IRVING, Texas – Baylor men’s basketball’s Ja’Kobe Walter was named the Preseason Big 12 Freshman of the Year, while joining seniors Jalen Bridges and RayJ Dennis as all-conference honorable mention honorees.
Walter is Baylor's third-straight Preseason Big 12 Freshman of the Year. The Bears and Kansas Jayhawks are the only teams in league history to have the preseason conference freshman of the year in three consecutive seasons. BU is the first team in Big 12 history to have three straight solo honorees, as KU's Cliff Alexander shared the award with Texas’ Myles Turner in 2014-15.
Preseason All-Big 12 teams are voted on by the league's head coaches, who are not permitted to vote for their own players.
Walter follows Keyonte George and Kendall Brown, who each took home the honor prior to their freshmen campaigns in 2021-22 and 2022-23, respectively.
The sixth McDonald’s All-American in program history, Walter played his senior season at Link Academy in Branson, Mo., where he helped the Lions to a 24-1 record in 2022-23. Before transferring, ESPN's No. 17-rated player led McKinney High School to its first-ever state championship game, where he scored a team-high 23 points against Duncanville. In addition to being named the UIL district 5-6A offensive player of the year, he earned a spot on the 2021-22 Texas Association of Basketball Coaches All-State Team and the 6A All-State Tournament Team.
Bridges is Baylor's lone returning starter from last year's squad, which amassed a 23-11 (11-7) record. The senior from Fairmont, W.Va., made an instant impact as one of two players to start all 34 games for the Bears a season ago, while leading the team in rebounds (192) and blocks (35). The senior caught fire in the Big 12 Championship quarterfinals last season, scoring a career-high 28 points on 10-11 shooting, including a Big 12 Championship record .875 (7-8) from three-point range.
Dennis is the latest impact transfer for Scott Drew and the Bears. The Plainfield, Ill., native was the unanimous MAC player of the Year last season with Toledo, appearing in 35 games and averaging 19.5 points and 5.8 assists en route to a regular-season conference title for the Rockets. Dennis was integral in helping the Rockets match a school record with 27 wins, leading the conference in assists per game (5.8) and ranking 10th in the country in assist-turnover ratio. He scored in double figures in all 35 games to finish second in school history with 683 points, while his 202 assists were third-most in Toledo history.
Baylor opens the 2023-24 season on Tuesday, Nov. 7, with a marquee matchup against the Auburn Tigers at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. The game is slated for an 8 p.m. CT tipoff on ESPN.
Fans interested in tickets for the upcoming Baylor men’s basketball season can fill out the Baylor Ticket Interest Form here. Those interested in putting their name on the season-ticket waitlist can do so here.
2023-24 PRESEASON ALL-BIG 12 TEAM
L.J. Cryer, Houston
Hunter Dickinson, Kansas
Dejuan Harris, Kansas
Emmanuel Miller, TCU
Max Abrams, Texas
Honorable mention: Jalen Bridges (Baylor), RayJ Dennis (Baylor), Ja’Kobe Walter (Baylor), Jamal Shead (Houston), Kevin McCullar Jr. (Kansas), Arthur Kaluma (Kansas State), Tylor Perry (Kansas State), Dylan Disu (Texas), Tyrese Hunter (Texas), Dillon Mitchell (Texas), Jesse Edwards (West Virginia).
Preseason Player of the Year: Hunter Dickinson, Kansas
Preseason Newcomer of the Year: Hunter Dickinson, Kansas
Preseason Freshman of the Year: Ja’Kobe Walter, Baylor
BAYLOR'S PRESEASON ALL-BIG 12 SELECTIONS (since 2002-03)
2007-08 – Curtis Jerrells, G
2008-09 – Curtis Jerrells, G
2010-11 – LaceDarius Dunn, G
2011-12 – Perry Jones III, F
2012-13 – Pierre Jackson, G
2013-14 – Isaiah Austin, C
2013-14 – Cory Jefferson, F
2015-16 – Rico Gathers, F
2016-17 – Johnathan Motley, F
2019-20 – Tristan Clark, F
2020-21 – Jared Butler, G
2021-22 – Matthew Mayer, G/F
2022-23 – Adam Flagler, G
