#FlashbackFriday: Five Great Minutes with Bill Walton

At the end of each week, MercerJersey.com observes the venerable tradition of #FlashbackFriday.  With the Celts set to take on the Blazers tonight at the Garden, today's edition looks back at the career of the man who stands as the (very tall) link between Boston and Rip City hoops, Mr. William Theodore Walton III – a 40-year journey condensed into a five-minute appreciation-via-YouTube.

BIG MAN ON CAMPUS:  Aside from Russell and Red, is there any cooler player-coach relationship in basketball history than Bill Walton and John Wooden?  This bit about Walton resisting Wooden's grooming policies – and an unphased Wooden refusing to bend – is pure (True Blue and) Gold.

BIG RED:  Just a little TASTE of Walton at his NBA peak, using and abusing his fellow Bruin alum en route to the '77 'chip.




BACK ON TOP:  Check out Bill exude pure bliss and Danny Ainge make him lol after winning it all again – this time as a sixth man (on The Greatest Team of All-Time).




WALTON THE WORDSMITH:  You may agree with Bill Simmons that D-Wade is a dirty cheap shot artist but Bill Walton wishes you'd take a minute to appreciate the man's physique!




HIS ENTHUSIASM KNOWS NO BOUNDS:  Geeking out over Wade is one thing but when a man gets this excited about Boris Diaw... that man can be no other than the 7-foot-tall heaping pile of positivity we call Walton.




CALIENDO NAILS IT:  "Has there ever been a player better than Detlef Schrempf?!"




AND FINALLY... CHEERS:  If you decide to raise a glass to Bill Walton as his two old squads face off tonight, be sure to make it a Guinness.