Ranking the 75 best players in NBA history: No. 72 – Bill Walton
On NBA 50 at 50 List
Career: 1974 – 1987
Achievements: Two-time champion; 1978 MVP; All-NBA (2x); All-Star (2x); All-Defense (2x); Finals MVP; Sixth Man of the Year; led the league in rebounds (1x) and blocks (1x)
Bill Walton was one of the hardest players to evaluate against his peers. He won a title in 1977 and the MVP award in 1978. His MVP was not the result of a fluke season but the deserved recognition of a longtime star. Walton was one of the best big man passers in league history, a defensive wall and an elite rebounder.
Then injuries that had plagued him from the start hit in earnest, and he missed three of the four seasons after his MVP year completely, playing in just 14 in 1979-80. He never got fully healthy, and only in one future season did he play something close to a full campaign. That year was 1985-86 when he was the Sixth Man of the Year on the title-winning Boston Celtics, a key part of their team culture and efficiency backup center in limited minutes.
It’s that final run that gets him onto the list because otherwise, his resume has too many injury-riddled holes. Players like Derrick Rose and Chris Bosh miss out because of injury-shortened careers, so Walton will have to stand as representative for them all, the best of the injured rest.