FishDuck Article Administrator No. 1 Share Posted June 4 OK, let’s get it out of the way. Yes; his quirky, rambling, meandering and obscure commentary during basketball telecasts could be extremely frustrating — evoking reactions ranging from cute to cursing, endearing to eye-rolling, joy to “you’ve gotta be joking,” and from a sense of comradery to cursing. And, for some, simply anger. But, for many of us, doesn’t that ... May the Spirit of Bill Walton Reign Over Oregon Basketball | FishDuck FISHDUCK.COM Darren Perkins of FishDuck.com hopes that the lessons of Bill Walton take hold of the Oregon Men’s Basketball team. 1 4 2 3 Two Sites: FishDuck and the Our Beloved Ducks forum, The only "Forum with Decorum!" And All-Volunteer? What a wonderful community of Duck fans! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Ducky No. 2 Share Posted June 4 Love that guy. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
WallaWallaDuck No. 3 Share Posted June 4 Bill was just a good dude. He was a true Deadhead. I loved his broadcasting and he loved rooting for our Beloved Ducks. I never met Bill, however, my dad and older brothers knew him well. Bill grew up in La Mesa, CA and went to Helix High School which is where I grew up and went to High School (12 years later). One of my brothers, who played for San Diego Stare, used to tell me about how much fun it was to play against Bill when the Aztecs played against UCLA one year. He will be missed. He accomplished so much and you could tell he just loved life. He used to have a speech impediment that was really tough and made it very hard to understand him. He was able to improve to where he was great in the booth. I don’t know where I’m going with all this. Keep smiling and telling stories wherever you are Bill. 2 2 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MicroBurst61 No. 4 Share Posted June 4 Bill Walton was one of the "few" truly passionate and insightful human beings to grace our sporting lives. Even though, sometimes, his passion and insight drifted from the sporting "task at hand". But, that is what made him....well...Bill! Too many times do we, collectively, not appreciate the small gifts in our lives. And, albeit sometimes frustrating to tune into a (former) PAC12 BB game, expecting to hear stats and statistics from the announcer "cheat sheets"; but instead get to hear about the settling of the "Whiliamet" valley and all the rich history it entails. Hell! During Bill broadcasts, I think I learned more about the various regions of the West than I did in my whole life of formal education. Lol. Point is. Even if Bill never did a single broadcasts and remained solely as a Oregon favorite son, being instrumental in the states only professional basketball championship. His "persona" would still have "touched" many people in his influence. I for one am grateful that Bill felt moved to adopt Oregon, and the former PAC as his own, expressing his love and devotion for both. As a sports announcer he "may" be missed. But, as a genuine, compassionate, positive individual human; his moving on to the next realm is a net loss for ours. It almost seemed fitting that both Bill AND the PAC both came to an end, together. Godspeed Bill and keep us here in this realm in your thoughts and feels, in your next. Love ya, Man! Thanks for your humanity. Rest In Peace, Senor'. 1 1 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Santa Rosa Duck No. 5 Share Posted June 4 I loved his color commentary and discussion about everything beautiful in the State of Oregon. My wife generally does not watch Oregon sports with me but when Bill Walton was the announcer, she sat down and enjoyed the show. You are already missed Bill. 1 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Kamikaze Kid Moderator No. 6 Share Posted June 4 Walton could explain the history of the Rouge River, the far out experience of a Grateful Dead show and the perfect execution of a half court trap in one paragraph. The man’s love of life was unparalleled. He was a fierce competitor, an avid scholar and a modern day shaman all rolled into one. A true one of a kind individual and ambassador of the Conference of Champions. RIP Bill. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren Perkins No. 7 Share Posted June 4 On 6/4/2024 at 7:21 AM, WallaWallaDuck said: Bill was just a good dude. He was a true Deadhead. I loved his broadcasting and he loved rooting for our Beloved Ducks. I never met Bill, however, my dad and older brothers knew him well. Bill grew up in La Mesa, CA and went to Helix High School which is where I grew up and went to High School (12 years later). One of my brothers, who played for San Diego Stare, used to tell me about how much fun it was to play against Bill when the Aztecs played against UCLA one year. He will be missed. He accomplished so much and you could tell he just loved life. He used to have a speech impediment that was really tough and made it very hard to understand him. He was able to improve to where he was great in the booth. I don’t know where I’m going with all this. Keep smiling and telling stories wherever you are Bill. Thanks for sharing. Good stuff! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren Perkins No. 8 Share Posted June 4 On 6/4/2024 at 7:38 AM, MicroBurst61 said: Bill Walton was one of the "few" truly passionate and insightful human beings to grace our sporting lives. Even though, sometimes, his passion and insight drifted from the sporting "task at hand". But, that is what made him....well...Bill! Too many times do we, collectively, not appreciate the small gifts in our lives. And, albeit sometimes frustrating to tune into a (former) PAC12 BB game, expecting to hear stats and statistics from the announcer "cheat sheets"; but instead get to hear about the settling of the "Whiliamet" valley and all the rich history it entails. Hell! During Bill broadcasts, I think I learned more about the various regions of the West than I did in my whole life of formal education. Lol. Point is. Even if Bill never did a single broadcasts and remained solely as a Oregon favorite son, being instrumental in the states only professional basketball championship. His "persona" would still have "touched" many people in his influence. I for one am grateful that Bill felt moved to adopt Oregon, and the former PAC as his own, expressing his love and devotion for both. As a sports announcer he "may" be missed. But, as a genuine, compassionate, positive individual human; his moving on to the next realm is a net loss for ours. It almost seemed fitting that both Bill AND the PAC both came to an end, together. Godspeed Bill and keep us here in this realm in your thoughts and feels, in your next. Love ya, Man! Thanks for your humanity. Rest In Peace, Senor'. Thanks for the share. Yes, there are some things that I learned from his broadcasts outside of basketball, for sure. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren Perkins No. 9 Share Posted June 4 On 6/4/2024 at 7:49 AM, Santa Rosa Duck said: I loved his color commentary and discussion about everything beautiful in the State of Oregon. My wife generally does not watch Oregon sports with me but when Bill Walton was the announcer, she sat down and enjoyed the show. You are already missed Bill. That's great, I had never thought of that, that non-sports fans might tune in just for Bill. Good stuff. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren Perkins No. 10 Share Posted June 4 On 6/4/2024 at 9:43 AM, The Kamikaze Kid said: Walton could explain the history of the Rouge River, the far out experience of a Grateful Dead show and the perfect execution of a half court trap in one paragraph. The man’s love of life was unparalleled. He was a fierce competitor, an avid scholar and a modern day shaman all rolled into one. A true one of a kind individual and ambassador of the Conference of Champions. RIP Bill. Portland and Oregon couldn't have asked for a better fit for the state's greatest sports legend. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Fischer Administrator No. 11 Share Posted June 4 Great article Darren, and I loved the video of the 1977 Championship! 1 Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drake Moderator No. 12 Share Posted June 4 Years ago, the Blazers had a game against the Lakers when Luke Walton was playing and one of our young Blazer fans was asking players for autographs outside of the locker room. The Lakers had lost the game and most players were not in the mood to sign anything. Luke came out and spoke to the young boy, he then went back into the locker room and brought out a pair of shoes. He signed them and gave them to the young fan. The Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MicroBurst61 No. 13 Share Posted June 4 On 6/4/2024 at 9:48 AM, Darren Perkins said: That's great, I had never thought of that, that non-sports fans might tune in just for Bill. Good stuff. Yup! My eighty+ y/o dear ole mother would watch Oregon Basketball JUST for the commentary of Bill Walton. I loved watching how Bill could make her laugh, outloud, by just doing what Bill would do during his broadcast. Hopefully I can/have touched other people in such positive way in my own life. At the very least he is a great role model for me to continue to live the best life that I can.....in counter to all of the daily . Thanks again Bill, for all the great memories! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haywarduck Moderator No. 14 Share Posted June 4 Bill Walton was Bill Walton, and that is hard to do in this day and age of copy cat, react to this and that. All I know is we should all try and be ourselves, and relish that opportunity. We should also care less if we piss off a few, or are questioned by many. Just answer to yourself, and be grateful for the opportunity, Bill was! 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notalot No. 15 Share Posted June 5 I was blessed to attend several games Bill played in as a Bruin and Blazer including the 1977 run. Being the same age as Bill, and living through the ‘60’s coming of age, I related to his commentary and tales. Bill Walton stands as an athletic pillar and decent human being. He left a legacy in his kids. He was a Kamikaze in his own right. 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nevada Dawg No. 16 Share Posted June 7 Sorry if already posted but I'd add the game would be greatly improved if the spirit of Bill Walton reign over all of college basketball! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Fischer Administrator No. 17 Share Posted June 7 On 6/6/2024 at 10:23 PM, Nevada Dawg said: Sorry if already posted but I'd add the game would be greatly improved if the spirit of Bill Walton reign over all of college basketball! OK...I miss his passing and what he added, but what has not been said is how he would verbally abuse his sidekick broadcaster, and go off on tangents without covering the damn game we are watching. So no...he was a nice change from everyone else, a novelty, but not something I'd like seen across the board with college basketball. Sportscasters, stay professional....PLEASE. (A Waltonism) Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DUCKED No. 18 Share Posted June 7 On 6/6/2024 at 11:28 PM, Charles Fischer said: OK...I miss his passing and what he added, but what has not been said is how he would verbally abuse his sidekick broadcaster, and go off on tangents without covering the damn game we are watching. So no...he was a nice change from everyone else, a novelty, but not something I'd like seen across the board with college basketball. Sportscasters, stay professional....PLEASE. (A Waltonism) As someone who rarely pays much attention to the announcers, especially those calling basketball, primarily because of the speed of the game, I would tend to turn up the volume when Walton was working. The word salad that came out of his mouth was truly astonishing, often eye rolling, and rarely had anything to do with basketball. And to think this guy once had a serious stuttering problem. He could be annoying, for sure, but I find most announcers tend to share the same trait. (Except Vin Scully of course). And I agree, one “Walton” was enough…..but I’ll still miss him. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nevada Dawg No. 19 Share Posted June 8 The spirit I was referring to was his court enthusiasm as a college player not his post-basketball playing activities. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
