Bill Walton reveres Nikola Jokic as the best player in basketball today. There is a lot of debate over who will win this year’s MVP award, but Bill doesn’t seem to care about his own opinion anymore than we do.
Bill Walton is one of the most famous basketball players of all time. He was drafted by the Portland Trail Blazers in 1977, and has since become a coach for the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers. Bill Walton gushed over Nikola Jokic like only Bill Walton can. Read more in detail here: how old is nikola jokic.
During NBA All-Star Weekend, Bill Walton was surrounded by celebrities. Many members of the league’s 75th Anniversary Team were there to see the current crop of superstars in Cleveland.
Walton, one of the top 75 players, was spotted smiling and joking with Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic during Saturday’s practice before the game. Walton, in typical Bill Walton fashion, raved over the Nuggets’ dynamic center when asked what he thought of him.
Bill Walton’s heart is constantly on his sleeve.
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Walton is a sensitive person. He’ll exaggerate when he’s proud of something or pleased by someone. It’s not a ruse. Bill Walton is the real deal.
After averaging a double-double in his first four years with the Portland Trail Blazers, Walton’s NBA career was cut short by injury. He missed three of the following four seasons and was restricted to 14 games in the one season he did play.
During the 1976-77 season, the 6-foot-11 center from UCLA led the Blazers to a championship by leading the league in rebounds (14.4) and blocks (3.2) while averaging 18.6 points. His career was filled with frustrations after that.
During the 1985-86 season, Walton found a home in Boston, although his position was drastically altered. Despite coming off the bench to fill in for future Hall of Famers Robert Parish and Kevin McHale, he was instrumental in Boston’s third title in a decade. He glows with pride when he thinks of that championship, his teammates, and the Boston supporters.
On a 2020 podcast, a jubilant Walton told former Celtics forward Brian Scalabrine, “Our fans will never let us leave.” “What extraordinary people make up the Celtics Nation. Let’s go Celtics, let’s go Celtics, let’s go Celtics, let’s go Celtics
“We had a fantastic crew that adored one other. We like the manner we played and were certain that we could complete the task. We’re going to take a risk. We’ll take our chances against anybody, anywhere, at any time. We had everything. Size, strength, power, finesse, skill, discipline, and talent were all on our side.”
Bill Walton raved over Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets.
On February 20, 2022, in Cleveland, Ohio, Bill Walton reacts after being presented as a member of the NBA 75th Anniversary Team at the 2022 NBA All-Star Game at Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. | Getty Images/Jason Miller
Reporters asked Walton what he thought of Jokic after seeing him and the reigning MVP fooling about during Saturday’s practice. Walton went all out in his appraisal of the Nuggets All-Star once again.
According to Mike Singer of The Denver Post, Walton stated, “I simply said how proud I am of him and how glad I am for him and what he’s been able to accomplish to create life, to create the planet, and to take our universe to a better place.” “And the style, grace, elegance, dignity, and class that he brings every day, it’s simply like a new ray of sunlight.”
Walton wasn’t finished yet.
“I was ecstatic to be able to greet him because I’m a tremendous fan, and I’m so appreciative for the way he plays because it reflects the best of the human spirit in terms of inclusivity, teamwork, sacrifice, and discipline,” Walton added. “He’s simply a fantastic guy.” He’s a genius.”
There was more to come.
“He has a creative genius imagination, and he sees things that other people don’t,” Walton added. “His sense of timing, technique, position, and balance, as well as everything else I like in life, he embodies everything.”
“Watching him play basketball is a pleasure for me.” He’s from Colorado. He’s a trailblazer. He’s a trailblazer. He is a pioneer in forging a new and better route to the future.”
This isn’t the first time Walton has lavished praise on Jokic.
The Nuggets headed to Los Angeles to play the Lakers on October 25, 2018. Walton squeezed the game into his hectic schedule and went out of his way to see Jokic. According to The Athletic’s Nick Kosmider, Walton approached the floor during warmups and requested a picture. Walton was the one who was awestruck by the celebrity.
Walton described him as a “wonderful player who plays a cerebral game.” “He possesses peripheral vision, which seems to have been lost in the world. When you walk down the street in life, drive a vehicle in life, or ride a bike in the world on a street, the absence of peripheral vision is mind-boggling. However, Nikola Jokic is the remedy to so many of the world’s ills.”
Walton wasn’t finished yet.
“When you see someone like Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King, or Mahatma Gandhi, someone who sees the future before everyone else, understands how to get to where they need to be, that is Nikola Jokic,” he remarked. “When selfishness stops, happiness starts.” Nikola Jokic is a breath of fresh air in a game that has been dominated by self-serving dribble. And it’s all in his head. It’s like seeing Bob Dylan write a song while watching him play basketball.”
There was more to come.
“You feel happy about life when you watch Nikola Jokic play,” he remarked. “You have a positive outlook on life. You feel that battling for future is worthwhile.”
Jokic is certainly a favorite of Walton’s. As only he can, he explained why.
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