Lakers Hall of Famer Sends Best Wishes to Bill Walton's Family After UCLA Legend Dies

One L.A. all-timer gives another his flowers.

Nov 6, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; Hall of Famer Bill Walton (left) talks to UCLA Bruins center Aday Mara (15) before the game against the St. Francis (Pa) Red Flash at Pauley Pavilion presented by Wescom. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports / Kiyoshi Mio-USA TODAY Sports

Los Angeles Lakers Hall of Fame point guard Magic Johnson has sent his condolences to the family of legendary UCLA-turned-Portland Trail Blazers center Bill Walton, after it was revealed earlier today that the 6-foot-11 Hall of Fame big man passed away following a cancer battle.

Johnson took to X to wish Walton's family his best, shouting out Walton's dominant play in the Bruins' championship game against Memphis in the 1973 NCAA championship game, in which Walton scored 44 points on 21-of 22-field goal shooting:

Rest in peace to a friend, 2X NBA Champion, Hall of Famer, and one of the most skilled centers we’ve ever seen Bill Walton! His NCAA Championship performance as a UCLA Bruin against Memphis is by far the most dominate NCAA Championship performance ever - he shot 21 for 22 and had…

— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) May 27, 2024

On the floor, Walton became an eventual nemesis of the younger Johnson's Showtime Lakers when — following a series of debilitating foot injuries — he reinvented himself as a reserve for the mighty 1985-86 Boston Celtics, led by All-Stars Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish. A largely-healthy Walton proved his mettle, becoming the Sixth Man of the Year that season on a large and lengthy 67-win club. Boston beat the Houston Rockets to win it all that season, netting Walton his second championship (he had previously won as the best player on the 1977 Portland Trail Blazers).

Walton's son, Luke, was a reserve small forward on back-to-back Lakers championship squads in 2009 and 2010. He eventually returned, briefly, as the team's head coach from 2016-19.

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