Clay’s Walker: ‘Our Upside Is As Good As Any Team I’ve Had’

The Clay County Lady Bulldogs are coming off of a 2018 campaign that saw them go 27-9 overall and 12-2 in district play.

That’s a hard year to follow, but Head Coach Matthew Walker believes that this year’s team could potentially be even better.

“Our upside is as good as any team I’ve had,” Walker said. “We’re going to play a lot of people, and each one brings something to the table. I’ve got to do a good job of coaching and getting the right people on the floor that work well together. Everyone’s got to buy into their role and play to their strengths, because each one of them has special strengths.”

One thing you will hear consistently from Walker or any of his player is that they emphasize defense over offense at every opportunity.

“Every day,” Walker said when asked how often he talks about defense. “We spend a lot more time on defense than we do our offense…being a good defensive unit is how much you work together, how much you trust the person behind you, and how much you take responsibility for yourself to back up the person in front of you. I think defense is total team game.”

One part of Clay County’s game that will play a major role, according to Walker, is their speed.

“We’ve always run,” Walker said. “This year, it’s been more about our speed because we do have a faster team. We just have good athletes across the board…we’ve got some girls that didn’t play last year that have really improved. We’re going to play a lot of people and they may not play 30 minutes a game, but it’ll be short bursts where they play all out as hard as they can.”

Basketball is a team sport, and while speed and defense will be emphasized, Walker knows that how far this team will go will depend on how well they work together.

“Everyone working together (will be key),” Walker said. “We’ve got some good pieces and each one has their own unique strengths. Just finding a way to mix those strengths together and to mold a cohesive unit (will be the focus).”