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WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Kenny 'Sky' Walker

BY KIMBERLEY A. MARTIN | kimberley.martin@newsday.com

December 30, 2007

Kenny "Sky" Walker would be lying if he said he doesn't occasionally watch ESPN Classic to savor moments of himself donning a Knicks jersey.

Some days he wishes he could relive it all. The successful college career, the solid professional stint, even the 1989 Slam Dunk championship. "I'd be lying that I wouldn't want to go back and do it all over again," said Walker, 43. "Any former player would say that, absolutely. But I wouldn't be that selfish."

As tempting as another shot at glory would be, the former Knick and University of Kentucky standout knows he's serving a greater purpose now.

Walker, a resident of Lexington, Ky., is driven by his community involvement. He often is asked to be a motivational speaker by coaches and teachers who wish to advocate the importance of literacy. By far, it's the most fulfilling part of his week.

"People who know me know that I'm devoted to community. Helping kids, helping them get a better education," Walker said. "When they see the lifestyle of a pro athlete and they have an idol, someone they want to emulate - that's a good thing. But with the literacy program, you bring the other side of it ... To me, that's the most important thing, right there. Getting them to read and focus on the education that's something they can always have to fall back on if basketball doesn't work out."

Sometimes the message gets lost in translation when it's delivered every day by school faculty, but being a former professional athlete seems to do the trick.

"A lot of high school kids really don't know who I am, but if you tell them, 'He's a former NBA player and he played for the New York Knicks,' all of a sudden you got their attention," Walker said. "I got their attention at least for a half-hour because they want to hear about the people I've played against, how did I make it. I tell them by working hard, not only on the court but in the classroom as well.

"You may hope, want and dream but not get there. But you still have to have other options. I just try to keep it real when I go in there. I know that I won't reach the whole group, but there are some in there that I'm going to reach."

Walker also has parlayed his love of sports into a professional radio career. He does pre- and postgame basketball and football shows for Kentucky and is a co-host on Kenny & Kenny Sports Show Plus - a popular syndicated one-hour radio program that airs across the state - with sports announcer Kenny Rice.

"You name it, we talk about it," Walker said. "That's the great thing about doing your own show. Free rein to talk about whatever you want."

Now his voice is just as recognizable as his 6-8 frame.

"I can walk into a place and people will say, 'I know that voice,"' Walker said. "To go full circle, to have people just recognize you from your voice - like, 'I like your show, I like what you guys talk about' - you've gained the respect of the listener. You can tell from the e-mails and the responses that you get from people at the car wash and grocery store, it's a different side.

"I'm used to dealing with the media from a player standpoint and now I'm the one asking the questions."

While he may not be recognized by younger generations of basketball fans, Walker understandably remains an icon among the Kentucky faithful. But he says it's most surprising when he's stopped by fans in New York.

"New York is so big and so much goes on in that city and I wasn't a superstar," said Walker, the fifth overall pick by the Knicks in 1986. He scored 3,128 career points - his highest average was 10.4 in his first Knicks season - in seven NBA seasons, the final two with the Washington Bullets.

"I feel good about my career and I think when people run into me, the biggest compliment they give is, 'Man, we need more guys like you to play on the Knicks, with the heart and the effort that you had.' That was the thing that I felt got overlooked when I was there. Everyone wanted me to be the next Bernard King, but not too many people can be the next Bernard King.

"I'm very appreciative that after all this time I've hung it up, it might still be a big deal to someone who runs into me."