In Frank Martin's mind, the choice was an easy one.
If it was his knee that popped, his career in the balance, Martin would have done the same thing Bill Walker did. And he wouldn't have thought twice.
"If I had tweaked my knee in a workout, I would be more inclined to stay in the draft than go back to school,"
said Martin, Walker's coach at Kansas State. "That would be my train of thought."
That, apparently, was Walker's train of thought as well. The deadline for underclassmen to withdraw from the NBA draft passed at 4 p.m. Monday, officially closing the door on Walker's K-State career.
It didn't pass quietly. Reports surfaced late Sunday night that Walker had injured his right knee during a weekend workout at Golden State, prompting speculation that the 6-foot-6 forward might withdraw from the draft.
Walker's adviser, Chris Rivers of Reebok, told several media outlets Walker suffered a partially torn meniscus and would be sidelined three weeks.
Though not as serious as an ACL injury, the cartilage tear could be a red flag for teams already wary of Walker's history of knee problems.
Martin heard about the injury through a phone call from a reporter Sunday night, and he hadn't spoken to Walker as of Monday afternoon.
Even so, Martin never expected the injury to alter Walker's NBA plans. If anything, he said, it might have reminded Walker how fragile an NBA opportunity can be.
"Somebody who has an opportunity to use their body to play a sport and make a living, that window of opportunity gets smaller and smaller with every injury,"
Martin said. "The last thing you need to do is go through a third surgery before you become a professional."
That's why Martin saw this decision coming, why he would have done the same thing in Walker's shoes.
"I've been under the impression that he was going to be a first-round pick, and I knew if he was a first-round pick, he was going to stay in the draft,"
Martin said.
Walker's first-round status isn't guaranteed, of course. Most mock drafts list him as an early-second round pick, and the knee injury means Walker won't be able to participate in any workouts prior to the June 26 draft.
According to draftexpress.com, Walker had auditioned for just two teams — Toronto and Detroit — before injuring his knee at Golden State. Seventeen NBA teams were on hand for the Golden State workout, which featured 24 players projected in the mid-first round and below.
Though Walker won't get another chance to display his skills before the draft, his adviser remained confident he will be among the first 30 players chosen.
"We expect once he gets healthy, three or four teams will still consider him as a late first-round pick,"
Rivers told foxsports.com.
One of those teams is believed to be the Pistons, whom Walker visited for a workout last week. It's even been rumored that Detroit promised to take Walker with the 29th pick, though it's unclear how his injury might affect that arrangement.
"Last week he was getting ready to work out for Detroit, and he was real excited about it,"
Martin said. "Then I heard back that he had a great workout in Detroit. Last night, when this story started breaking, I felt for him."
Ironically, the latest setback comes just as Walker had appeared to put his last knee injury behind him. He'd shed 25 pounds since the season ended, and reports suggested Walker had regained much of the athleticism he lost when he ruptured the ACL in his left knee as a true freshman.
"He was feeling as good as he has felt in a long, long time about two weeks ago,"
Martin said. "He passed every physical that had been performed on him. He was healthy. There were no issues. He didn't go into this whole process trying to hide an injury. There was nothing there. His legs, according to our team doctor, were better now than before his last injury."
The latest twist made for a few hours of deadline drama, but it didn't alter the final decision, a decision Martin had been anticipating since he was hired as K-State's head coach.
"When we got started last year, we hoped he and Michael Beasley could be in school,"
Martin said. "But at the same time, we prepared and expected for them to move on. It's not a surprise to us."
