Skip navigation
Favorites
Sign up to follow your favorites on all your devices.
Sign up

Houston announces addition of another JUCO guard in ‘Chuck’ Baker

Houston Sampson Basketball

New Houston NCAA college basketball coach Kelvin Sampson signals after being introduced as the head basketball coach Thursday, April 3, 2014, in Houston, Texas. Houston introduced Sampson confident that he can bring the once-proud program back to prominence and undeterred by his past improprieties with the NCAA. (AP Photo/Houston Chronicle, Billy Smith II)

AP

Having already landed junior college guards Torian Graham and Eric Weary, Houston head coach Kelvin Sampson has once again looked to the junior college ranks as he begins the process of rebuilding the Cougar program. Thursday the school announced the addition of guard Cavon “Chuck” Baker, who played at Lee Junior College in Texas last season.

A native of Queens, N.Y. Baker shot just over 47% from the field last season, his first at Lee after playing 18 games at Florida Atlantic during the 2012-13 season. The addition of the 6-foot-2 Baker gives Houston some additional depth on the perimeter, with L.J. Rose being another option at the point and both Graham and Weary considered to be shooting guards.

“Chuck is a tough, hard-nosed point guard who is fearless. We want to be able to extend pressure with our defense and we want to play pace on offense. He will be really good in both areas,” Sampson said in the release announcing the addition. “It’s hard to win at a high level if you don’t have a point guard that can make shots, and Chuck can do that. In looking all the intangibles I want at that position, he has a check in all the boxes.”

As it presently stands Houston will have just one senior on its 2014-15 roster, with that player being shooting guard LeRon Barnes. Barnes averaged just 3.2 points per game last season. With the departures of Danuel House and TaShawn Thomas, Rose is Houston’s leading returning scorer as he averaged 8.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per game in 2013-14. With that being the case, there’s clearly room for Houston’s three junior college additions to earn immediate playing time.

Follow @raphiellej