Callum Baker (188-G-2000, college: Flagler) is a 23 year old 188cm guard that was born in Oakville, Ontario and will be playing his rookie season overseas in Germany with pro A team BBC Bayreuth. He began his basketball career at bishop Walsh High School and then played 2 seasons at Fairleigh Dickinson University (NCAA) playing a total of 45 NCAA games. He then played a season at Flagler College (NCAA2) and then finished at the University of Toronto (Canada-U Sports) averaging 21.6ppg, 3.9rpg, 3.6apg, 1.9spg, FGP: 42.6%, 3PT: 39.9%, FT: 86.0% and in his second season averaged 22.9ppg, 4.4rpg, 3.7apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 46.0%, 3PT: 38.8%, FT: 81.2%. He also has some pro experience with the Brampton Honey Badgers.

Thanks Callum talking to germanhoops.com. Where are you at the moment and how is basketball life treating you at the moment?

No problem, I appreciate you reaching out as well! Currently I’m in Toronto, Canada. Basketball life is great really can’t complain. Just getting ready to really begin my pro career, I’m looking forward to it.

Congrats on signing with German Pro A team BBC Bayreuth. What do you know in general about the country Germany and it´s basketball?

Thank you! Actually these past 2 years I’ve been able to pick up on a few things here and there. One of my teammates from U of Toronto was Lenny Weber is from Germany so he’s been teaching me a couple things about the basketball and the culture. I’m looking forward to trying a doner when I get to Germany. The basketball is high level there and I´m looking forward to growing my knowledge of the game and playing the euro style of basketball.

Have you had any friends, former teammates or opponents hoop overseas and in Germany?

My teammate and close friend over the past two years Lenny Weber is from Germany and grew up playing there. Also a couple Canadian guys, Thomas Kennedy, David Muenkat, Aiden Warnholtz all just finished playing a season in Germany.

2 seasons ago you beat top Canadian school Carleton 56-54. In that game you battled Aiden Warnholtz who played his rookie season last season in the German Pro A. What memories do you have of him as a player?

That was a great game! Carleton is not an easy team to beat and especially with Warnholtz leading that team which went on to win the National Championship. Although I only played one game against him he’s a great a player. Very high IQ guy who can score at all 3 levels and plays at his own pace. Big fan of his game and his career at Carelton.

What was the deciding thing that allowed you to make BBC Bayreuth become your first pro team? What made this offer so enticing besides the professionalism of the organization?

BBC Bayreuth is a great organization that has a great history of basketball in Germany. I was able to learn from my German teammate Lenny Weber, that he’s known them to be a high level organization that has had a rich history within the basketball world. I wanted to be a part of that and help bring a championship to the fans. Of course seeing photos of the town, facilities, and how passionate the fans are it made the offer a lot easier to accept

What did you appreciate most about head coach Florian Wedell besides his advice telling you that Bayreuth would be the perfect place for you to begin your pro career?

Going back to my first conversation with coach Florian he came across as a great individual. He was honest with me and didn’t just tell me the things a player would want to hear. I thought it was great that from our first conversation he was real with me. He’s a great basketball mind as well and that is someone who I cannot wait to play for and learn from day in and day out. I believe playing under him as I begin my pro career will help me greatly!

How big is the chip on your shoulder? You had a great high school career but in the NCAA never found your form and never averaged more than 5,8ppg. Then after averaging only 3,1ppg in the NCAA 2, you made one more change and bang averaged 21 and 22 points per game in the Canadian top college league. You proved you can be a big time player.

The chip on my shoulder has always been big, going back to high school I always played with a chip on my shoulder, I always had something to prove. In the NCAA I never was able to find my form going to two different programs. Although I was able to turn things around at Toronto with the support of my teammates and coaches, I always played with a chip on my shoulder because I wanted to prove I belonged and could be one of the best.

Let´s talk about your game. Your 188cm combo guard. If you had to compare your game to a NBA player who would best fit the description?

An NBA player I feel I compare to would be Damian Lillard. With that being said there’s still a lot more to my game I need to improve on. But he is one of the players I try to model my game after. His ability to run a team while still being an aggressive 3 level scorer is something I want to apply into my game.

You’re a scoring guard. How defined would you call your 3 level scoring coming out of school?

Coming out of school I was able to show I can score the ball but I do believe I need to improve on some parts of my offensive game. I was able to shoot the 3 ball at a high level and from deep, and was able to finish around the rim well with both hands. But I’d like to improve my mid-range game, I believe that is what’s missing from truly calling myself an effective and efficient 3 level scorer.

You’re a player that can fill the stat sheet at ease. What other strenghs does your offensive game incorporate?

I believe another strength to my offensive game is being able to play and move off the ball and space the floor. Having the ability to shoot the ball from deep forces my defender to be further out of position and not in the gap defensively to deter drives. Also being able to get off the ball early and make plays for others whether in the pnr or playing off a closeout situation.

You’re a physical defender that can guard 1-3. What kind of a defender would you call yourself today and what kind of a defender do you still want to become?

I like to pride myself on the defensive end and really sit down and guard the opposing team’s best guards. I like to think of myself as a gritty defender, the guy who will blow up screens and dho’s, pick guys up full court and sacrifice my body at any moment. I want to become more of a vocal point on the defensive end, I think watching more film will help me better understand reads on defense going forward.

On what areas of your game are you working on most right now so you game can continue to improve?

Right now I’ve been putting a good amount of focus on getting to shots in the mid-range off the bounce. Being able to create space and stop on a dime for a mid-range pull up. I’ve also been working a lot on off the bounce 3’s.

You played at Fairleigh Dickinson University (NCAA) from 2019-2021 playing a total of 45 NCAA games. How tough were these 2 years? What did you learn about yourself in this time?

The two years I spent at Fairleigh Dickinson were tough for me especially from a mental standpoint. I wasn’t able to produce and play the way I envisioned myself doing so but it really tested me on how much I loved the game and how mentally strong I was. There were tons of long nights in the gym and early mornings it definitely wasn’t perfect or pretty but I was able to learn a lot over those 2 years and apply it to myself and my game.

In your freshman year you played against NCAA powerhouse Kentucky losing by 31 points. Then you battled future NBA guys like Tyrese Maxey and Immanuel Quickley. You made a three pointer. What memories do you have of that experience?

Playing at Kentucky was an unreal experience, the crowd, facilities, and the level guys like Maxey and Quickley played at was amazing to see. I was able to make a three pointer although I didn’t play much being in that atmosphere was a great experience for me. I remember the arena getting extremely loud for one of our players to miss a free throw, couldn’t even hear the person next to you talk.

Your minutes increased from 6 to 22 in your second season which is huge, but why did you then chose to make the move to Flagler College (NCAA2)?

I was able to play a much bigger role my second year at Fairleigh Dickinson having an increase in minutes. The decision to transfer to Flagler College was wanting a change and looking for a new beginning.

At Flagler you played 19 games averaging 3.8ppg. Your minutes were only 9,8, but you had your moments scoring 13 points twice. How do you remember this season and what positives could you take from it?

This season at Flagler was very tough from not only a basketball standpoint but a mental standpoint as well. I was able to have 2 games where I scored 13 points but my takeaways from the year as a whole I was able to learn a lot. I played alongside a great player Jaizec Lottie who was named with All American honors. I was able to pick up on his moves, movements, and how he carried himself on and off the court that year and applied it to myself.

You then made one more move playing for the University of Toronto (Canada-U Sports) averaging 21.6ppg, 3.9rpg, 3.6apg, 1.9spg, FGP: 42.6%, 3PT: 39.9%, FT: 86.0%, and 22.9ppg, 4.4rpg, 3.7apg, 1.5spg, FGP: 46.0%, 3PT: 38.8%, FT: 81.2% in your second season. How did your game grow here?

The decision to transfer once more to The University of Toronto I was able to find myself and play how I always envisioned for myself. My game was able to grow here due to the fact that I had a great support system, my teammates and coaches all trusted me and put their confidence in me which was a key factor in me playing how I did. I was able to learn a lot from coach Muddy, talking basketball with him and watching tons of film he helped break down the game for me and made me see and understand a lot more reads on both sides of the ball.

You had so many great games scoring 30 plus points on many occasions including 32 points in a 102-100 win over McMaster. What was your greatest game there?

I think my greatest game was in my second season playing at The University of Ottawa. At the time they were the #1 ranked team in the country and had been for almost all of the season. Playing on their final home game of the regular season we found ourselves down 20-1 in the first quarter. We battled our way back and won 76-70, I scored the game sealing layup and finished the game with 26 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists while playing 40 minutes.

How did head coach Madhav Trivedi groom and prepare you best for a professional career?

Coach Muddy was the first one to show me what it meant to be and play like a professional. Over my two years with him we watched tons of film and he really grew my basketball knowledge. He had a great system of offensive sets we ran which were all sets that professional teams in Europe ran. Getting to run those sets really helped my IQ and allowed the game to slow down.

Who won a 1-1 in practice you or Inaki Alvarez?

Inaki and I had tons of 1v1’s in our season we played together. He’s a really good player super crafty and a good finisher around the rim. We defiantly went back and forth a lot but I like to think I have the better edge in our 1v1’s we played.

You also have gained pro experience in the up and coming Canadian pro league CEBI playing for Brampton. You didn´t get much playing time. How tough was it coming from Toronto with 30 plus minutes and playing so much less. What strides did your game make playing with pro´s?

The CEBL is a great league and it really helps USPORT guys like myself gain that pro experience while still in school. I wasn’t able to consistently get tons of minutes but I was able to gain a lot of experience through practice reps, game reps, and just learning from other pros. It definitely was tough with a change of minutes and role but playing with Brampton allowed me to see the game differently. Offensively the game has slowed down a lot for me, reads out of the PnR have become easier to make, reading defensives and their coverages have been a lot easier.

Who was the best player you played against in your life that reached the NBA?

I’ve been blessed to play at high levels throughout my career and have gone up against some really good players. Shai is easily the best player I’ve gone up against, but I would also say Tyrese Maxey and Anthony Edwards are definitely up there as well.

Please name your 5 best teammates of all-time?

Jaizec Lottie (Flagler), Jahlil Jenkins (FDU), Elyjah Williams (FDU), Olivier Nkamhoua (Highschool), Christian Vital (CEBL)

Please list your personal NBA Mount Rushmore?

MJ, Kobe, Lebron, Steph

Who is your GOAT?

Michael Jordan

Did you see the sequel to the classic coming to America? Shouldn´t they have left it alone?

Yeah, I mean it wasn’t a terrible movie but it´s just tough to make sequels. I do think they should’ve let it alone, some movies are better off without a sequel.

Thanks Callum for the chat.