Bill Walton, UCLA Legend, Passes Away

Former UCLA legend and Hall of Famer Bill Walton passed away yesterday at the age of 71. Walton had a long battle with cancer and was surrounded by his family at his passing on Memorial Day. 

Bill Walton was one of the all-time greats in both college basketball and the NBA. Unless you’re old enough, you probably only know Bill Walton as a basketball commentator. What many may not know about Walton is that he thought he’d never be any good at broadcasting. In his youth, Bill Walton has a stuttering issue. 

He overcame that and went on to become an Emmy-winning sports broadcaster. It wasn’t a broadcast with Bill Walton if everyone in the building and watching on TV wasn’t having fun. Check this reel out below of Bill Walton at his best.

Bill Walton – What A Life

Not many can claim to have won an NCAA basketball championship. Bill Walton won two while at UCLA playing for another legend, John Wooden. Bill Walton won two national titles and, in addition, was the Most Outstanding Player in the Final Four in 1972 and 1973.

Bill Walton was selected with the No. 1 pick in the 1974 NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers. Three years later, Walton became part of an elite group of players that have won championships in both the NCAA and NBA. Portland won the 1977 NBA title and Bill Walton was the NBA Finals MVP. He followed that up with the league MVP the following season. 

Walton would later play for the Boston Celtics from 1985 to 1987. He won the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award in 1986, the same year Bill Walton added another NBA title to his resume. He was a key part of the Celtics 4-2 NBA Finals victory over the Houston Rockets. 

After his playing career, he broke into broadcasting. Bill Walton worked for all of the major networks at one time or another and also hosted his own satellite radio show called One More Saturday Night. That’s also the title of a song by the Grateful Dead, a band of which Walton was a huge fan. 

Bill Walton was plagued by injuries throughout his entire life. He suffered from back and foot issues constantly while in the NBA. After signing with the then-San Diego Clippers in 1980, Walton missed the 1980-81 and 1981-82 seasons due to a foot injury. Many doctors thought he might never play again. Bill Walton wound up playing 10 NBA seasons and was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993.

Info Plays Pulls One-and-Done to Top Board

It was a lighter sports schedule yesterday and that was reflected in our handicappers’ plays yesterday. Info Plays wound up at the top of yesterday’s leaderboard with $258 in winnings. Anytime you can end up making money, it’s always a good day at the ticket window (or online sportsbook these days).

Here’s what our top cappers did yesterday.

• It only takes one: Info Plays put just one pick in the system, but it was all they needed to become yesterday’s leader. Info Plays rode a +258 soccer underdog for the win and the top spot. 

• Scotty do: Scott’s Picks continue to shine with a 3-1 mark yesterday and profits of $245. Scotty is still among our Top 20 cappers over the last 30 days.
• The Bookie rules: With a name like The Bookie, you can’t go wrong. The Bookie put in just two picks yesterday but wound up with $210 to the good. The Bookie had the Stars at +110 for the upset.
• Three amigos: Al Grant, Seth Cohen, and William Taylor. All Sports Hub experts. Each has been among the daily Top 5 on numerous occasions. Yesterday, the trifecta each went 2-0 and each earned $200. Seth is out top MLB capper over the last seven days ($813). Al is among our Top 3 NBA cappers for the week and Willy T is the No. 1 Sports Hub handicapper over the last 30 days with over $2300 in profits.

Bill Walton’s Passing Tops News

He was such a likable guy. Bill Walton was a great basketball player, but he was just a great dude. He made us laugh and he made basketball games on TV more fun to watch. He’ll be missed as we continue through the rest of the NBA playoffs. 

Here’s what else is trending in sports.

• Commanders K in trouble: Brandon McManus was signed by Washington in the offseason, but his 2024 campaign is in jeopardy. He has been accused of sexual assault in a lawsuit filed Friday night in Duval County Florida. McManus spent last season with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
• Lively doubtful: Tonight, the Dallas Mavericks can complete the sweep against Minnesota in their Western Conference finals playoff series. Dereck Lively, however, may not be available for the Mavs. He has a neck injury he suffered in Game 3. Lively is listed as doubtful for tonight.

• MLB injuries: The Giants will likely have to send 1B LaMonte Wade Jr. back to the IL after he re-injured his ailing hamstring. Seattle’s Jorge Polanco is also headed to the 10-day IL with hamstring tightness. 
• Hat trick: Jason Robertson completed the hat trick last night as Dallas beat Edmonton 5-3 to take a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference finals. Game 4 is Wednesday night in Edmonton. 

Elimination Tuesday

Game 4 of the NBA’s Western Conference finals are tonight in Minnesota. The series could end and the NBA Finals set. Boston swept Indiana in the Eastern Conference finals to earn a trip to the finals. 

Game 3 in the NHL’s Eastern Conference finals is also tonight. The New York Rangers will try to take a commanding lead in the series. Tonight’s game is in Florida where there is also an MLB game. Tampa Bay will host the Oakland A’s.

Here’s a look at the entire Tuesday sports schedule.

1. NBA playoffs: As mentioned, it’s Game 4 of the Western Conference finals tonight in Minnesota. Dallas holds a 3-0 lead in the series. The Mavs won Game 3 in Minnesota on Sunday, 116-107. Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving each scored 33 points for Dallas. A win tonight would send the Mavs to the NBA Finals for the first time since their 2011 run to the NBA championship.
2. NHL playoffs: The New York Rangers won Game 3 in Florida on Sunday, 5-4 in overtime. A Rangers win tonight would give New York a 3-1 with the series heading back to Madison Square Garden on Thursday night.
3. Full MLB card: We’re back to a full card after a lighter schedule yesterday in MLB. The Dodgers and Mets kick things off with the only afternoon game on the docket at 4:10 p.m. The Phillies and Giants continue their three-game series tonight at 9:45 p.m. San Francisco won last night 8-4. 

4. South American soccer: This pretty much dominates the soccer schedule today with matches today in Argentina, Brazil, and Colombia as well as the CONMEBOL Libertadores competition. There are six matches in the highest level of club football competition in South America. There is also another promotion/relegation match in Germany’s Bundesliga. 
5. 2024 French Open: The first round of the 2024 French Open continues today for both the men and the women. Women’s No. 1 seed Iga Swiatke won her first round match yesterday. Men’s top seed Novak Djokovic takes on Pierre-Hugues Herbert later today. Fourteen-time French Open winner Rafael Nadal was eliminated yesterday in his first round match by No. 4 Alexander Zverev.
6. WNBA: There are three games on tap in the WNBA tonight. Phoenix is at unbeaten Connecticut and Los Angeles plays the Fever in Indiana. Both games start at 7:00 p.m. Caitlin Clark and the Fever picked up their first win of the season last week against the Sparks. Indiana is a 4.5-point favorite tonight. Seattle plays at Chicago in a game that tips off at 8:00 p.m.