NFT: RIP Bill Walton

broadcaster.

HOF player and a fun announcer, particularly in latter years for the PAC 12. One of true all-time personalities.

Pro career limited by foot injuries but still a member of two of the greatest championship teams of all time, the 1977 Trail Blazers and 86 Celtics.

Wait, WTF? Is this true?

Talk about a gut punch. I loved Walton. Awful news.

I loved his support of the Conference of Champions
Great basketball ball player

Per ESPN, he had cancer.

He was before my time, but my old man loved him & thinks he would have gone down as an all time great if not for the injuries.

No doubt him & Jerry Garcia are having a drink in Heaven right now.

Not even a huge bball fan but I love Walton, super interesting and seems very genuine.

Incredible passer; maybe the best passer I ever saw from the high post. Great rebounder and very tough to defend around the basket.

If he’d been healthier I think he’d be remembered as a great big on par with
Russell, Wilt and Kareem, though he was a different kind of player.

But loved listening to him as a broadcaster and as a champion of the Conference of Champions. A little poetic he passed just after the PAC-12 did.

RIP to a legend and a god man.

My perfect specimen of a human being

I was thinking about him recently with all the rumors that the NBA is heading back to NBC. He was hilarious on the air, and obviously a legendary figure as a player.

issues (1980-82) he attended law school. Joke was that if you weren't prepared for class, take a seat behind him.

In the fall of '82, he started playing one day a week for the Clippers in Nov-Dec, while still attending classes. He played intramural ball in that period, if you can imagine that. Then he was gone to the NBA for good after that semester.

Although his bones betrayed him, he was otherwise an absolute physical specimen: not an ounce of excess on the rock of muscle.

RIP

Maybe the best college players ever. He did everything well. Even though he was a shell of his former self, watching him play with Bird was amazing. RIP.

UCLA went from Kareem to Walton, what a legendary period for them

Big Red.

In comment 16525283 SFGFNCGiantsFan said:

Quote:

No doubt him & Jerry Garcia are having a drink in Heaven right now.

Probably a joint and not a drink, but yeah ...

He was a very cool guy and a great basketball player.

Haha. Yeah, a joint is more likely than a drink.

Super bummed about this. Loved BW. One tough mf'er, too. Saw him at a Dead & Co show a few years ago, he was pure joy. Such a unique and alive personality. RIP.

Rip to a legend.

The Knicks' defense is like my Aunt Edna's meatloaf: tough, unyielding, and if you're not careful, it'll knock your teeth out!

Great quote, great guy.

Bill Walton was the best college basketball player I ever saw.

Bill won his last 49 games in HS and his first 88 in college ... that seems unbelievable - 137-0?

While playing for John Wooden? He certainly is a legend.

He Seemed to have a very interesting life on and off the court.

Great player. A shame he had all the injuries. At least he got the one run with Blazers. Had he not gotten hurt they would have won the next year too.

had a bank shot that was unstoppable, especially in college.
Fantastic passer who understood basketball wasn't a one man game.

My son met Bill when he interned in L.A., said he was super nice and enjoyed his time with the group.Great moment getting a text with a pic of Bill and my son.

My son wasn't sure I'd know who it was.....:)

RIP

In comment 16525385 St. Jimmy said:

Quote:

He Seemed to have a very interesting life on and off the court.

Right, I saw that and it was good - he had quite an interesting life.

in my head "The Waltons" music would start playing.....my all time college play player...I almost cried after the lost to ND.

fantastic and unselfish player. As others have said, he was a great passer and totally dominant at UCLA. He was an equally talented and iconic broadcaster with an endearing, zany, personality and an incredible zest for living. RIP. God bless. Prayers to his family and friends.

I watched him at UCLA where he dominated college basketball and during his years his teams were 86-4 and won two titles.

Walton would have been another Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (still think he was the greatest player ever) but he had awful physical problems.

Also was a super bright guy and a great broadcaster.

He was too young to go.

led to multiple stress fractures and surgeries - a lot of them.

Absent that, a top 5 or 10 player all time - and he's in the discussion anyway.

Plus he was a very interesting and unconventional dude.

If it wasn't for his feet. He could do it all. Pass, shoot, and defend with the best of them.

run. But seriously a tremendous player from a great era of team basketball. What a passer. Too bad he body betrayed him. Great broadcaster too, and an nice guy.

.

I don't like a world without Bill Walton. Although I did not agree with everything he was about, he was interesting, original and seemed genuine.

you could always tell how intelligent, curious, and inquisitive he was about so many different topics. He was opinionated without being condescending. A true great athlete and person. As someone else said on social media, maybe he could not live in a world without his "beloved conference of champions"

RIP Bill Walton--truly one of a kind

(PS. I had no idea he had been sick was that reported?).

one of the few guys it seems nobody has a bad word to say about. One other thing to miss with his passing will be that he was one of the last living true connections to John Wooden who was a true basketball legend. listening to him tell Wooden stories and repeat his "Woodenisms" was a real treat. Kareem is another connection but he doesn't talk about Wooden nearly as much.

I’ve seen a decent amount of chunks of games from him, seen a lot of his series vs. Kareem in ’77. One thing about Walton is that he went 110% on defense and would be very aggressive. In comparison to Bill Russell who would kind of pace himself and not over extert on the perimeter all game long, Walton would be everywhere. I think Garnett is probably the most similar defender to him I’ve seen, except Walton was stronger and a better rim protector (and KG was slightly more mobile).

At his best, he was kind of a hybrid of Duncan and Garnett. Besides Jokic who is head and shoulders the best passing big ever, Walton is up there with anyone else ever (Wilt, KG, Sabonis, etc.).

His HS + College resume speaks for itself. Just an absolute winner. Also, in my opinion the ’86 Celtics are the GOAT NBA team (’96 Bulls + ’17 GSW being in the mix) and a big reason for that was him coming off the bench for Parish. His synergy with Bird was insane, Draymond/Curry type of stuff. As good as prime Parish was, my hunch is that the Celtics were even better with Old Walton on the floor that year (pre-plus/minus data so just a guess).

Also in an era where everyone sounds the same, his uniqueness will be missed. Would have loved to share a drink or J with him and talk about whatever the hell he wanted to talk about. RIP big fella.