Over the years, college recruiters from around the nation have flocked to the state of Illinois in hopes of tapping into its overwhelming abundance of high school basketball talent. The list of blue chip prep prospects hailing from the “Land of Lincoln” has certainly been a long one, and now there is a new name to add to that group in Willie Walker, the 2006 point guard who has been receiving serious interest from high major programs throughout the country.

“Marquette, Illinois, Baylor, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Texas, Maryland, Iowa, Oklahoma State, Connecticut, Kentucky, Georgetown, Stanford, and Purdue are recruiting me right now,” Walker said. “Louisville and California are starting to get in there some now too.”

Walker said that he does not have any specific favorites right now, but he does have offers in hand already from Marquette, California and Baylor.

It’s no wonder that so many bigtime programs are after the jet quick 5'11, 160 pound Walker, who possesses true point skills, and the ability to create his own shot seemingly at will. His explosiveness on offense is impressive to behold, and many believe will translate well at the next level.

“Mostly I want to go to a college that I fit in they way that they play already,” Walker said. “I don’t want to have to change the way that I play to try to fit some other style of play,” Walker said. “I like an up and down type of game.”

Walker said that he has not been hosted on any formal college visits yet, but he did attend a camp held at the University at Illinois.

The highlight of Walker’s career so far was his strong showing at the prestigious Adidas ABCD camp this past summer, he said. “My AAU coach told me that I was rated as the top guard at the ABCD camp for the 2006 class,” Walker stated.