The jersey is different. The campus is different. The conference is different. But spend five minutes talking to Sakima Walker, and it becomes clear that the most important things she carries didn’t change when she transferred from South Carolina to California last April.
“It’s the same thing,” Walker said simply. “I’m Mama Bear.”
That identity — the veteran anchor, the locker room steadier, the player who makes everyone around her better — was forged in Columbia. Now it’s flourishing in Berkeley.
Built at South Carolina, Deployed at Cal
Walker’s path to this moment has been anything but linear. Rutgers, then Northwest Florida State, then South Carolina for two seasons, now California in her sixth year of college basketball. At each stop, her physical tools — a 6-foot-6 frame, natural athleticism, genuine shot-blocking ability — were always present. What South Carolina added was everything else.
“My IQ,” Walker said, identifying the most significant thing she took from Dawn Staley’s program. “Just taking the knowledge I took and learned from that program and carrying it over into leadership as a veteran.”
That’s a meaningful distinction. Staley’s program is renowned for developing players holistically — not just refining skills, but building competitors who understand winning culture, role acceptance, and how to elevate teammates. Walker absorbed that in two seasons, rarely playing but absorbing everything. She was part of a championship team and a national finalist, experiencing what elite preparation looks like from the inside. That education doesn’t expire when you change jerseys.
From Veteran Presence to Cornerstone
At South Carolina, Walker was a trusted locker room presence on rosters too loaded with talent for her to log significant minutes. Staley famously described her young championship teams as a “daycare” — and Walker was one of the adults in the room. Her value was real, even when her stats weren’t.
At Cal, the constraints are gone. Walker has started all but one game this season, averaging 11.9 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks — top two on the Golden Bears in all three categories. The same player who quietly steadied South Carolina’s locker room is now the most impactful player on her team, and the production reflects it.
Cal head coach Charmin Smith hasn’t been subtle about what Walker means to the program: “We can’t do it without her. I’m just proud of how she’s worked and the role that she’s stepped into with this team. We told her that she’d be a big piece of our success.”
That’s not politeness. Cal made its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2019 in 2025, and Walker’s presence as a proven winner from a championship program has clearly elevated the program’s standard.
Confidence as the Final Piece
Walker credits Cal’s environment for unlocking something that was always there but perhaps underutilized. “I would just say my confidence has grown just from coming here,” she said. “My teammates and my support staff and everyone at Cal, honestly, even from outside of basketball, have just continued to pour into me since I’ve gotten here. And I feel like being confident really helps.”
That’s a player who spent two years subordinating her game for the greater good, and is now discovering what she looks like when given room to lead. A 17-point, 10-rebound double-double against Wake Forest and a team-high 19 points on 9-of-15 shooting against Syracuse in the ACC Tournament offer a compelling preview.
The Finish Line and What Comes After
Cal enters Selection Sunday at 19-14, projecting toward the WNIT rather than the NCAA Tournament. For Walker, every game now carries finality. She’s approaching it with gratitude rather than pressure: “It’s been fun. Just being around my teammates. They keep me happy and laughing all the time. It’s my last year, so I’m making the most of it.”
This summer, she’ll graduate from Cal with her second master’s degree — this one in Cultural Studies of Sport in Education. What comes next professionally remains deliberately open. “We’ll see,” she said, laughing. “Stay tuned.”
Wherever she lands, two fan bases will be watching — one in Columbia, one in Berkeley. Both with reason to claim her.
