NBA Hall of Famer Bill Walton Dies at 71

Bill Walton, a basketball legend known for his success as a player and as a broadcaster, has passed away after a long bout with cancer. He was 71. Walton had an illustrious career, starting with his time at UCLA where he won two national championships and was a three-time national player of the year. His impact on the game continued into the NBA, where he was named MVP in the 1977-78 season and was a two-time champion.

Born on Nov. 5, 1952 in La Mesa, California, Walton’s basketball career began in grade school at Blessed Sacrament in San Diego. 

In 1972, Walton joined the UCLA Bruins, where his college basketball career flourished under legendary Coach John Wooden.  He was awarded the Final Four Most Outstanding Player twice. His 44 points against Memphis State in 1973 remains a national championship game record. 

Walton, who entered the Hall of Fame in 1993, was one of the game’s most celebrated figures. His NBA career — although disrupted by chronic foot injuries — included the Portland Trail Blazers, the San Diego/Los Angeles Clippers and the Boston Celtics.

“Bill Walton was truly one of a kind. As a Hall of Fame player, he redefined the center position,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a press release. “… But what I will remember most about him was his zest for life. He was a regular presence at league events — always upbeat, smiling ear to ear and looking to share his wisdom and warmth. I treasured our close friendship, envied his boundless energy and admired the time he took with every person he encountered.”

Walton made just as many waves off the court while he was in Los Angeles. During his junior season, he was arrested at a Vietnam War protest, one of the first indications of his politics, and had to be bailed out by Wooden. “Your generation has screwed up the world. My generation is trying to straighten it out,” Walton said in a statement after the incident.

Walton finished his career with two championships, an MVP, a Finals MVP, a Sixth Man of the Year award, two All-Star appearances, two All-NBA Team nods (one First, one Second) and two All-Defensive First Team honors. Additionally, his No. 32 jersey was retired by the Trail Blazers in 1989. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993, and was selected to the NBA’s 50th Anniversary Team in 1996 and 75th Anniversary Team in 2021. 

Following his retirement, Walton became a successful broadcaster, working with CBS, NBC, ESPN and the Los Angeles Clippers before stepping away in 2009 due to back problems. A few years later, he returned to work with the Sacramento Kings on a part-time basis, then re-joined ESPN and the Pac-12 Network, where he had still been calling games

Tributes flooded in for Walton following the news of his death. None had a negative word to say, and the love and affection for the big man was perhaps best summed up by his friend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: “On the court, Bill was a fierce player.  But off the court, he wasn’t happy unless he did everything he could to make everyone around him happy.”