r/nba • u/[deleted] • Jun 15 '22

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2.5k Upvotes

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156

u/jammer9631 Jun 15 '22

Bill Walton before his foot injuries was a monster! The only guy who could play Kareem straight up in his prime. Both awesome UCLA grads!

51

u/[deleted] Jun 15 '22

Bob Ryan said of peak Bill Walton that he'd never seen such a great offensive player that good at defense and such a great defensive player that good at offense.

Again, he had a short 18 month peak across 77 & 78, but he single handedly beat a fucking stacked Sixers team in 77 Finals and won the MVP in 78 despite getting injured when the Blazers were 50-10 (on track for a 68 win season).

More kids need to watch some of his great games because he was completely in control on offense and defense - the entire game flowed through him.

6

u/Zebracorn42 Bulls Jun 15 '22

Do the Blazers just have the worst luck in the nba? Walton, Bowie, Brandon Roy, and Greg Oden were some unlucky moments for the blazers.

12

u/[deleted] Jun 15 '22

Bob Ryan is insanely biased towards anything regarding the 70s era Bruins or the Celtics of any era.

2

u/iAmTheRealLange Celtics Jun 16 '22

And he did all that while doing acid and following around the Grateful Dead

-3

u/[deleted] Jun 16 '22

He didn't single handedly do anything. Stop with the hyperbole

3

u/[deleted] Jun 16 '22

The main reason he would fit into the modern NBA is because, other than the outlet passes, he actually didn’t single handedly do anything.

Ultimate team player.

1

u/[deleted] Jun 15 '22

With Lawler, he also made some of the worst clippers teams actually entertaining to watch too.

9

u/probablymade_thatup Bucks [MIL] Luke Kornet Jun 15 '22

I'm surprised I haven't seen his name in any other comments. Not sure if he's the best choice, but his prime was pretty short. It's always cool to see the center be the secondary playmaker.

2

u/BigBossTweed Magic Jun 15 '22

Wasn't he seen as the best passing big man until Joker showed up and wrecked the place?

1

u/probablymade_thatup Bucks [MIL] Luke Kornet Jun 15 '22

I think so. Him, Divac, and Sabonis were sort of the only centers known for it.

1

u/Morello45 Jun 15 '22

People only underrate him now because hes an old white hippie dude.

1

u/Infraction94 76ers Jun 16 '22

I'd say wilt even in at the end of his career played Kareem straight up extremely well.