9.04.2018

Despite a Career Full of Injuries, Walton Feels Lucky




December 1, 2002


The first thing Bill Walton drops into conversation is the surgeries--a staggering list that is as much a part of his persona as his devotion to the Grateful Dead, Bob Dylan and John Wooden. His nose was broken 13 times, his front teeth knocked out 10 times, surgery twice on his left hand, five times on his left knee and the other 25 on his feet.



Then he concludes, "I'm the luckiest guy in the world," sounding like Lou Gehrig's farewell speech. He has two fused ankles. He can't play golf or tennis, the common refuges for the athlete turned 50. "I can ride my bike," he said, leaning forward for emphasis. "I'm not in discomfort. I can ride my bike. I can kayak in the ocean off San Diego. I play the piano, work in the garden." 

He had no shock absorption in his feet; the more he'd play, the more his bones would break. He insists he would pay the price all over again.

Walton is into another season as analyst on NBA telecasts for ESPN and ABC. His conversation is laced with emotional whispers, underlined words and confiding exclamation points, just as is his broadcasting. He is never far from his famed playing career, beginning at UCLA, where he was dazzling and his basketball future boundless--before the congenital bone structure of his feet broke down.

He has lunch frequently with Wooden, the 92-year-old patriarch who taught Walton so much with two NCAA championships. He quotes Wooden often, says he speaks more with Wooden than anyone but his own parents. "Even though I was at odds with so many of the things CoachWooden was about," he said. "Facial hair and haircuts, dress code and all that stuff, nothing was ever more important than being on that team."

He played on two NBA champions--the very young Portland team in 1977, at 24, and the Celtics in 1986, a scarred 33. He was MVP in 1978 and won the Sixth Man Award eight seasons later, which speaks to devotion. "I can never thank enough Red Auerbach and Larry Bird, not only for giving me my career back but my life back," he said with those underlines.

Walton was in New York recently to receive an award at a fund-raising dinner for the Miami Project for the Cure of Paralysis, the fund Nick Buoniconti set up after his son, Mark, was devastated on the football field. "I can only hope to be as good a father as Nick Buoniconti,"Walton said.

That turned the thought to Luke Walton, one of Walton's four sons and top man in Arizona's role as favorite to win the college championship. Luke is a prime candidate for the Wooden Award as the best college player. He is 6-8, three inches shorter than his father; their games are similar. Last season, Luke was the first non-guard to lead the Pac-10 in assists.

As much as talent defined Bill Walton's professional career, the gap of four seasons with a total of 14 games played is his identification. At times he was told the foot problem was in his head and he was carted off to psychiatrists and faith healers. At one point he was told he was looking at eventual amputation. Desperate, he went against advice and tried experimental surgery that rebuilt his feet and got him four more seasons.

Young Luke grew up with Wooden's Pyramid of Success in his home. His father inscribedWooden's sayings on lunch bags Luke took to school.

It should be noted that Luke sat out his freshman year at Arizona because of a stress fracture of his right foot. What would the father advise if Luke suffered as he did?

"I know when I was 22, I never listened to my dad," Walton said. "I'd tell him to follow his heart."

Along with the Wooden philosophy, Walton has over his fireplace a large photograph of the Dead, signed by Jerry Garcia and the others, inscribed, "Never look back." It means never regret.

"What makes me so lucky," he said, "is that I got to stand in a huddle on the court with Dennis Johnson, Larry Bird, K.C. Jones, John Wooden, Kevin McHale, Dr. Jack Ramsay. I'm lucky."

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