Weve seen him block guys at the rim and also get his hands on some basketballs off the dribble.. From Wilt the Stilt to Hakeem the Dream, we pay homage to the big men who ruled their erasbut would have been even more fun in this one. In his prime, Hakeem seemed capable of covering half the court by himself, assessing threats and snuffing them out with unnerving efficiency. His arms are long and he can block shots. At age 32 and with his comeback drawing to an inevitable end, Walton wanted more than just to be playing. He didnt often hear the term wingspan, finally understanding how special his measurement is when he got to the NBA. Beginning with college games, with his outspoken nature fully blossomed, he became one of the best in the NBA. Coaches marvel at players with long arms, figuring they will more easily grab rebounds, block shots, steal passes and shoot over defenders. Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. What Are the Characteristics of a Great NBA Sixth Man of the Year? During his first two years in Portland, Walton had sprained an ankle, broken his left wrist twice and dislocated two toes and two fingers. But todays players arent the only ones with the right skills to tick those boxes; plenty of their predecessors could, too. Bill Walton, Former ABC/ESPN/NBC Basketball Announcer, NBA All-Star Basketball Player, UCLA All-American, and one of the fifty greatest players in NBA history, provides a place to meet and greet fans. Grammy Award-winning singer John Mayer talks about the influence Basketball Hall of Famer Bill Walton has had on him during guest appearance on 'Throw It Down . Wilt Chamberlain was a great offensive player, Dr. Jack Ramsay, Waltons coach in Portland, told Sport magazine. The wingspan sure helps a lot of people, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said . . Most of us have the same wingspan as our height. One of them was fellow Time Machine All-Star Andrei Kirilenko, who was also one of just two players in NBA history with multiple 5x5 gamesat least five points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocksto his credit. When it comes to the offensive side of the ball, Russell has never been credited for being a great offensive player. Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo is nicknamed the "Greek Freak" in part because he stands 6-11 with a 7-3 wingspan and giant hands. Before he got to the NBA, McGee wasn't even aware of his wingspan. Look at John Stocktons arms or Avery Johnsons arms and theyre very long, and their hands are very big. If were going to wonder how Wilt Chamberlain would look in the 2020 NBA, we must also consider what the present might hold for Wilt Chamberneezy. Bill Walton is an American sportscaster and former professional retired basketball player. But several NBA players pop off the chart because of their long arms. He went home elatednot because of all the skill, pageantry, and aerial artistry he just witnessed, but because even as an undergraduate just barely getting his feet wet in the game, he wasnt too impressed with the future competition. Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo is nicknamed the Greek Freak in part because he stands 6-11 with a 7-3 wingspan and giant hands. 1 overall pick in the 1974 NBA Draft. Portland fell to the bottom of the Pacific Division in 1975-76, though Walton started to come into his own, scoring 16.1 ppg, pulling down 13.4 rpg and demonstrating excellent passing skills from the low- or high-post in 51 contests. Chances are, Chris Ballard wrote in his excellent book The Art of a Beautiful Game, the mobile big man and sweet-shooting 7-footer could have emerged at an earlier time in the games history if players had been given the opportunity. Well, friends: Let us, one last time, use our collective powers of imagination to grant that opportunity. It is as if Agony and Ecstasy are Bill's Scylla and Charybdys, with his 7'+ wingspan wide enough to touch both simultaneously. Walton first appeared on the national stage as a lanky college kid who exhibited a winning attitude on the court and an anti-establishment attitude off it. But when you have the great game of basketball with all the ultimate winners of the genetic lottery its not how high you jump, its where you are and when you jump.. And they're able to get their hands on balls or shots or loose balls. The explosive Russell Westbrook is 6-3, with a wingspan of 6-8, which helps him be one of the best rebounding guards in history. Im not as fast laterally, Im not as athletic, Im not as quick as guys up and down but I think I make up for it with my length, said Durant, a defensive player of the year candidate. Career (468 games, 1974-87): 13.3 points, 10.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.2 blocks per game, 52.1% FG, 66.0% FT. During his prime as a member of the Portland Trail Blazers in the mid-1970s a prime that lasted a mere three years Walton drew comparisons to such players as Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Russell. J, who pumped in 40 points in Game 6. It's no coincidence that Jazz center Rudy Gobert, who stands 7-1 and led the NBA in blocks last season, has the longest wingspan in the league at 7 feet, 9 inches. In one game he scored 20 points and pulled down 12 rebounds in just 26 minutes. Give a young Wilt a steady diet of reps as a creator in the half court and more space to work with, and who knows what alternate pathways to dominance might open? And theyre able to get their hands on balls or shots or loose balls. Plus, a Salt Lake City Recap. Basketball was a sport where under optimal conditions a great player with considerable ego disciplined himself and became unselfish. (Walton had his share of ego too. The idea was to expose the bones to less stress when Waltons feet hit the ground, particularly after skying high for a dunk or rebound. He has been going with a center by committee based on matchups. During his 14 seasons, according to Basketball-Reference.com, the leagues average pace never dipped below 110 possessions per 48 minutes of game time; thats a full 10 possessions per 48 faster than this past season. Coaches marvel at players with long arms, figuring they will more easily grab rebounds, block shots, steal passes and shoot over defenders. A half-century ago, Pink Floyd unleashed a classic that still lingers on the Billboard charts and in college dorms to this day. For one: Decades before Shut up and dribble became a sociopolitical flashpoint, Walton was telling The New York Times In this society, they dont expect an athlete to speak for himself or to be able to lead his own life. Given his love for the spotlight, his polarizing on- and off-court presence, and his sensitivity to blowback, how would a figure as towering as Wilt Chamberlain play in the social media era? "It's not how big you are, it's how big you play. Its no coincidence that Jazz center Rudy Gobert, who stands 7-1 and led the NBA in blocks last season, has the longest wingspan in the league at 7 feet, 9 inches. In his best yearthe 2006-07 campaign, when he earned his first and only All-Star nodOkur averaged 18 points and 7.2 rebounds per game, shooting 38.4 percent from 3-point range on 4.2 attempts per game. Free) fumed to the San Diego Union at the time. Raised in France, Gobert kept growing from ages 15-19. Ive always been tall. And he was cocky, even to the Trail Blazers coaching staff. They were the last games he would play for more than two seasons, in which the Clippers won only 36 and 17 games, respectively. The wingspan sure helps a lot of people, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said . But the Celtics Brogdon is mounting a well-rounded campaign that hearkens back to some of the earliest Sixth Men. Milwaukee Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo is nicknamed the Greek Freak in part because he stands 6-11 with a 7-3 wingspan and giant hands. In recent seasons, Warriors high-scoring All-Star Kevin Durant has become more determined to use his 7-5 wingspan to make more of an impact on defense. If your wingspan is more than your height, thats kind of abnormal. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Those who knew Walton the basketball player recognized him as a devastating force. After sitting out the entire 1978-79 season, Walton headed to San Diego and strife followed him there. Walton inducted himself About Us He has been going with a center by committee based on matchups. Its not how big you are, its how big you play. Neither knew their wingspans then, and they still dont. How Far Can This Version of James Harden Take the Sixers? That is not the case for young players. In 33 games for the Clippers, Walton averaged 14.1 points, the fourth-highest total of his career, while shooting .528 from the field, a career high at the time. In an ESPN feature published earlier this year about the evolution of NBA big men, Rockets general manager Daryl Morey said that if his notorious envelope-pushing team had ONeal on the roster, I would give him the ball 1,000 times, is my guess. Once he got it, keeping him from getting to the rimand from putting his man inside itwould be an awfully tall order, and would likely result in even more trips to the line for someone who averaged nearly 10 attempts per 36 minutes for his career. I would actually love to play in this NBA, he told Jackie MacMullan and Kirk Goldsberry. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Walton is in the Hall of Fame, but he never had his arms measured end to end. My name is Giannis Antetokounmpo., Career (470 games, 1995-2003): 12.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 0.8 steals, 1.1 blocks per game, 50.0% FG, 32.8% 3FG, 78.6% FT. By the time Sabonis finally came to the NBA in 1995, he was already 31 years old with a pair of ruptured Achilles tendons and a litany of leg and groin injuries rendering him a pale imitation of what he once was. You look at size of hands, wingspans. Raised in France, Gobert kept growing from ages 15-19. Some of the best players Kerr faced had incredible reach. Sam Perkins (1984-2001): Heres that protostretch-5 you ordered: Big Smooth could shoot from deep in the first part of his careerjust ask the Bullsbut he rarely did, attempting only 352 triples during his first eight seasons and barely making a quarter of them. NBA Hall of Famer Bill Walton is back in the news for attacking his homeless neighbors in San Diego. The average man has a wingspan about 2 inches more than his height. His old national teammate Sarunas Marciulionis emphasized in Basketball: A Love Story that Sabonis hadnt yet fully developed his face-up game, his 3-point shot, or his court vision before playing in Spain following the 88 Olympics, so a younger model wouldnt necessarily have resembled a more explosive version of the finished product. William Theodore Walton III Twitter : BillWalton (Big Red, Grateful Red, Red Baron, Redwood, Chief) Position: Center Shoots: Right 6-11 , 210lb (211cm, 95kg) More bio, uniform, draft, salary info Hall of Fame 2x All Star 1976-77 TRB Champ 1976-77 BLK Champ 2x NBA Champ 2x All-NBA 2x All-Defensive 1976-77 Finals MVP 1977-78 MVP Weight, Net Worth, Age, Parents, Wife & More. That reaction underlines another reason Id love to see him now: Hed be an unbelievably alluring subject for modern media coveragea larger-than-life character whose outsize public figure would be rivaled only by his raw-nerve sensitivity. If somebody's short, hopefully they're quick. 2x NCAA Tourney MOP. Today, the tallest of the Deadheads, the man whose wingspan could be seen towering over most others . Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. But when he was right man, was he right: At his peakthe 1976-77 season in which the Blazers won the title, and the 1977-78 campaign in which Portland was 50-10 when Walton broke his foot (he won MVP that year despite missing the final 22 games)Walton averaged 24.9 points, 18.3 rebounds, 5.8 assists, and 3.8 blocks per 100 possessions. 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