CHICAGO – The UIC men's basketball program continued to shape its 2025-26 roster on Tuesday with another key addition from the transfer portal, as redshirt senior guard Chris Walker (West Palm Beach, Fla./Wellington/Binghamton) announced his plans to join the Flames next season. Walker is the sixth NCAA Division I transfer to commit to UIC this spring, along with redshirt junior forward Ante Beljan, graduate student guard Josiah Hammons, junior guard Mekhi Lowery, graduate student forward Abdul Momoh and graduate student guard Sam Silverstein.
 
Walker also becomes the ninth newcomer on the 2025-26 UIC roster, combining the six transfers with three incoming freshmen who signed on with the Flames last fall — forward Nano Barrantes (Des Moines, Iowa/Grand View Christian), guard Andy Johnson (Union, Ky./Cooper) and guard Rashund Washington Jr. (Dublin, Ga./East Laurens).
 
"Chris is a veteran playmaking wing who also offers a great deal of size and versatility," said second-year UIC head coach Rob Ehsan. "His athleticism and perimeter shooting ability make him an ideal fit for our program and another great member of the Flames Family!"
 
Walker is a 6-foot-6, 195-pound swingman who joins Chicago's College Team after playing the past two seasons at Binghamton University, where he appeared in all 62 games for the Bearcats in that span, starting 25 times. He averaged 8.9 points and 3.6 rebounds per game with a .369 three-point percentage at Binghamton, scoring in double figures 23 times, including four 20-point outings and a career-high 30 points on Dec. 7, 2024, at LeMoyne. Last season, he played in all 32 games, starting 25 times for Binghamton, averaging career highs of 11.6 points and 4.0 rebounds per game while shooting .433 from three-point range.
 
Walker started his collegiate career at Little Rock, redshirting the 2021-22 season before playing in 17 games in 2022-23. In that lone season with the Trojans, Walker was a two-time Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Week, averaging 7.2 points and 2.8 rebounds per game with a .360 three-point percentage. He also scored in double figures five times, including a season-high 18 points in 23 minutes at Memphis on Dec. 6, 2022.
 
A McDonald's High School All-America Game nominee, Walker graduated from Wellington (Fla.) Christian School, where he helped lead the Wolverines to the 2020 Florida Class 7A state finals. He was a three-year starter at Wellington, earning first-team all-conference and honorable mention all-state tournament recognition as a senior after averaging 21.2 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. He also competed on the AAU circuit for Florida Pro Skills EYBL in Fort Lauderdale.
 
During Ehsan's first season at UIC, the Flames finished with a 17-14 record and tied for fifth place in the Missouri Valley Conference. UIC also registered its best regular-season winning percentage (.567) since 2004 and picked up four Quad 1-2 wins (second-best in the Valley). What's more, the Flames posted five wins over teams that competed in the postseason, including victories over Drake, Yale, Bradley and Illinois State, and produced the program's second-highest scoring offense (76.0 ppg. – fourth in MVC) in the past 30 years.
 
Details on season ticket packages for the 2025-26 Flames' men's basketball campaign will be available in the coming weeks. For more information, fans are encouraged to contact the UIC Athletics Ticket Office (312.413.8421; athleticsticketing@uic.edu).
 
For more information on UIC men's basketball, fans are encouraged to visit UICFlames.com, or follow the Flames on social media through X (@UIC_MBB and @UICFlames) and Instagram (@uic_mbb and @uicflames).