photo via Scout Archives
A distant 15,373 kilometers, or 9,553 miles, across continents and the Pacific Ocean separate Hobart, Tasmania, from Peoria. The lengthy journey isn’t embarked upon by many, but has become familiar to Callum Barker, the sophomore center who patrols the paint for the Bradley men’s basketball team.
Barker said he enjoyed growing up in Tasmania, a small island off the southern coast of Australia. Almost 45 percent of the island consists of national parks, wild-life reserves, and world heritage sites. His hometown of Hobart is the state capital and biggest metropolitan area.
“Tasmania is probably the most beautiful place you’ll ever go, full of forests and a lot of really nice cities,” Barker said. “There’s not that many people but everybody’s friendly there; it’s just really nice.”
Barker’s basketball career escalated when he excelled on the Australian U18 Junior Championship team in 2013, leading Tasmania to a bronze medal.
“Representing my country is probably one of the biggest honors I’ve ever had,” Barker said. “To put on the green and gold is the top of the top. I did it for the junior side, so my next goal would be to do it for the men’s side.”
While playing for Team Asia-Pacific, Barker visited the United States and got a taste of what life away from the island would entail.
“I’d been over a few times to [the U.S.] for stints of two or three months, so that was sort of a taste of it for me,” Barker said. “So when it came to moving over here for basically the whole year and for the whole four years; basically [my parents] just put the choice on me like if you feel like you’re ready, you can go.”
And so he did, moving to the United States in 2014 to play at Notre Dame Prep in Fritchburg, Massachusetts. From there, he was recruited by head coach Brian Wardle and signed with Bradley in June, 2015.
“If you look at Bradley’s history it’s just amazing,” Barker said. “The culture, the facilities, the opportunity to rebuild or be part of the rebuild back to what Bradley used to be was just a chance I couldn’t say no to.”
Before coming to Bradley, Barker hadn’t played in front of many large crowds, and it was one of the things that he was nervous about coming to Peoria.
“I read about how many fans Bradley had, you know the first time I went to Carver, my heart sort of skipped a beat,” Barker said. “Just looking up at 11,000 seats was just amazing.”
With a year under his belt, Barker learned a lot from his first go-round. As a freshman, he averaged five points and five rebounds per game in 22 minutes.
“Mainly, I learned that you’ve just got to keep your body ready,” Barker said. “You’ve got to do everything you can to keep your body fit, keep strong and just to keep healthy because you play in so many games. You’re stepping out there so many times. You’ve just got to be ready to go every time.”
Over this summer and in the offseason, Barker has continued to improve and work on his game, making sure he is ready to go this year. As a center, Barker will play alongside new centers Koch Bar and Alex Foster.
“My role is really just to go out there and do my job; rebound, box out, be a body inside the paint, get guys open on screens and convert the opportunities I have to convert,” Barker said. “If it comes into me in the paint, I’ll put it in the hoop; otherwise, I’ve just got to stay with the plan and run plays and get guys open by setting good screens and just being tough.”
After college, Barker has a variety of goals. First, he’d like to become a member of the Australian men’s national team, much like one of his basketball role models Aron Baynes.
“He has a strong body, and he’s not afraid,” Barker said. “They call him ‘The Big Banger’ because he’s not afraid to go in there and hit people. That’s really what I want to play like. He’s made a good career of it, and if I can even make half of his career, I’d be happy.”
As a community wellness major, his other focus is helping people live healthy lifestyles.
“My interest is in health,” Barker said. “Ultimately, I just want to help people, whether that’s athletes or people in general just live healthier lifestyles. Especially the way the world’s going now with fast food and the average body weight going up. I feel like it’s a place where you can really help people live healthier lifestyles.”
Off the court, Barker is enjoying life at Bradley. His 6’9” frame is hard to miss on campus, and students have gotten to know him as somewhat of a “gentle giant,” but on the court he’s anything but.
“A lot of people call me that, but I don’t want to get that nickname on the court,” Barker said. “I always grew up with my mom saying, ‘Treat other people how you want to be treated,’ and ‘If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say it.’ Off the court, I like to be friendly to everyone. It never hurts to make friends, to make connections with everybody you know, but on the court, I definitely don’t see myself as a friendly giant. I want to be the guy that people are scared to play against because they know they’re going to get bruised up.”
Barker has already come a long way. He continues to represent his family and country with pride, and he couldn’t be more excited for the new journey in year two with the Braves this season.
