A native of Chicago, Darrell Walker, B.S.E. ’12, helped the Arkansas Razorbacks reach the Sweet 16 in both 1981 and 1983. Walker played one season at the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith before spending three seasons at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville under Hall of Fame head coach Eddie Sutton, where he was named a second team All-American and a first team NABC All-District selection in 1983, a two-time Southwest Conference Defensive Player of the Year and was named to the 1983 NABC All-Star game.
A 12th overall pick by the New York Knicks in the 1983 NBA Draft, Walker began an NBA career in which he suited up for five different teams playing for NBA Hall of Fame coaches Hubie Brown, Wes Unseld, Chuck Daly and Phil Jackson. He was named to the 1984 NBA All-Rookie Team and played for 10 seasons before closing out his playing career as a member of the NBA champion Chicago Bulls in 1993.
Walker has extensive basketball experience at both the collegiate and professional level. Beyond his 14 years as a player is a 20-year professional coaching career that includes serving as head coach for two different NBA franchises: the Toronto Raptors from 1996-98 and the Washington Wizards in 2000. Walker also spent time as the head coach of the Rockford Lightning of the Continental Basketball Association and the Washington Mystics of the WNBA. He served as an assistant coach in the NBA for the Toronto Raptors (1995-96), New Orleans Hornets (2004-08), Detroit Pistons (2008-11) and New York Knicks (2012-14). Just prior to accepting his role as the Trojans’ head coach, Walker spent two seasons as the head coach at Clark Atlanta University, leading the Panthers to back-to-back NCAA Division II tournament appearances.
Currently in his third season as Little Rock’s head basketball coach, he is already causing programs across the country to take notice. Walker was named the Sun Belt Coach of the Year for the 2019-20 season, becoming just the fourth Trojan head coach to earn that accolade.
Walker is a 2003 Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame inductee and was enshrined into the U of A Hall of Honor in 2008. He and his wife, Lisa, a former All-American sprinter at Arkansas, hold a unique distinction as the only husband-wife tandem inducted into the Southwest Conference Hall of Fame.