Get to know Ja'Kobe Walter
Ja'Kobe Walter sat down with Andy Katz to break down the elements of his game that earned him Big 12 conference honors and the skills he's developing to get ready for his NBA career.
Overview
As a high school junior in McKinney, TX, Walter won the state championship. For his senior campaign, he transferred to Link Academy in Branson, MO where he was selected to play in the 2023 McDonald’s All-American Boys Game and for Team USA in the Nike Hoops Summit. A five-star recruit, he committed to playing college ball for Baylor. During the 2023-24 season, Walter was named Big 12 Freshman of the Year and voted Third-Team All-Big 12. Across his 35 appearances, he averaged 14.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.1 steals in 32.3 minutes.
Analysis
First and foremost, Walter is a three-point shooter. Of his 10.9 shot attempts per game, 6.3 of them came from distance. He drained 2.1 per game at 34.1 percent. While that’s not an elite number, he took plenty of difficult movement triples. He’s capable of pump faking and driving off his three-point threat, but he’s not a top-shelf athlete and needs to work on his finishing around the basket. He’ll often pump fake to push in and shoot a mid-ranger. Taking a step forward as a ballhandler and passer would do wonders for his potential. Defensively, Walter struggles from a lack of footspeed and may be better off guarding bigger players given his 6-foot-10 wingspan on a 6-foot-5 frame.
Projection
Walter’s gravity as a three-point shooter, especially one who can move off-ball, should be valuable to any NBA franchise. At the very least, he could operate as a specialist. If he can continue developing as a playmaker and defender, Walter could grow into a role similar to Devin Vassell. While Walter may not project as a primary offensive engine, he could develop into someone who can run secondary actions and make tough jumpers near the end of the shot clock.
— Profile by RotoWire