Draft Prospect Profile: MB Amiree Hendricks-Walker

Hendricks-Walker is one heck of a success story from the transfer portal.

Image courtesy of Iowa State Athletics

Among the breakout stars of college volleyball last season was Amiree Hendricks-Walker. The Iowa State middle was a virtual unknown a calendar year ago — an incoming transfer not even guaranteed a starting spot on her own team — but Hendricks-Walker is satisfied with nothing less than excellence. By the end of the season, she had carved her way to a spot on the All-Big 12 second team.

“I'm a deep thinker, very analytical, and I like to understand how things work and why things work. I'm super driven. I love self-improvement and getting to know myself better,” she said in a January interview.

That drive for self-improvement led Hendricks-Walker to take what she described as a “humongous risk” in transferring away from South Florida. After taking a season off due to injury, there was no guarantee that she’d land in a better situation than what she had in Tampa. There, she had all the perks of an athletic scholarship and a leading role on her team. Only one thing was missing: the satisfaction of playing Power Five ball. So, she hit the portal.

“I was actually told a bunch of times that, with my film, I probably wouldn't go Power Five. That's honestly what I got most of the time. Power Fives just weren't coming through,” she said.

The process of transferring took until the last moment and it came down to two high-major schools who were willing to give her a chance, Ole Miss and Iowa State. She picked Iowa State. However, her journey wasn’t over.

“I was kind of just another player that was supposed to be on the bench because they didn't have enough film for me. They didn't offer me a full ride, either. I had to walk on that first semester and essentially prove myself,” said Hendricks-Walker.

Realistically, as a walk-on, the chances that she would earn a meaningful role on her new squad were slim. To pull it off, step one would be to make a big impression in spring camp, and that’s exactly what she did.

“There just wasn’t a lot of recent film on her, so we went back and I liked her arm first of all. I think that’s what I noticed right away, just the power,” remembered head coach Christy Johnson-Lynch. “I was surprised when she came in and, not knowing what she could do. By the end of her first spring, I thought, ‘Man, this person could become a really nice player for us.’ By the end of spring, she was hitting at a really high clip and looked really physical out there, comfortable and confident. I think we all had a little bit of a clue by the end of her first spring.”

The team rewarded her with a scholarship and a change to prove that her spring performance was no fluke. Hendricks-Walker didn’t let them down. She finished the year as one of the team’s most potent offensive options, hitting .330 with little fluctuation in her efficiency across 388 offensive touches. In other words, in the face of the hardest competition she had ever faced, she managed to play the best ball of her life.

What makes Hendricks-Walker tick is a straightforward play style, almost daring the block to beat her. She loves to hit the zero tempo ball, outclassing the competition with play speed. “She's got one of the best arm swings, arm speed, power of middles I’ve coached,” said Johnson-Lynch. “She can have nights when you're not going to stop her no matter what you do. She can be a pretty dominant offensive middle.”

She also lives in the right brain space to make an impact on the court. She’s a lead by example type with the determination and unflappable nature you need from a high level contributor. “I'd say that I'm level-headed when it comes to making decisions that you have to make in a split second. In game, I'm never down very long. I move on to the next thing, and I'm ready for the next play,” she said.

Hendricks-Walker doesn’t believe in perfection, though. “I'm always open to feedback. I've always been told that I'm a very coachable person, and so I do take pride in that as well,” she added. When I asked her where she would like to improve herself during her final year of college ball, she discussed nearly every aspect of the game with me.

One of the goals that she set out for the upcoming season is to diversify her arsenal on the attack. What she already does well clearly works, but adding strength to strength is what it will take for her to become an All-American in 2025. That means incorporating sets behind the hitter into the game plan, something that she doesn’t have a track record of doing often.

A factor in that growth will be the health of her knee. The details are kept private — something common in college sports — but tenderness in the knee area has prevented her from feeling comfortable in the mold of a mobile player for a while. However, both player and coach independently brought up the possibility of thinking outside her established repertoire this season. It’s very much on the table for her to, say, start running slides in the upcoming season.

Hendricks-Walker would also like to see herself develop into a trustworthy six rotation player. I order to do so, she’ll need to translate her arm talent into skill at the service line.

“My entire life, I've always been the non-serving middle,” she explained. “I'm actually astonished every time that I can go and practice and make a million great serves, not even thinking about it. If I'm put into a game or a scrimmage, it's like my hand has a mind of its own or the ball does or something. So, I've been getting more reps with that and getting comfortable with how it feels to have that good serve. How it feels in my hand, how high the toss needs to be, where on the court is best for me to stand, really honing in on that.”

“What we found last fall is that when it's in, it's really good. We just need it in more often,” added her coach.

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, Hendricks-Walker discussed making gains as a blocker. She’s plenty physical to make a defensive impact, but the game only gets faster as competition improves and it can be tough to keep up. She called out her eyework as crucial to making strides in the right direction.

“I need to get better at seeing everything quicker and simultaneously moving as I see it. I think I hold a little too long because I'm not sure what I'm seeing yet. Sets in the Big 12 are super fast, so I need to be able to see it super quick and have enough confidence to make that first step. Normally, setters will give telltale signs of where the ball is going. If it's wrong, then we can recover, but standing in the middle is not going to help either way,” said the player.

These three areas may not take long to itemize — offensive versatility, service, and blocking — but improving all three represents a gargantuan amount of work. Why not believe in her to pull it off? She’s already worked to overcome the odds to become a difference maker in the Big 12. Coach Johnson-Lynch also praised her work ethic, saying “she works her butt off.” With her sights now set on pro volleyball, Hendricks-Walker knows what she has to do to get there.

Some quotes were lightly edited for clarity. To watch full Iowa State games, click here and here.