UCLA Basketball: Bruins To Honor Legend Bill Walton at Home Game in 2025

Jeremy Hanna | Oct 17, 2024

Sep 10, 2022; Springfield, MA, USA; Bill Walton at the 2022 Basketball Hall of Fame at Symphony Hall. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images / Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

The UCLA Bruins are set to honor late alumnus and legendary basketball center Bill Walton when they face off against Ohio State on Sunday, Feb. 23, 2025.

The game against the Buckeyes is set to be televised nationally on CBS at 12:45 p.m. PT. It will be the Bruins' second-to-last home game of the season.

Walton tragically passed away on May 27, 2024, at the age of 71 after a battle with cancer.

"It's a difficult reality to know we're getting ready to start a basketball season in Westwood without Bill's presence," said UCLA Basketball head coach Mick Cronin. "He will forever be an icon in our great game, and his memory will forever live on at UCLA."

"For our program, especially over the past 12 seasons, he's been a fixture while working as a broadcaster. On game days, he routinely chatted with our players, he shared advice with me, and he meant so much to everyone around our program."

"We want to honor Bill this season, and we're grateful to have the support of his family. After conversations with his former teammates and with the blessing of his family, we wanted to select a game when we're at home on the weekend, playing before a national television audience."

UCLA will honor Walton through a halftime ceremony and throughout the game. Fans who attend will receive a commemorative poster celebrating his life and legacy. On top of that, UCLA students will be given a custom tie-dyed t-shirt.

Walton grew up in La Mesa, California, and soon joined UCLA in 1971. He would go on to lead the Bruins to two consecutive NCAA championships (1972, 1973). He was named the National College Player of the Year three times (1972-1974) and the NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player (1972, 1973).

Walton would go on to be selected with the first overall pick in the 1974 NBA Draft by the Portland Trailblazers. Walton would play for three teams: the Trail Blazers, the San Diego/Los Angeles Clippers, and the Boston Celtics.

Despite having multiple injuries, Walton would go on to receive countless accolades in the NBA. He is a two-time NBA Champion (1977, 1986), an NBA Finals MVP (1977), an NBA MVP (1978), and an NBA Sixth Man of the Year (1986). He led the NBA in rebounds and blocks in 1977.

Walton's number was retired by the UCLA Bruins and the Trail Blazers. He has also been named to both the 50th and 75th NBA anniversary teams. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993 and the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006.

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