With Walton playing alongside Henry Bibby, Larry Farmer, Wilkes, Lee, and Swen Nater, UCLA finished 140 in the Pac 8 Conference. Walton recalled Elvin Hayes calling and telling his mother, "Tell Billy, Big E is calling and we need him to open the gym tonight. I had three different periods of my life in my relationship with him: (1) when I was a high school student and he was recruiting me; (2) when I played for him when I was 17 to 21; (3) and then 36 years of being his friend. slowhandmark 10 yr. ago That dunk on Abdul jabbar in 77. . [61], In the Celtics' 41 series win over the Atlanta Hawks with Dominique Wilkins in the Eastern Conference semi-finals, Walton averaged 8.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.3 assists in 13 minutes. Some college basketball historians rate Walton as the greatest who ever played at the college level. After losing the first two games, the Blazers won four straight to win the NBA championship. Andy Wittry has written for Stadium, SI.com, Sporting News, the Indianapolis Star, Louisville Courier-Journal and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. I ground my feet up into dust. He also set the single-tournament mark by shooting 76.3 percent (45 of 59) in 1973. The Waltons' La Mesa home was a hillside home on Colorado Avenue, just below Lake Murray. Michael Jordan is NOT the G.O.A.T of college hoops -- so says Bill Walton, who tells TMZ Sports that honor belongs to Kareem! Walton would never play for the Trail Blazers again. According to Russian sports historian Robert Edelman, "when (the Soviets) saw who was and wasn't on the U.S. team, that's when they started feeling like they'd actually have a chance. Bill Walton College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com Bill Walton Position: Guard 6-1 (185cm) School: Eastern Kentucky SUMMARY Career G 66 PTS 10.9 TRB 3.0 AST - FG% 45.4 FT% 71.2 Walton Overview Game Logs NCAA Tournament Game Logs 1964-65 All Game Logs On this page: Per Game Per Game Share & Export I'm very proud of this team. [citation needed], Walton first played organized basketball under Frank "Rocky" Graciano, who coached at Walton's Catholic elementary school. American basketball player and sportscaster, First championship and Finals MVP (19761977), Second championship and sixth man award (19851986), Injury-plagued final playing year (19861987), 1972 Official Collegiate Basketball Guide, College Athletics Publishing Service, 1971, UCLA Bruins men's basketball 197172 NCAA champions, UCLA Bruins men's basketball 197273 NCAA champions, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player, Unconditional Honor: Wounded Warriors and their Dogs, Learn how and when to remove this template message, Helms Foundation College Player of the Year, National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame, List of National Basketball Association annual rebounding leaders, List of National Basketball Association annual blocks leaders, List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders, "ON PRO BASKETBALL; Feet of Dancer, Touch of Surgeon, and a Shot, Too", "Bill Walton comes back from injury an enlightened man", "UCLA's superstar feeds their fast break and feasts on their foes", "Lex Nihil Novi: Bruce Walton had Bill's Back in High School", "Walton blames self for Clippers' San Diego exit", "ESPN Classic Walton weathered injuries to win titles", "Record Book Result - Most Field Goals Made - Percentage - Season (Minimum 400 Attempts)", National Federation of State High School Associations, "Record Book Result - Most Rebounds - Season", "Record Book Result - Most Rebounds - Per Game - Season (Minimum 15 Games)", "NBA.com: Walton, Lucas Ignite 'Blazermania', "The Thing Bill Walton Still Can't Forgive Himself For", "Bill Walton is finally feeling like himself again", "NCAA College Basketball AP All-America Teams", "The 100 Greatest Moments in Sports History Almost Perfect", "Best individual title game performances", "John Wooden retrospective: Gene Bartow says he was the best teacher in history", "Bill Walton wants to be more than a cardboard cutout", "Led by Bill Walton, UCLA won 88 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UCLA was 86-4 during Bill Walton's three years of college with the center starting his college career 73-0. Walton appeared in the premiere of the third season in the reality TV show Shark Tank on January 20, 2012, where he helped to sell the "Clean Bottle", a water bottle that unscrews at both ends for easier cleaning.[121][122]. He never talked about strategy, statistics or plays, but rather about people and character. Bill Walton can talk a good game when it comes to doing color commentary on college basketball telecasts, but he played a nearly perfect one as UCLA's star center in the 1973 NCAA Tournament final. [46] As his feet became more durable, the Clippers had won 30 and 31 games in his final two seasons. "Off the floor I worried. [117], Walton, who has a service dog, wrote the foreword to the 2015 book Unconditional Honor: Wounded Warriors and their Dogs by author Cathy Scott. Draft: Portland Trail Blazers, 1st round (1st pick, 1st overall), 1974 NBA draft, Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Wednesday, March 1, 6:01AM. [42], In 1974, the ABA's San Diego Conquistadors tried to persuade Walton to sign with them, after drafting him in the 1974 ABA draft. He is a real estate executive. I ground my body up. Subscribe to Stathead Basketball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Basketball Reference Database. Enter your information to receive emails about offers, promotions from NCAA.com and our partners. He became the only player to have won an NBA Finals MVP, Sixth Man Award, and regular season MVP. All these guys treated melittle Billylike I was part of the team. It is a stain and stigma on my soul that is indelible. With Walton, UCLA won the NCAA Championship in 1972 over Florida State and again in 1973 with an 8766 win over Memphis State in which Walton made 21 of 22 field-goal attempts and scored 44 points. Backing up McHale and Parish, he averaged 6.7 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 2.0 blocks in 19 minutes as the Celtics' had a 30 sweep in the Eastern Conference first round over the Chicago Bulls with Michael Jordan (43.7 point average in the series). 7 all-time. His career averages were 13.3 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 3.4 assists in 468 regular season games. "[36], In 2009, Walton underwent an eight-hour spinal-fusion surgery. "Helix is where it all began. In a pre-season meeting with his new coach, Walton had advised Ramsay, "Coach, don't assume we know anything. UCLA next defeated San Francisco 8360 in the Western Regional Final to reach the Final Four. [28][30][14][31], Walton was hurt and left the game for the final time, with UCLA leading, 7562 and just under three minutes remaining. The varsity UCLA team, led by seniors Sidney Wicks, Curtis Rowe, and Steve Patterson defeated Villanova in the 1971 NCAA Championship Game for UCLA's 5th consecutive NCAA title. He pumped in an NCAA championship game record 44 points as UCLA suffocated Memphis State 87-66 for its. As we mentioned earlier, Walton had 33 points and 21 rebounds against Louisville in the national semifinal, then he had 24 and 20 against Florida State in the national championship game. We couldn't let him dominate the game. His listed adult playing height was 6ft 11in (2.11m); it has been reported that Walton is actually taller (7ft 2in (2.18m) or more), but does not like being categorized as a seven-footer. Bruce was a star football player as well. In 1978, following the two most impressive seasons of his young career, he suffered the first of several serious injuries; he developed chronic foot and knee problems that forced him to sit out the entire season. Watch the incredible performance for yourself: The fact that Walton once scored 44 points in an NCAA tournament title game while nearly being perfect from the field completely reframes the discussion about his greatest games. He said, 'Bill, I know you feel very strongly about this, but I just don't think that you getting arrested and taking part in this demonstration is what it's all about", recalled Walton. Walton played in his only NBA All-Star Game in 1978 and was named to both the NBA's First All-Defensive Team and the All-NBA First Team. [81], Walton frequently works alongside Dave Pasch while calling Pac-12 games. 2 (2003), NBA Street V3 (2005), NBA 2K12 (2011), NBA 2K13 (2012), NBA 2K14 (2013), NBA 2K15 (2014), NBA 2K16 (2015) and NBA Jam: On Fire Edition (2011), and lent his voice to NBA 2K5 and NBA Shootout 2004. The UCLANorth Carolina State game was No. After the successful surgery he was hospitalized for a week, and could not move freely for a year. Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. "[49], Walton led the NBA in both rebounds per game (14.4) and blocked shots per game (3.2) as he was selected to the NBA All-Star Game, but did not participate due to an injury. In 87 total games, Walton averaged 20.3 points and an . Bill Walton William Theodore Walton III Twitter : BillWalton (Big Red, Grateful Red, Red Baron, Redwood, Chief) Position: Center Shoots: Right 6-11 , 210lb (211cm, 95kg) More bio, uniform, draft, salary info Hall of Fame 2x All Star 1976-77 TRB Champ 1976-77 BLK Champ 2x NBA Champ 2x All-NBA 2x All-Defensive 1976-77 Finals MVP 1977-78 MVP Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. [82], Walton's 2003 TV series Bill Walton's Long Strange Trip aired on ESPN with Walton as subject and star. College: Arizona High School: University in San Diego, California Recruiting Rank: 1998 (71) Draft: Los Angeles Lakers, 2nd round (3rd pick, 32nd overall), 2003 NBA Draft Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Find out more. It's become my greatest accomplishment of my life and everybody else's biggest nightmare."[79]. That's why I have the utmost respect for Bill Walton and that's the main reason why he was my inductee into the Hall of Fame. It's also available for football, hockey and baseball. He then limped off the floor, receiving an ovation from the 19,301 fans. Bill Walton started his basketball career from the fourth grade at Blessed Sacrament Elementary School by coach Frank "Rocky" Graciano and also played for his college at the University of California and Los Angeles. Walton joined the Boston Celtics, and they won the 1985-86 championship. So I'm here to apologize, to try and make amends, and to try and start over and make it better. We found that out. "I came back and told Coach Wooden that this Walton kid was the best high school player I'd ever seen", Crum recalled. Before the injuries hampered his professional career, Bill Walton dominated college basketball. Walton was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993. 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