Las Vegas Sun

March 18, 2024

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Walker will transfer while UNLV awaits official decisions from Vaughn, Wood

UNLV Basketball Team Faces Southern Utah

L.E. Baskow

UNLV head coach Dave Rice talks with UNLV guard Dantley Walker (30) coming off the court after some good play during their game at the Thomas & Mack Center on Saturday, December 27, 2014. L.E. Baskow.

While awaiting official decisions from freshman Rashad Vaughn and sophomore Christian Wood, who are both considering leaving for the NBA Draft, UNLV coach Dave Rice confirmed that another player has decided to leave the program.

Redshirt freshman Dantley Walker met with Rice and will seek a transfer in search of more playing time, Rice said Monday. This season Walker appeared in 11 games, averaging 2.4 points in 5.8 minutes per game.

“He has enjoyed his experience, but he wants to find a school where he can have a bigger role in terms of playing time,” Rice said. “He has been a great teammate.”

The latest report on Vaughn, a tweet Monday from Draft Express, stated that Vaughn has hired an agent. When asked for comment, Vaughn’s father, Troy Vaughn, backed up his comments from Friday, saying that nothing has been decided yet. Wood is reportedly still gathering information.

Walker, Nevada's all-time high school leader in points and assists, committed to then-UNLV coach Lon Kruger prior to serving a two-year Mormon mission. When he returned, Rice was coming off back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances and the Rebels’ incoming talent level had been upgraded.

Walker used a redshirt two years ago and then served as a reserve last year, coming in for infrequent spot minutes. Against Division I competition, Walker played more than four minutes only three times.

That could have increased down the stretch, but in the second half of UNLV’s Valentine’s Day loss at Air Force, the Rebels’ first game without Vaughn, Walker suffered a knee injury that ended his season. Walker plans to transfer to a smaller school in Utah.

Following sophomore Kendall Smith’s transfer to Cal State Northridge earlier this season, at least two players have transferred out of the program every year under Rice. However, after meeting with each player Rice said he’s confident there won’t be any more transfers this offseason as the Rebels look to build on the experience gained by their freshmen while adding pieces like transfers Ben Carter and Jerome Seagears.

If both Vaughn and Wood turn pro, UNLV would have to replace its top two scorers and would return 38.9 percent of its minutes played in 2014-15. The Rebels returned 26.4 percent of their minutes from the previous season.

Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.

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