Bill Walton

Boston Celtics
6-11 235 Center

The tallest non-7-footer in the world... Looks down at Robert Parish and Akeem Olajuwon, both of whom are listed as taller than he is... Former shyness caused him to refuse to be ranked as a 7-footer... Had a ball last season... Laid groundwork for his trade from Clippers to Celts for Cedric Maxwell... Moments after the Celts beat Rockets for title, he said, "Considering what has happened in my career, this is the happiest moment of my basketball life."... Missed nearly four full seasons due to foot fractures... First pick overall in 1974 draft by Trail Blazers... Had starred at UCLA, leading Bruins to two NCAA titles... Last season, he won NBA's Sixth Man Award, supplanting Kevin McHale, who took it the previous two seasons... Played about 18 minutes a night, spelling Parish and McHale... A force with his scoring, rebounding and passing... Field-goal accuracy of .562 was best of career... As final seconds ticked away in decisive Game 6 against Rockets, he embraced Larry Bird. "I said, 'Thank you, very much,'" said Walton. "I came here to win a title and, these guys, they gave it to me."... Makes $425,000 per season... Born Nov. 5, 1952 in La Mesa, Cal.

Relevant Stats:
7.6 ppg, 52.2 FG%, 6.8 rpg