Bill Walton Bio | Wiki
Bill Walton is an American former basketball player. Currently, he serves as a television sportscaster. Bill played college basketball for coach John Wooden and the UCLA Bruins.
He won three consecutive national college player of the year awards from 1972–1974. He lead UCLA to NCAA championships in 1972 and 1973 and an 88-game winning streak.
Bill Walton Age
Bill was born on November 50, 1952, in La Mesa, California, United States. He is 69 years old.
Bill Walton Height
He is a man of above-average stature and stands at a height of 6 ft 11 in (Approx. 2.11 m).
Bill Walton Family
He was born and raised in La Mesa, California by his parents Gloria Anne and William Theodore “Ted” Walton. Bill grew up with his siblings Bruce, Cathy, and Andy. Their La Mesa home was a hillside home on Colorado Avenue, just below Lake Murray.
Bill’s father was a music teacher and social worker while his mother Gloria served as a librarian. Bruce played in the National Football League with the Dallas Cowboys from 1973 to 1975. Cathy was an outstanding youth swimmer and played some basketball at the University of California.
Bill Walton Wife
Bill is married to his second wife Lori Matsuoka. The couple held their wedding in 1991. He was first married to Susan Guth from 1979 to 1989. The two shares four sons Adam, Nathan, Luke, and Chris.
Bill Walton Son
Bill named his son Luke after his teammate and friend the late Maurice Lucas. Luke played at Arizona for Coach Lute Olson. In the NBA, he played for the Los Angeles Lakers from 2003–2012, winning both the 2009 and 2010 NBA Finals.
His titles make him and his father the first NBA father-son pair to have both won multiple NBA championships. Luke served as the head coach of the Lakers (2016–2019), after two years as an assistant for the Golden State Warriors. In April 2019, he became head coach of the Sacramento Kings.
Bill Walton UCLA
He played high school basketball at Helix High School in La Mesa. Later, Bill accepted UCLA’s scholarship offer to play basketball for the Bruins and Coach Wooden. He played for UCLA under Coach Wooden from 1971 to 1974. UCLA won the NCAA Championship in 1972 over Florida State and again in 1973 with an 87–66 win over Memphis State in which Bill made 21 of 22 field-goal attempts and scored 44 points.
Bill Walton Grateful Dead
Bill’s memoir Back from the Dead: Searching for the Sound, Shining the Light and Throwing It Down, was released by Simon and Schuster in March 2016. The book remained on The New York Times bestseller list for two weeks in April 2016. He has a service dog and wrote the foreword to the 2015 book Unconditional Honor: Wounded Warriors and their Dogs by author Cathy Scott.
Bill Walton Celtics
After the 1984–85 campaign, Bill called on two of the league’s premier teams, the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers. After several players on the Celtics said they liked the idea of having him as a teammate backing up Robert Parish and Kevin McHale, Red Auerbach made the deal happen.
One anecdote that particularly illustrates Bill’s decision to choose the Celtics over the Lakers involves Larry Bird, who happened to be in Auerbach’s office when he called. On September 6, 1985, Bil became traded by the Los Angeles Clippers to the Boston Celtics for Cedric Maxwell and a 1986 1st round draft pick.
Bill Walton Blazers
Bill became the number one overall pick by the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers in the 1974 NBA draft and signed with the Trail Blazers. His first two seasons in Portland were marred by chronic foot injuries.
In addition, during his first two years, Bill badly sprained an ankle, dislocated two toes, broke his left wrist twice, dislocated two fingers, broke a toe, and injured his leg in a jeep accident. The Trail Blazers with Geoff Petrie, Sidney Wicks, and LaRue Martin finished 38–44 under player/coach Lenny Wilkens.
Bill Walton Commentary
Bill frequently serves alongside Dave Pasch while calling Pac-12 games. His commentary has been noted for his frequent use of catchphrases and hyperbole. He typically was paired with Steve “Snapper” Jones for national NBA games because he and Jones had a point-counterpoint banter during games
Bill Walton MVP
Bill’s early career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) was very successful. He won the 1978 NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) and an NBA championship with the Portland Trail Blazers, for which he was also named Finals MVP.
Bill Walton Hall Of Fame
UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame as part of the inaugural class in 1984.
San Diego Hall of Champions into the Breitbard Hall of Fame 1990.
Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993.
Oregon Sports Hall of Fame 1993.
In 1994 Verizon Academic All-American Hall of Fame.
National High School Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.
In 2006 National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.
Boys & Girls Clubs of America Alumni Hall of Fame in 2017.
Bill Walton Net Worth
He earns his wealth through his career. Therefore, he has amassed a fortune over the years. Bill’s estimated net worth is $20 million.
Who Is Bill Walton Wife
Bill is married to his second wife Lori Matsuoka. The couple held their wedding in 1991. He was first married to Susan Guth from 1979 to 1989.