ORLANDO – Former five-star recruit and 2018-19 Orlando Sentinel Player of the Year C.J. Walker is coming back home. The Sanford, Florida native has signed with the UCF men’s basketball team after playing his freshman season at Oregon, Knights head coach Johnny Dawkins announced Friday.

“We’re very excited for the future of UCF Basketball with the addition of C.J. Walker,” Dawkins said. “He’s a talented player with a ton of potential. C.J. will bring athleticism and skill to our team as soon as he steps on the court. We’re looking forward to having him as a part of our UCF Family.”

Walker was a five-star recruit with a scout grade of 92 according to ESPN.com coming out of Oak Ridge High School in 2019. He was ranked 19th in ESPN’s top 100 for the 2019 recruiting class, while Rivals listed him as a five-star recruit and 24th nationally.

He was named the Sentinel’s boys basketball Player of the Year, runner-up for the Florida Dairy Farmers Mr. Basketball award, and Florida Class 9A Player of the Year after averaging 15.8 points, 13.8 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game as a senior at Oak Ridge.

During 16 games in the 2018 Nike EYBL circuit, Walker averaged 15.9 points, 9.9 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per game and averaged 18.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game at the Peach Jam.

After playing his freshman season at Seminole in Sanford, Walker attended Orlando Christian Prep as a sophomore and junior, leading his team to back-to-back state championship titles in 2017 and 2018. He scored 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds in the state championship game his junior season.

Walker spent this past season at Oregon, where he played in 28 games and started seven as a true freshman. He averaged 4.0 points and 2.5 rebounds per game for the Ducks, scoring a season-high 18 points against Hawaii on Dec. 7.

Walker’s signing adds to UCF’s impressive class that includes Louisville transfer Darius Perry as well as freshmen Jamille Reynolds and Florida Mr. Basketball Isaiah Adams. Sean Mobley, who sat out last season after transferring from VCU, will also help bolster the Knights’ lineup.

Let’s just hope the season is able to kickoff with the Covid-19 pandemic starting to rise in the Sunshine State.