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Yahoo Sports senior NBA reporter Vincent Goodwill reacts to the basketball and broadcasting legend’s passing and celebrates what made Bill Walton so special to the game.
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Video Transcript
Nba legend, Bill Walton passed away after a lengthy battle with cancer at age 71.
How will you remember Bill Walton?
Will you remember him as the UCL, a wonder kid who was one of the greatest college players of all time or the MVP in Portland who overcame a two nothing deficit to Dr J 76ers to win the NBA title in 1977.
Or will you like so many of us remember him as the colorful figure for the NBA on NBC.
When you remember him as the first hippie in the NBA who might have coined the phrase legalize it.
I know for many of us he’ll be remembered as the guy who battled with Snapper Jones.
The guy who basically said that the game was over, coached and under talk.
Think about that for a second.
Walton was so self-aware about his role in life about his lot in the NBA that not only could he become a six man after winning the MVP, but he could become a six man who won the award.
He could become a six man who carried the bags of Robert Parrish Larry Bird and Kevin Mchale and also be so very fortunate to be in that role.
He’s someone who became part of that Celtic Lord, even though he only won one championship there, he became someone who was the father of Luke Walton.
He became someone who became the most unique voice in the history of the NBA.
When we think of the NBA, we think of colorful characters, people unafraid to speak their minds.
Even if it felt a little uncomfortable.
Bill Walton made us feel all of those things.
He overcame his own problems.
He overcame stuttering to become one of the more premier voices in NBA basketball.
He became someone who had to overcome his back issues, his lingering health problems that plagued him throughout his NBA career and beyond showing that there is indeed a price for playing this game.
But more and more as the NBA world becomes more corporated and more sanitized, we need more voices like Bill Walton.
Bill Walton was the first Nicola Yok, the first Arvida Sabonis and he was the first Bill Walton off the…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/remembering-bill-waltons-unique-life-213041223.html
Author : Yahoo Sports Videos
Publish date : 2024-05-27 21:30:41
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