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Monday, May 27, 2024

Basketball: Memories of Bill Walton

Unique is overdone. Bill Walton was unique. The basketball world lost an icon and his memory will endure.

Growing up a UCLA fan, I read Wooden's They Call Me Coach as the first basketball book I owned. Walton wasn't UCLA but along with then Lew Alcindor, was a big part of the Westwood wizardry. 


1. 21 for 22. Walton's impeccable footwork triggered a 44 point outburst in the 1973 title game. 

2. Habits. Wooden said of Walton, "he never tired of doing the little things," like working on footwork. 

3. 1986. Walton's injuries betrayed his career, but he put together a great 1986 as the sixth man for the Celtics' championship team. Walton got the NBA's Sixth Man Award. Walton and James Harden are the only duo to earn both the MVP and the Sixth Man Award. 

Bird and Walton were virtuoso passers.
 


4. Breaking ankles. Not exactly, but his ankle arthritis was so bad it required fusing to relieve the pain. 

5. Quirky. Walton showed up a practice with a beard. Wooden told him to choose between the beard and basketball. The rest is history. 

6. The Dead. The Grateful Dead were playing in Worcester, MA so naturally Wooden took his Celtics mates. The concert literally started half an hour late because Walton and company were schmoozing backstage. 

7. Blazing. Walton led the 1977 Portland Trail Blazers to the NBA title with plenty of help from Maurice Lucas, Lionel Hollins et al. Walton's 20 points, 23 rebounds, 7 assists, and 8 blocks carried Portland to a two point win. 


Lagniappe. From Farnam Street

There are different types of hard work:

1. Outthinking (a better strategy, a shortcut)
2. Pure Effort (working longer, intensity)
3. Opportunistic (positioning yourself to take advantage of change)
4. Consistency (doing average things for longer)
5. Focus (saying no to distractions)

Lagniappe 2. It's a chaotic game requiring chaos practice. 

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