INDIANAPOLIS — Larry Bird, always a quiet, under-the-radar former NBA superstar, who doesn’t often talk publicly unless he has something that really matters to him, issued a statement Monday on the death of his former Boston Celtics teammate Bill Walton.
Â
“I am very sorry about my good friend, Bill Walton. I love him as a friend and as a teammate,” Bird said in a statement sent to IndyStar. “It was a thrill for me to play with my childhood idol and together we earned an NBA championship in 1986. He is one of the greatest ever to play the game.”
Â
A basketball Hall of Famer and an all-time great champion in high school, college and the NBA, Walton died Monday following a prolonged battle with cancer, the NBA announced. He was 71 years old.
Â
Larry Bird and Bill Walton, No. 5 of the Boston Celtics play defense during a game against the Washington Bullets in 1986 at Capital Centre.
“Bill Walton was truly one of a kind,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. “As a cherished member of the NBA family for 50 years, Bill will be deeply missed by all those who came to know and love him.”
Â
At 6-11, Walton was one of the most skilled big men to play the game. He defended, rebounded, blocked shots, passed and scored. He averaged 13.3 points, 10.5 rebounds 3.4 assists and 2.2 blocks in 10 seasons and was robbed of prime years due to foot injuries. He missed the entire 1978-79, 1980-81 and 1981-82 seasons.
