All-time UCLA and NBA great Bill Walton has earned a Naismith Outstanding Contributor to Basketball Award "for his lifetime contribution to the game of basketball," per UCLA Communications.
A three-time Naismith Trophy winner and two-time NCAA champion during his tenure with the Blue and Gold, the 6'11" big man averaged a cumulative 20.3 points on 65.1% field goal shooting, 15.7 rebounds and 5.5 assists under 10-time champion head coach John Wooden.
He won plenty of awards in his UCLA playing days, being named a three-time All-Pac-12 honoree (it was All-Pac-8 at the time), a three-time consensus All-American, a two-time Associated Press Player of the Year, a three-time Rupp Trophy winner, a three-time NCAA All-Tourney pick, a three-time NCAA All-Region selection, and a two-time NCAA Tourney Most Outstanding Player.
Walton would go on to be picked first overall by the Portland Trail Blazers in 1974, and won titles with Portland in 1977 and the Boston Celtics in 1986. Merely named a two-time All-Star due to some major foot problems, Walton's ailment-plagued tenure was still good enough to earn him Hall of Fame recognition. He was named the 1977-78 MVP, averaging 18.9 points on 52.2% shooting, 13.2 rebounds, five assists, 2.5 blocks and one steal across just 58 healthy contests.
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