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American basketball player and sportscaster

William Theodore Walton III (born November 5, 1952) is an American television sportscaster and former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for coach John Wooden and the UCLA Bruins, winning three consecutive national college player of the year awards (1972–1974), while leading UCLA to NCAA championships in 1972 and 1973 and an 88 game winning streak. After being selected as the first overall pick in the 1974 NBA draft, Walton led the Portland Trail Blazers to an NBA championship in 1977, earning the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award that season. He won another NBA title in 1986 as a member of the Boston Celtics. Walton was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993. He was named to the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams. Walton's early career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) was very successful, winning the 1978 NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) and an NBA championship with the Portland Trail Blazers, for which he was also named Finals MVP. However, his professional career began to be significantly hampered by multiple foot injuries requiring numerous surgeries. Walton sat out the 1978–79 season and was then signed by the San Diego Clippers (now Los Angeles Clippers), for whom he played four injury plagued seasons. His career was rehabilitated during two seasons with the Boston Celtics at the end of his career. Playing as a backup center behind Robert Parish, Walton earned the NBA Sixth Man of the Year Award in the 1985–86 season, winning his second championship that same season. After retiring from the NBA, Walton overcame stuttering and embarked on a second career as a sportscaster, working both as a studio analyst and color commentator with stints for several networks and teams. He earned an Emmy Award in 1991. Walton is a noted fan of the Grateful Dead, as a self described "Deadhead", and often mentions them in his broadcasts. He has hosted several podcasts and satellite radio programs featuring the music of the Grateful Dead.

Walton was born and raised in La Mesa, California, the son of Gloria Anne (née Hickey) and William Theodore "Ted" Walton. He was raised with siblings Bruce, Cathy and Andy. The Waltons' La Mesa home was a hillside home on Colorado Avenue, just below Lake Murray. Walton's father Ted was a music teacher and social worker and his mother Gloria, a librarian. His parents had interests in art, literature, politics, and music. Walton took music lessons, and although his parents were not sports oriented, Walton followed in the footsteps of his older brother Bruce, who had gravitated toward sports. When the Walton children were in junior high and high school, their father formed an informal family band: Bruce played trombone, Bill played baritone horn, Andy played the saxophone, and Cathy played drums (or flute or tuba). "Bill and I couldn't quit fast enough", Bruce said. Walton first played organized basketball under Frank "Rocky" Graciano, who coached at Walton's Catholic elementary school.

Walton played high school basketball at Helix High School in La Mesa alongside his brother Bruce, who was one year older at and Bruce was a star football player as well. If Bill Walton was getting physical treatment in a basketball game, Bruce returned the treatment. "When those opposing teams would try to get physical with me, Bruce would do whatever it took to protect me", Walton recalled. "He went on to play for the Dallas Cowboys. Bruce and I are the only brother combination in history to ever play in the Super Bowl and to win the NBA championship." Walton's struggle with injury and pain began while at Helix High School, where he broke an ankle, a leg, several bones in his feet, and underwent knee surgery. Before his sophomore season, Walton underwent surgery to repair torn cartilage on his left knee. Because of his recovery from the knee surgery, Walton played most of his sophomore year on the junior varsity team. Coach Gordon Nash promoted him to the varsity team the end of the season. But, he played in only six games and did not start any of them. "We had the best gym in San Diego and all the Rockets players wanted to go there", Walton reflected. "They had some great teams with Elvin Hayes and Calvin Murphy and future head coaches and broadcasters such as Pat Riley, Rick Adelman, Rudy Tomjanovich, Jim Barnett, and Stu Lantz. All these guys treated me—little Billy—like I was part of the team. They couldn't have been nicer, and I became their friend." Helix won the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Championship in both 1969 and 1970, finishing 29–2 in 1968–69 and 33–0 in 1969–70. In addition, Walton's 825 rebounds that season ranks No 3 all time. His 25.0 rebounds per game in a season ranks No. (Number) 7 all time. In 1970, Walton was featured in "Faces in the Crowd" in the January 26 issue of Sports Illustrated, his first national media recognition. "It was a dream come true to be a part of a special team", Walton said. "Helix is where it all began. It was a humbling honor and privilege to be on the same squad as true legends Monroe Nash, Wilbur Strong, Phil Edwards, and Bruce Menser. I'm the luckiest guy on earth."

Beginning in elementary and high school, Walton had loyally followed UCLA's basketball team on the radio. He was recruited by many colleges, but quickly accepted UCLA's scholarship offer to play basketball for the Bruins and Coach Wooden. Wooden would become a lifetime mentor to Walton. Said Walton of Coach Wooden: "I was John Wooden's easiest recruit. I became his worst nightmare. I drove the poor guy to an early grave when he was 99. 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. I had no idea what we had at UCLA. I thought everybody had the same thing: great parents, great schools, great neighborhoods, great colleges, great coaches. Then I joined the NBA. And I realized immediately that I had just absolutely blown this whole deal with John Wooden. And so I spent the rest of my life, first of all, trying to make it up to him; and second of all, no longer [bringing] consternation into his life." Walton played for UCLA under Coach Wooden from 1971 to 1974. His older brother Bruce played football at UCLA, enrolling a year ahead of Bill. Bill Walton led the Bruins to two consecutive 30–0 seasons and the NCAA men's basketball record 88 game winning streak. The UCLA streak contributed to a personal winning streak that lasted almost five years, in which Walton's high school, UCLA freshman (freshmen were ineligible for the varsity at that time) and UCLA varsity teams did not lose a game from the middle of his junior year of high school to the middle of his senior year in college. With Walton, UCLA won the NCAA Championship in 1972 over Florida State and again in 1973 with an 87–66 win over Memphis State in which Walton made 21 of 22 field goal attempts and scored 44 points.

Prior to joining the varsity team, Walton (18.1 ppg, 68.6% field goal accuracy), along with Greg Lee (17.9 ppg) and Keith Wilkes (20.0 ppg), was a member of the 20–0 1970–71 UCLA freshman team. 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. After Walton initially refused to cut his hair as an incoming freshman, Coach Wooden told Walton "we'll miss you." Walton then rode his bike to a nearby barber.

The 1971–72 UCLA basketball team had a record of 30–0, winning its games by an average margin of more than 30 points, averaging 94.6 points to opponents' 64.3. With Walton playing alongside Henry Bibby, Larry Farmer, Wilkes, Lee, and Swen Nater, UCLA finished 14–0 in the Pac 8 Conference. In the 25 team 1972 NCAA tournament, UCLA defeated Weber State 90–58. They defeated Long Beach State and coach Jerry Tarkanian in the Western Regional final 73–57 to reach the Final Four. Playing 20 minutes due to foul trouble, Walton had four points and 12 rebounds in the victory over Weber State, taking only one shot. He had 19 points and 11 rebounds against Long Beach State. In the 1972 Final Four, Walton had 33 points and 21 rebounds, on 11 of 13 shooting and 11 of 12 free throws, against Louisville in the NCAA semifinal, as UCLA won 96–77. In the NCAA championship game, he had 24 points and 20 rebounds in the Bruins' 81–76 victory over Florida State. Walton was named the 1972 NCAA basketball tournament Most Outstanding Player.

UCLA again finished 30–0 overall and 14–0 in the Pac 8 conference in 1972–73. The Bruins averaged winning by over 20 points, averaging 81.3 points to their opponents' 60.1. In the 25 team 1973 NCAA tournament, UCLA defeated Arizona State 98–81 and then San Francisco in the West Regional Final 54–39 to reach the Final Four. Walton had 28 points and 14 rebounds against Arizona State, on 13 of 18 shooting, and 9 points and 14 rebounds against San Francisco, taking only 7 shots. with players Larry Kenon and Larry Finch. Walton set the record for most points in an NCAA championship game, which still stands, and was the tournament's most outstanding player. Walton was hurt and left the game for the final time, with UCLA leading, 75–62 and just under three minutes remaining. Playing with four personal fouls, Walton fell hard to the floor on a play and injured his left knee and ankle. He then limped off the floor, receiving an ovation from the 19,301 fans. "I don't think anything ever meant as much to me as playing UCLA and one of John Wooden's best teams for the national championship", Bartow said in 1993. "We were able to go right through the press." At halftime, the game was tied 39–39. Bartow added, "I felt very good at halftime, very good. But to win, we also felt we had to control Walton. We couldn't let him dominate the game. Obviously, we didn't do a good job of that. Bill Walton probably had one of the best games anybody ever had in the history of college basketball." "Coach Wooden looked at me and said, 'Walton, I used to think you were a good player  until you missed that one shot, Walton said. Overall in 1972–73, Walton averaged 20.4 points and 16.9 rebounds in 30 games on 65.0% shooting, as UCLA again finished 30–0 (14–0 in the Pac 8 conference). Walton was a consensus All American alongside Ernie DiGregorio of Providence, Ed Ratleff of Long Beach State, David Thompson of North Carolina State, and Kermit Washington of American. "One of the saddest days for Coach Wooden was the day he came down and had to bail me out of jail after I got arrested in the anti Vietnam (War) protest. 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. nicknamed "the Lost Weekend". "There were so many problems", Walton said of the losses. "Injuries [he missed games with a bad back]. Team chemistry. It was just a nightmare." In the 25 team 1974 NCAA tournament, UCLA defeated Dayton 111–100, in a game where Walton had 27 points and 19 rebounds. UCLA next defeated San Francisco 83–60 in the Western Regional Final to reach the Final Four. Walton tallied 17 points, nine rebounds, and four assists against San Francisco. In the 1974 Final Four, UCLA's record seven consecutive national titles was broken. North Carolina State defeated the Bruins 80–77 in double overtime in the NCAA semi finals. Walton played 50 minutes and scored 29 points, adding 18 rebounds and 4 assists in the loss. The UCLA–North Carolina State game was No. 13 on USA Todays list of the greatest NCAA tournament games of all time. Walton called the game the most disappointing outcome of his entire basketball career, as UCLA had a 5 point lead late in regulation and a 7 point lead in the 2nd overtime, before NC State with David Thompson rallied to win, 80–77. Walton left UCLA to begin a new life in professional basketball and kept a lifetime friendship with Coach Wooden. "Coach Wooden never talked about winning and losing, but rather about the effort to win. He rarely talked about basketball, but generally about life. He never talked about strategy, statistics or plays, but rather about people and character. Coach Wooden never tired of telling us that once you become a good person, then you have a chance of becoming a good basketball player."

Walton was drafted by the American Basketball Association's Dallas Chaparrals in the 1973 ABA draft as an underclassman in an attempt to lure him from UCLA. In the locker room after the 1973 Championship game, Coach Wooden introduced Walton to representatives of the ABA, who hoped to convince him to turn pro. "Of which I had no interest in doing", Walton said. In 1974, the ABA's San Diego Conquistadors tried to persuade Walton to sign with them, after drafting him in the 1974 ABA draft. San Diego had also signed Wilt Chamberlain as a player coach as further incentive. Walton was not swayed. Walton was the number one overall pick by the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers in the 1974 NBA draft. Walton signed with the Trail Blazers. In 1975–76, Walton averaged 16.1 points, 13.4 rebounds, 4.3 assists, and 1.6 blocks in 51 games as Portland, with rookies Bob Gross and Lionel Hollins, finished 37–45. 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. Walton was named to the NBA's First All Defensive Team and the All NBA Second Team for his regular season accomplishments. He averaged 18.6 points, 14.4 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 3.2 blocks and Portland finished 49–33. Portland matched up in the 1977 NBA Finals against the favored Philadelphia 76ers. After losing the first two games, the Blazers won four straight to win the NBA championship. Walton scored 20 points and grabbed 23 rebounds in the clinching Game 6 victory,

The following season, the 1977–78 Trail Blazers won 50 of their first 60 games, as Walton averaged 18.9 points, 13.2 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 2.5 blocks in 58 games. Walton then suffered a broken foot, ending his regular season. During this time, he befriended the controversial writer Jack Scott, who wrote and published a book about him in 1978. Walton nonetheless won the 1978 NBA Most Valuable Player award and the Sporting News NBA MVP, as well. 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. In his first time in a Celtics uniform in the Boston Garden, Walton received one minute standing ovation from the Boston home crowd walking onto the court for his first exhibition game in 1985. In the Celtics' 4–1 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. In the Eastern Conference Finals 4–0 sweep against the Milwaukee Bucks, Walton averaged 8.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2.0 assists in 18 minutes. In the 1986 NBA Finals, the Celtics defeated the Houston Rockets with "Twin Towers" Hakeem Olajuwon and Ralph Sampson 4–2 to win the NBA Championship. Walton averaged 8.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and 2.2 blocks in 19 minutes, in helping the Celtics win the championship. "I knew we had something going when we got Walton", Larry Bird said on Walton and the 1985–86 Celtics. "It was all a matter of if he could stay healthy. We already had a pretty good team, and I think adding him and (Jerry) Sichting really helped us. Robert Parish accepting Bill Walton for who he is and what kind of player he was, I thought that was major. That's the best team I've ever been on, no question about that. I mean, we were good from top to bottom." "It wasn't important to me because I had no say in the personnel decisions, but what I was impressed with was Bill Walton's character", Parish said of Walton joining the Celtics. "He thought enough of me to make sure I was comfortable with him being on the team. 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. Bill Walton is my main man, for that reason."

Walton was injured again in the 1986–87 regular season, but returned in time for the 1987 playoffs. He only played in ten games during the season. Walton spent the 1987–88 season on the Celtics' injured list. He attempted a comeback in February 1990, but injuries intervened and he retired as a player. Overall, Walton played 90 total games for the Celtics, shooting 55.1% and averaging 7.0 points, 6.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.3 blocks in 18 minutes.

Walton was selected to the 1972 U. S. Olympic basketball team, but declined to participate. Some saw it as a political statement given Walton's opposition to the Vietnam War, but the most likely reason for his decision was his bad experience at the 1970 world championships. In a 2004 interview with ESPN, Walton stated that "for the first time in my life, I was exposed to negative coaching and the berating of players and the foul language and the threatening of people who didn't perform." In the men's basketball final, the United States controversially lost to the Soviet Union 50–51, finishing in second place. According to Russian sports historian de, "when [the Russians] saw who was and wasn't on the U. S. team, that's when they started feeling like they'd actually have a chance. They followed American basketball closely and they knew that no Walton was going to be a big deal." 1972 US team's forward James Forbes told ESPN as part of a SportsCentury documentary, "If [Walton] plays, all of this becomes academic."

Coach Jack Ramsay, in 2010, called Walton the best Portland Trail Blazer, "hands down no question", Ramsay said. "Walton could do everything, he had great timing, complete vision of the floor, had excellent fundamentals and was a great passer, both in outlet passes and in the half court. He loved playing basketball, just loved it, practices, games  especially away games. He loved to win on the opponent's court. And he had a great head, a very dedicated team player." Of Walton's injuries, Ramsay added, "And that was very frustrating to both of us. To not be able to play was a crushing blow to him. And to me it was frustrating because I finally had a great team and a great player and it was all coming apart." Said Walton reflecting on his career: "I loved basketball. And I was going to go until I couldn't go anymore. I had no desire to ever stop playing. I've never met anybody who stopped playing voluntarily. I ground my body up. I've had 37 (38 now) orthopedic operations. I ground my feet up into dust. I've got a new knee. I've got a new spine. I'm the lucky one, in that I never thought going through all of it that I would be healthy at the end. And I almost wasn't. But I'm all better now." Overall, Walton played 468 games in his NBA career. He averaged a career double double of 13.3 points, 10.5 rebounds, with 3.4 assists and 2.2 blocked shots, averaging 28 minutes. He shot 52.1% from the floor for his career. Walton's injuries and surgeries limited his career, and counting his 1978–1979 year long holdout, Walton played in 44% of the regular season games in his 13 year career. In 2021, to commemorate the NBA's 75th Anniversary The Athletic ranked their top 75 players of all time, and named Walton as the 64th greatest player in NBA history.

Walton overcame a stuttering problem at age 28 with the help of Hall of Fame broadcaster Marty Glickman, after a lengthy conversation between the two at an event. Walton said about his speech issues and subsequent career, "I'm a stutterer. I never spoke to anybody. I lived most of my life by myself. But as soon as I got on the court I was fine. But in life, being so self conscious, red hair, big nose, freckles and goofy, nerdy looking face and can't talk at all. I was incredibly shy and never said a word. Then, when I was 28 I learned how to speak. It's become my greatest accomplishment of my life and everybody else's biggest nightmare." After his retirement as a player, Walton has become a successful and controversial basketball color commentator. Walton worked for CBS (1990), NCAA on CBS (1991), NBC (1990–2002), the Los Angeles Clippers (1990–2002) and ABC/ESPN (2002–2009). After 19 years working in broadcasting, he left ESPN in November 2009, as the result of back problems, which dated back to an injury he suffered in college at UCLA. Following surgery on his back, Walton returned to broadcasting as a part time commentator for the Sacramento Kings for 2010–11 and 2011–12. In July 2012, ESPN and the Pac 12 Network announced that Walton would return to full time broadcasting as a game analyst for Pac 12 conference basketball coverage. Walton frequently works alongside Dave Pasch while calling Pac 12 games. His commentary has been noted for his frequent use of catchphrases and hyperbole. Walton typically was paired with Steve "Snapper" Jones for national NBA games because he and Jones had a point counterpoint banter during games. Walton's 2003 TV series Bill Walton's Long Strange Trip aired on ESPN with Walton as subject and star. While broadcasting a game between the Oregon Ducks and USC Trojans, Walton talked about a speech Bob Dylan gave at MusiCares, and ESPN had prepared graphics about Dylan's career highlights. While broadcasting a Washington–Oregon January 2019 game with Dave Pasch, Walton mentioned he had appeared in the motion picture Ghostbusters. Ghostbusters was filmed in 1984 and Pasch questioned Walton about his claim throughout the game as to the specifics of his appearance and character, but Walton refused to provide more details. Research validated Walton's claim. Walton has his own satellite radio show, One More Saturday Night (named after the Dead song of the same name), heard on Sirius Radio's Jam On and XM Radio's Grateful Dead channel. In 2001, Walton received an Emmy Award for "Best Live Sports Television Broadcast" and in 2018 was the recipient of the CoSIDA Dick Enberg Award.

Walton resides in his hometown of San Diego with his wife Lori (m. 1991). He and his first wife, Susie, had four sons: Adam, Nathan, Luke, and Chris. His son Luke became an NBA player, winning both the 2009 and 2010 NBA Finals with the Lakers. The titles made Walton and him the first NBA father son pair to have both won multiple NBA championships. Luke was the head coach of the Lakers (2016–2019), after two years as an assistant for the Golden State Warriors. In April 2019, Luke Walton was named head coach of the Sacramento Kings. Luke was named after Walton's friend and former teammate Maurice Lucas. "Maurice was so important in my life and in little Luke's life", Walton said. "Whenever there was a big moment for little Luke, big Luke would show up unannounced to make sure it all turned out right." Chris Walton played for San Diego State. He is a real estate executive. Nate Walton played basketball at Princeton. He entered the corporate world and earned his MBA from Stanford University's Graduate School of Business. (Bill Walton had attended Stanford Law School for two years while with the Clippers, but never graduated.) Nate was on the ballot for the 2003 California Recall election, receiving 1,697 votes. He has been highly successful in the oil business. Adam Walton played at Louisiana State University, Pomona College and the College of Notre Dame in Belmont, California. He currently is a college assistant coach at San Diego Mesa College. Bill Walton's other brother, Bruce Walton, played in the National Football League with the Dallas Cowboys from 1973 to 1975. They were basketball teammates in high school. Bill followed Bruce in attending UCLA. Bruce played in Super Bowl X, making Bill and Bruce the only brothers to play in the Super Bowl and NBA Finals. Walton's sister Cathy was an outstanding youth swimmer and played some basketball at the University of California. Walton is known as a vegetarian and a meditation practitioner. Walton maintained a close lifetime friendship with Coach John Wooden, visiting him often. "Coach Wooden is the most influential person in my life outside of my mom and dad, but when we played for him, he was older than our parents, and we thought our parents were the oldest people on earth", Walton said. "So the things he taught us made no sense to us. We thought he was nuts, but when you're hot and when you're on top and it's all happening, you never think. We were so young and we had always won. So we had no real idea how fragile everything was. Everything that Coach Wooden told us eventually came true." On Walton's desk sits a message to him from Coach Wooden: "To Bill Walton, it's the things you learn after you know it all that count. John Wooden." He attended more than 850 Grateful Dead concerts, including traveling with the band to Egypt for its famous 1978 performance before the Pyramids (joining the band on drums), and quotes Grateful Dead lyrics in TV and radio interviews. To fellow Deadheads, Walton is fondly known as "Grateful Red" and the "Big Red Deadhead" and "World's Tallest Deadhead". In the video for "Touch of Grey", Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart is wearing a Celtics jacket given to him by Walton. In 2001, Walton was inducted into The Grateful Dead Hall of Honor. Walton wrote the liner notes for the Grateful Dead live albums Dave's Picks Volume 5 in 2013 and Dave's Picks Volume 48 in 2023, both of which feature concerts recorded at UCLA's Pauley Pavilion during Walton's tenure on the university's basketball team. Walton also considers himself a fan and friend of the late writer Ken Kesey. In 2015, he made a visit to the Ken Kesey Collection while on a stop at the University of Oregon.

His 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. It remained on The New York Times bestseller list for two weeks in April 2016. Walton, who has a service dog, wrote the foreword to the 2015 book Unconditional Honor: Wounded Warriors and their Dogs by author Cathy Scott.

Walton has cameo appearances in the films 88 and 1, Celtic Pride, Little Nicky and Semi Pro, and appeared as Sven the Wise in the 2011 Capital One Visigoth SportsNet commercials. He is also mentioned by Kareem Abdul Jabbar in the 1980 comedy Airplane! ("Tell your old man to drag Walton and Lanier up and down the court for 48 minutes!") Walton appeared in the 1984 motion picture Ghostbusters.