Craig Walker
Craig Walker stands among Chelsea High School’s greatest basketball players—arguably the greatest of all time.
During his senior year, Walker averaged 28.8 points per game, leading the entire state in scoring. The Red Devils captured a Greater Boston League championship in 1981 under his leadership and advanced to the North sectional final, where they fell by a single basket in a memorable contest against Wayland.
The Boston Globe named Walker its Division 2 player of the year (Patrick Ewing of Cambridge earned Division 1 honors). His college career took him through Maine Central Institute, New Mexico Junior College (where he played alongside 6-feet-6-inch Chelsea resident John Fisher), and the University of Tennessee-Martin, now Division 1, where he led his squad to the Gulf South Conference championship and later served as an assistant coach.
At 50 years old, Walker now resides in Saugus with his wife, Brenda, and their daughter, Erika. He attributes much of his athletic development to his older brother, the late Bobby Walker, who mentored him throughout childhood.
“We grew up in the Clinton Court projects and every day we played ball,” Craig recalled. “We played all the sports – there were some super athletes there like Mike Lush, Scotty and Keith Yianacopolus. Frank Mullins, Dave Molloy and his brothers.”
Bobby Walker made a point of including his younger brother in neighborhood basketball games.
“I always tagged along with Bobby,” Craig noted with a smile. “He tried to get rid of me but he never could. We played Little League together for the Red Sox.”
According to Craig, his brother possessed exceptional athletic talent. “Bobby was always in great shape. He was about 6-2. He was great all the way back to Pop Warner but I stuck with baseball. I played freshman baseball for coach Mike Sullivan and pitched a no-hitter and hit for the cycle in the same game.”
Craig eventually focused exclusively on basketball after watching Bobby compete for the Red Devils under head coach Jack Niven at the State Armory.
“I always went to Bobby’s games – I tried to make it to every game,” Craig explained.
Basketball became Walker’s sole athletic pursuit. He earned a starting varsity position as a freshman and grew to 6 feet, 4 inches tall—slightly shorter than Red Devils center Jay Ash, the current Chelsea city manager standing 6-5, who later added inches to his frame while starring at Clark University.
“I dunked on Jay plenty of times in practice,” Craig stated. “Jay was a great kid and a great basketball player.”
Walker expresses regret about never playing alongside Bobby in the Chelsea High program.
“I never got a chance to play basketball with Bobby because he blew out his knee in baseball,” Craig shared. “I was so much looking forward to playing basketball with him. Coach Niven was looking forward to Bobby and I playing together. But he wasn’t able to play his senior year. His knee was never the same. He had two knee replacements later on in life.”
The brothers did compete against each other in basketball matchups at Clinton Court.
“When I first started in basketball, he would beat me pretty good,” Craig reflected. “As I got older and taller – by the time I was a freshman I was already 6-3. That’s when he couldn’t handle me any more.”
Walker became Chelsea High’s all-time leading scorer in boys basketball, showcasing a remarkable long-range shooting ability before the three-point line existed. He earned Boston Globe and Boston Herald All-Scholastic honors and was named GBL player of the year.
During Walker’s senior year, 6-feet-7-inch junior Jeff Hagan, who later played at Boston University, joined the roster. “It helped my game because it took a little bit of stuff off of me. They were double-and-triple-teaming me but with him down low, I could get the ball in low to him and he could kick it back out to me.”
The memorable CHS teams also featured David Rudolph, Joseph Mullaney (the current CHS principal), Dennis Antle, Mark Thompson, Darren Cromwell, Darren Moore, and Richie Maronski. Chelsea won consecutive GBL titles in 1980 and 1981.
Walker scored 47 points in a game against Somerville and thrilled fans throughout his senior season, particularly when he dunked against Wayland before a capacity crowd at Salem High School.
“I think I left from the free throw line,” Craig remembered. “I wish I had it on film.”
Bobby Walker attended the Chelsea-Wayland state tournament game, watching with the same pride he had shown countless times before as his younger brother performed.
“He was an excellent brother,” Craig added. “He had a heart of gold. He would give you the shirt off his back. I’m going to miss him. He taught me teamwork, sportsmanship, to work hard – anything a big brother would teach a younger brother.”
Another Walker may soon emerge to continue the family’s athletic tradition. Craig’s daughter, Erika, is a 5-feet-10-inch sixth grader.
“She doesn’t play basketball yet but I do want her to play,” Craig said. “Chorus and drama are her thing now. But she wants to play volleyball.”