 732.7.347.8928.92.016.7
1974 Chicago 1136.6.509.8615.51.60.90.120.9
1975 Chicago 1333.2.494.8804.61.81.00.117.5
Career 10535.1.449.7877.02.01.00.118.2

See also

References

  1. Smith, Sam (September 5, 2012). "Chet the Jet joins basketball greats in the Hall of Fame". NBA.COM. National Basketball Association. Retrieved December 5, 2015.
  2. ESPN; Bradley, Bill (October 6, 2009). ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House Digital, Inc. pp. 11–. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2. Retrieved September 29, 2011.
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