{"id":2253970,"date":"2024-05-27T19:40:02","date_gmt":"2024-05-27T23:40:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/tributes-pour-in-for-basketball-legend-bill-walton-one-of-the-greatest-basketball-players-of-all-time\/"},"modified":"2024-05-27T19:43:02","modified_gmt":"2024-05-27T23:43:02","slug":"tributes-pour-in-for-basketball-legend-bill-walton-one-of-the-greatest-basketball-players-of-all-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/tributes-pour-in-for-basketball-legend-bill-walton-one-of-the-greatest-basketball-players-of-all-time\/","title":{"rendered":"Honoring Bill Walton, Basketball Icon: &#8216;One of the All-Time Greats"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftributes-pour-in-for-basketball-legend-bill-walton-one-of-the-greatest-basketball-players-of-all-time%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2253970&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Bill\u2063 Walton, a\u200c legendary basketball\u2062 figure, passed \u200baway at 71 after a\u2064 cancer battle. A \u200dprominent figure in both the sports and political\u200b world, Walton had a decorated \u200ccareer \u200bwhere he was selected as No. 1 \u2063by \u2064the Portland \u2064Trail Blazers \u200din the 1974 NBA draft. He won his first NBA championship with them in \u200d1977 and\u200c another with the Boston Celtics nine years later. After retiring, \u2063Walton\u200b became \u200ban acclaimed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/espns-dick-vitale-is-cancer-free-after-lymphoma-battle\/\" title=\"ESPN\u2019s Dick Vitale Is Cancer-Free After Lymphoma Battle\">basketball commentator<\/a>, recognized as one of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/nba-hall-of-famer-bill-walton-dead-at-71\/\" title=\"Basketball Legend Bill Walton, NBA Hall of Famer, Dies Aged 71\">top 50 sports broadcasters<\/a> by the American Sportscasters Association. Tributes flew \u200din\u200c from\u200b notable figures such as Julius Erving \u2062and \u200dMagic Johnson, acknowledging his remarkable talent and impactful \u2064legacy.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p>Major figures from the sports and political world remembered <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/topic\/nba\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">basketball<\/a> legend Bill Walton on Monday after news broke that he had passed away following a battle with cancer. He was 71 years old.<\/p>\n<p>Walton was selected No. 1 overall by the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1974 NBA draft after finishing his college career under legendary coach John Wooden at UCLA, where he helped push the Bruins to a remarkable 88-game winning streak and two national championships. The 6-foot-11 center won an NBA championship with the Trail Blazers in 1977 and was also awarded the Finals MVP. Nine years later, Walton won another NBA championship with the Boston Celtics.<\/p>\n<p>After he retired from the NBA, Walton became a basketball commentator for multiple networks, beginning with CBS in 1990 before moving to ABC\/ESPN, where he worked as an NBA analyst until stepping away for a short time in 2009. Walton got back behind the microphone in 2012 as a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/espn-axes-multiple-well-known-personalities-as-disney-layoffs-continue\/\" title=\"ESPN cuts several popular personalities as Disney layoffs persist.\">college basketball analyst<\/a> for ESPN and the Pac-12 Conference, calling games through the 2023-2024 season. The American Sportscasters Association named Walton one of the top 50 sports broadcasters of all time in 2009.<\/p>\n<p>Former NBA star Julius Erving, commonly known as Dr J., said: \u201cI am sad today hearing that my comrade &#038; one of the sports worlds most beloved champions &#038; characters has passed. Bill Walton enjoyed life in every way. To compete against him &#038; to work with him was a blessing in my life. Sorry for your loss Walton family. We\u2019ll miss him too. Doc.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Magic Johnson posted on X: \u201cRest in peace to a friend, 2X NBA Champion, Hall of Famer, and one of the most skilled centers we\u2019ve ever seen Bill Walton! His NCAA Championship performance as a UCLA Bruin against Memphis is by far the most dominate NCAA Championship performance ever \u2013 he shot 21 for 22 and had us all mesmerized! That\u2019s when I first fell in love with his basketball game.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><b><a href=\"https:\/\/onelink.to\/dwapp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" aria-describedby=\"sk-tooltip-9096\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/onelink.to\/dwapp&#038;source=gmail&#038;ust=1700760801843000&#038;usg=AOvVaw2PQrVSrJfhxNb4LcARqniG\">CLICK HERE TO GET THE DAILYWIRE+ APP<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey talk about Jokic being the most skilled center but Bill Walton was first!\u201d Johnson added. \u201cFrom shooting jump shots to making incredible passes, he was one of the smartest basketball players to ever live. Bill was a great ambassador for college basketball and the NBA, and he will be sorely missed. Cookie and I send our condolences and prayers to his wife Lori, kids Luke, Nathan, Chris, and Adam, and all of his loved ones.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Former President Barack Obama added: \u201cBill Walton was one of the greatest basketball players of all time \u2013 a champion at every level and the embodiment of unselfish team play. He was also a wonderful spirit full of curiosity, humor and kindness. We are poorer for his passing, and Michelle and I send our deepest condolences to his family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>NBA commissioner Adam Silver <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailywire.com\/news\/nba-hall-of-famer-bill-walton-dead-at-71\">said<\/a> in a statement that Walton was \u201ctruly one of a kind.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs a Hall of Fame player, he redefined the center position. His unique all-around skills made him a dominant force at UCLA and led to an NBA regular-season and Finals MVP, two NBA championships and a spot on the NBA\u2019s 50th and 75th Anniversary Teams,\u201d he said. \u201cBill then translated his infectious enthusiasm and love for the game to broadcasting, where he delivered insightful and colorful commentary which entertained generations of basketball fans. But what I will remember most about him was his zest for life. He was a regular presence at league events \u2013 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.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Prominent sports and political personalities paid tribute to basketball superstar Bill Walton following his death at 71 from cancer. Walton, renowned as the Portland Trail Blazers&#8217; top pick in the 1974 NBA draft, concluded his exemplary college career prior to joining the NBA<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":134,"featured_media":2253971,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/dw-wp-production.imgix.net\/2024\/05\/GettyImages-1483744075-scaled.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[541],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2253970","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-daily-wire"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/dw-wp-production.imgix.net\/2024\/05\/GettyImages-1483744075-scaled.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2253970","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/134"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2253970"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2253970\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2253971"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2253970"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2253970"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2253970"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}