I found another means of accepting a period of grief. If you love sports, you probably had your favorite athlete. Although I did not know any of the athletes, I enjoyed watching certain people play. I not only appreciated my favorites play the sport, but I also enjoyed stories and interviews that made me think I knew him/her a little better.
I especially loved hearing of an athlete who was somewhat modest in talking about the sport, the team and his teammates. And so it is that one of my favorites, Bill Walton died about three weeks ago on May 27, 2014. I was sad.
Walton was just a few months older than me. He was born in 1952. He died of colon cancer, and I, like many others, had no knowledge him being sick. That was Bill, who thought of others before himself. He was a Hall of Fame professional basketball player. In high school he averaged 29 points and 25 rebounds per game, and his team finished the 1970 season perfect, with no losses. He played in college for the UCLA Bruins, a team for which he led to a perfect season winning 30 games and losing none. His professional career in the National Basketball Association was most successful, especially in 1977 when he led the Portland Trail Rangers to the NBA title.
These are Bill Walton’s statistical highlights. What is not mentioned is about Bill Walton’s life beyond basketball. To start, he was extremely quirky. He loved the Grateful Dead musical group and Bill said he attended 869 of their concerts. He really was a so-called Deadhead. One story about Bill said his lifestyle was unconventional. That is put mildly.
His career as a basketball player was great, however he was injured many times which hindered his ability to rise even higher beyond his final statistics. Funny thing was, he seemed to live life not thinking of his life, but others. One commentator said that Bill “wanted to leave an impact of leaving the people he met with a smile on their face. He treated others with royalty.”
Walton stuttered and had speech issues growing up, but after his playing career, he overcame all that and became a fantastic broadcaster of the game. In games which were lousy to watch, Bill Walton’s stories made the game seem good and fun for those listening.
I listened to a few basketball reporters on youtubebillwalton speaking about the life of Bill Walton, several with tears in their eyes. I would guess that 80% of what they said was not about basketball, although they acknowledged that if he was not injured so much, he could have been seen as the greatest player in history. Each of them said were touched that Bill wanted others to succeed and hoped they had fun.
Almost all of us want, in some way, to leave a legacy. Bill Walton was an incredible basketball player, but I think he should be remembered for years to come for his modesty and ability to connect and care for others.
Be At Peace, Bill, and we will remember you always.
Note: as I was about to post this, I learned of the death of Jerry West. He was 86 years-old and was considered Mr. Basketball as a star guard for the Los Angeles Lakers. He played for my alma mater at West Virginia University. I now need to deal with this loss and perhaps discuss it in a future post.
At Peace 