Know Your Team: O'Louis McCullough & Deshaunt Walker
A journeyman veteran and a player in his sophomore season. Aside from their reliability on the court, the biggest thing they have in common - they are both new to both the NBL Canada and the Cape Breton Highlanders.
O'Louis McCullough
6’6
Forward
From Goose Creek, South Carolina
For O'Louis McCullough, basketball is something that runs in the family - he is the half-brother of 2004 NBA Most Valuable Player Kevin Garnett and cousin to Shammond Williams, a highly experienced European player and veteran of seven NBA teams.
A big rebounder and high scorer for the Francis Marion Patriots, McCullough was the number one pick of the 2005 World Basketball Association draft, chosen by the Anderson Heat. This would be the start of a long and well-travelled basketball journey.
Mexico has been the place where McCullough has seen his most time on court, having played in the country for six different teams: Astros de Tecate, Osos de Guadelajara, Correciamos Victoria, Angeles de Acapulco, Frayles de Guasave and three separate spells with Fuerza Guinda de Nogales.
He has also played for four teams in Argentina: Atletico Lanus, Ciclista Olimpico, Salta Basket and Comodoro Rivadavia, for whom he appeared in the 2016 Liga Sudamericana. He made another appearance in the Liga Sudamericana the following year with Paraguayan team Olimpia Kings, who reached the semi-finals of the competition.
In addition, he has played in the British Basketball League for the Chester Jets and for Colo-Colo in Chile. Having appeared all over the Americas, his time in Canada has been a long time coming. Signing with the Cape Breton Highlanders ahead of the 2018-19 season, McCullough has earned 13 starts so far and is among the best three-point percentage shooters in the league.
Deshaunt Walker
6'0
Guard
From Patterson, New Jersey
A state champion with at Springbrook High School in Montgomery County, Maryland, Walker went on to play two seasons with the South Plains Texans. In his second year, he helped South Plains win the conference title their second-ever NJCAA championship.
He then transferred to the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks in Nacogdoches, Texas, where he saw mostly rotation minutes, but made them count. In his senior year he averaged 11.6 points per game and made it to the NCAA Division 1 tournament, where the Lumberjacks won their second-round game against the VCU Rams in overtime, before falling 77-60 to UCLA in the next phase.
From there, Walker was drafted in the 2015 NBA D-League Draft 90th overall by the Sioux Falls Skyforce. He was next seen in action in 2016, when he joined Angra in Portugal's Proliga. Finishing the season on 22.2 points per game and 52% field goal shooting, he was named the league's newcomer of the year and to the first team.
A late comer to the 2018-19 NBL Canada season, Walker wasted no time in making his presence felt. After just eight appearances for the Cape Breton Highlanders, he has averaged 15.9 points per game on 50% field shooting.
Pictures: Jose Jimenez Tirado, Denis Poroy
