The NBA has paid tribute to Bill Walton ahead of the start of the finals between the Boston Celtics and Dallas Mavericks following the Hall of Famer’s death at age 71 from colorectal cancer last month.
Before Game 1 at the TD Garden on Thursday night, the Celtics honored their former big man, who won a championship with the franchise in 1986, with a special montage of his legacy and career highlights in Boston.
“I’m the luckiest man in the world,” Walton said in old interviews as he described the feeling of winning and playing for the Celtics. “I’ve been a part of the greatest teams in basketball history: UCLA, the Portland Trail Blazers and the Boston Celtics.
“What a team, what a franchise, what a history, what a present, what a future, I’m the luckiest man on earth,” he added, referring to the Celtics.
Celtics players commemorated Walton by donning black jerseys with Walton’s name on them in multiple colors before tipoff. Both teams also observed a minute’s silence.
An exhibit honoring basketball great Bill Walton appears on the jumbotron at TD Garden, Thur.
Walton’s family, including his son and ex-LA Lakers head coach Luke Walton, were in attendance at Thursday night’s game, as they were all seen in the stands wearing the same jerseys in tribute to the two-time NBA champion as the players at the field. .
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver announced that Celtics players would honor Walton prior to Thursday’s game.
In addition to the Celtics, Walton won an NBA title and Finals MVP with the Trail Blazers in 1977. He was also the NBA MVP in 1978 and a two-time NCAA national champion at UCLA, leading the Bruins to an 88-game winning streak. .
All of his achievements at the college level earned him the privilege of being the first overall pick of the 1974 NBA Draft.
Walton, who averaged 13.3 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.2 blocks in 468 regular-season games in a career spanning 1974-1988, was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993 Fame and into the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993. 2006.
He was also named to the NBA’s 50th and 75th anniversary teams.
After retiring from the NBA, Walton overcame his stutter and embarked on a second career as a sportscaster, working as both a studio analyst and color commentator for various networks and teams.
More to follow…
