FILE: Denver Nuggets' Dan Issel, left, guards Portland Trail Blazers' Bill Walton as Walton moves towards the basket during their game in Portland, Ore., Feb. 12, 1978. Walton, who starred for John Wooden's UCLA Bruins before becoming a Basketball Hall of Famer and one of the biggest stars of basketball broadcasting, died Monday, May 27, 2024, the league announced on behalf of his family. He was 71.
Jack Smith / AP
NBA Hall of Famer, Portland Trail Blazers legend and Northwest icon Bill Walton died recently at the age of 71. He’s known as one of the most beloved Blazers of all time, credited with leading the team to its first NBA Championship in 1977. He’s also remembered as a freewheeling sportscaster, a devoted Deadhead, a young activist, a bike-lover and so much more. It’s clear from the many remembrances of him since his death how much he meant to fans across the basketball world, especially here in Oregon. We got together with two of OPB’s biggest Blazers fans, politics and government editor Andrew Theen and investigative editor and reporter Tony Schick, to share memories of Bill Walton and reflect on his legacy in Rip City and beyond.
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