BOSTON — In addition to airing every game of the 2024 NBA Finals on our station, WFAA is also hosting a special presentation called "The Pregame" before each and every matchup in the series. Head here for more information.
Before tipoff in Game 1 of the 2024 NBA Finals between the Dallas Mavericks and Boston Celtics, legendary basketball Hall of Famer Bill Walton was honored with a tribute on the jumbotron and in the broadcast.
Walton died in late May after a prolonged battle with cancer. He was 71 years old.
Walton was the NBA's MVP in the 1977-78 season, a two-time champion and a member of the league's 50th anniversary and 75th anniversary teams. That followed a college career in which he was a two-time champion at UCLA and a three-time national player of the year.
He played for the Celtics from 1985 to 1988.
Walton retired from the NBA and turned to broadcasting, something he never thought he could be good at — and an avenue he sometimes wondered would be possible for him, because he had a pronounced stutter at times in his life.
Turns out, he was excellent at that, too: Walton was an Emmy winner, eventually was named one of the top 50 sports broadcasters of all time by the American Sportscasters Association and even appeared on The New York Times' bestseller list for his memoir, “Back from the Dead." It told the story of a debilitating back injury suffered in 2008, one that left him considering taking his own life because of the constant pain, and how he spent years recovering.
Walton died surrounded by his loved ones, his family said. He is survived by wife Lori and sons Adam, Nate, Chris and Luke — a former NBA player and now a coach.
Boston Celtics wear Nike Walton shirt in warm-up
Before Game 1, the Celtics also wore a shirt with Walton's name across the front in a tie dye font, which Walton was known for wearing.
Honoring another late legend before Game 1, Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum rocked the same workout shirt Kobe Bryant wore in his pre-draft workout for the Celtics.
Editor's note: The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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