Watch: Rick Carlisle shares incredible Bill Walton story before Game 4

Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle on Monday recounted one of his best memories of the late Bill Walton.

The NBA announced via press release that Walton died on Sunday after a lengthy battle with prostate cancer. The two-time NBA champion received touching tributes from fellow Hall-of-Famers such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Julius Erving.

Carlisle, Walton’s former teammate on the Boston Celtics, credited the UCLA alum for one key part of his life — marrying his wife Donna. The Pacers head coach spoke at length about Walton during his pregame press conference before Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana.

“I have him to thank probably also for me being married to my wife Donna,” Carlisle told reporters. “Our first date was to a [Grateful Dead] show in Washington D.C. I called Bill and I said look, this is 1987, ‘I’ve got a date with a girl that I think is pretty cool. Would love to go to the Dead show. I don’t have any tickets. Can you help?’

“And he said, ‘Just go to the back door. Ask for Dennis McInally. Tell him you’re Rick Carlisle from the Boston Celtics and everything will be just fine.'”

Carlisle said that he was given two all-access passes under Walton’s name. Carlisle added that he and his future wife Donna were able to watch the show from the stage and even met the members of the band during the show’s intermission. Rick and Donna Carlisle have been married since 2000.

Walton was known to be a massive Grateful Dead fan who watched nearly a thousand of the band’s shows. Walton credits the band for shaping him both as a player and as a person.