Former Providence All-American Jimmy Walker, a first-round NBA draft pick by the Detroit Pistons in 1967, died of lung cancer Monday in Kansas City. He was 63.
Walker, who was one of the first college players to use the between-the-legs dribble, led the nation in scoring in 1967 as a senior, averaging more than 30 points a game. His three-year total of 2,045 points was the school record at Providence for 38 years until Ryan Gomes broke it in 2005.
Walker, a 6-foot-3 guard, played nine seasons in the NBA with Detroit, Houston and Kansas City. He averaged 16.7 points per game for his career, including a high of 21.3 in 1971-72. He was a two-time NBA All-Star who scored 11,655 points in his career.
Walker was the father of longtime NBA player and former University of Michigan star Jalen Rose, and at one point they held the NCAA Division I record for most career points scored by a father-son duo.
At Providence, Walker’s game was compared to that of Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson’s. He averaged 23 points as a junior, and led the nation with 30 a game as a senior. His high point total of 50 came against Bob Cousy’s Boston College team, and he was named MVP of the Holiday Festival Tournament in Madison Square Garden.