Sakima Walker took the long way to Columbia. Two seasons at Rutgers that did not go according to plan. A detour to the JUCO level for one season at Northwest Florida State College. Another try at the transfer portal.

And now after everything, a chance for the 6-foot-5 forward to play at one of the premier programs in the country.

“It was a good experience,” Walker said. “At first I kind of looked at it as being backwards, but I think it helped me kind of get back to where I want to be. I was the oldest, so it allowed me to be put in a leadership role, and I can just carry that with me here. The change of pace is different, being [at a] high pace and going down and coming back up, so I’m adjusting.”

Walker was the NJCAA Player of the Year last season, helping the Raiders win the JUCO National Championship last season with 16.7 points and 8.2 rebounds per game last season. Here is more to know about the big with two more years of collegiate eligibility.

Walker knew she wanted to get back to the Division I ranks after her dominant JUCO season, and had plenty of options. After being courted by schools around the country she said she narrowed her final two options down to South Carolina and Ole Miss before going with the Gamecocks.

“I would say just being coached by the greatest," she said about the decision. "Just the notoriety around South Carolina, and just the platform that they’re on and that they’ve built. I think it was good with me being off the scene for three years, I think it was good for me to be on that platform so I can get where I want to be.”

Her desire to play under Dawn Staley was a strong piece of the puzzle, but the first domino on her path to South Carolina was actually her tie with another member of the coaching staff.

“Coach [Jolette] Law had actually recruited my teammate in high school Jordan Horston and she saw me working out," she said. "She asked my high school coach who I was. She saw my name and heard about me in the JUCO circuit and asked, 'is this the same girl?' And then my coach called me one day and said he got a phone call from Dawn.”

“I would say I’m definitely very versatile. I can shoot, step out, mid-range, 3s, rebound, post-up. A little bit of everything.”

Walker's year in junior college was a gamble at the time, one born out of two seasons in Piscataway that did not go her way. Between COVID and a head coaching change she never quite found her footing at Rutgers, and she knew it.

"I was dealing with some things at Rutgers mentally," she said. "So I just fell off academically and I dug myself in a really deep hole, so coming back from that I just had to go JUCO because I wasn’t eligible to transfer."

Not only did Walker find her voice on the basketball court at Northwest Florida State College, she found her way back to her best self in the classroom. She took 21 credit hours of summer courses when she arrived to catch up, the start of an academic year she still beams about to this day.

"I got back on track," she said with a big smile. "I was on the President’s list, Dean’s list, graduated with honors. I’m proud of that, and I’m better now.”

Her one year at JUCO could not have gone better in terms off team results, personal accolades or personal growth. Now she is ready to take all of it to a South Carolina team that will need to replace post production after losing Aliyah Boston and Victaria Saxton to the WNBA.

Walker is ready.

“I would say leadership," she said when asked what her biggest growth was at JUCO. "I really found my voice there being the oldest. I would say just teaching and helping my younger teammates and stuff, it really allowed me to dive into the game and digest it to pieces and really focus on what I can work on.”

****************************************************************************************

Looking for a place to talk about South Carolina women's basketball all throughout the offseason? Subscribe to the insider's forum.