Sometimes in life, injuries can cause the most gifted of us to not be able to live up to the expectations people have with us. Today's profilee was able to get into the Basketball Hall of Fame despite missing three full seasons and chunks of other seasons with chronic foot problems. He was considered one of the most versitile big men to ever play the game, and despite his health problems, he won a regular season MVP, Finals MVP, a Sixth Man award, and two NBA titles. He is Bill Walton.

Bill Walton was born November 5, 1952 in La Mesa, California. He was a star for Helix High School in his hometown, and at age 17, he played for the United States in the 1970 FIBA World Championships. From there, he attended UCLA, where he succeeded Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the centerpiece of the greatest dynasty in college basketball history. Walton led the Bruins to two NCAA titles during his three seasons there, with his best performance coming in the second title game against Memphis State, when he scored 44 points on an incredible 21 of 22 field goal attempts, in what is considered one of the best performances in NCAA basketball history. Walton averaged 20.3 PPG and 15.7 RPG during his college days, and won three Naismith awards and three USBWA College POY awards, as well as the Sullivan award in 1973 as the nation's top athlete, and played on the 1972 U.S. Olympic team.

Despite having problems with injuries during his high school and college days, the Portland Trail Blazers selected Walton as the #1 overall pick in the 1974 NBA Draft. Walton got off to a blazing (no pun intended) start, averaging 16 PPG, 19 RPG, 4.4 APG and 4 blocks a game in his first seven games, before the first of a series of injuries happened, as he suffered from foot injuries, limiting him to only 35 games and averages of 12.8 PPG and 12.6 RPG. Walton missed 31 games the following year, as the Blazers continued to underachieve. But by the 1976-77 season, the Blazers hired Jack Ramsay to replace Lenny Wilkens as coach, and Ramsay's philosophy meshed well with Walton's. Although he missed another 17 games that season, Walton led the Blazers to 49 wins and their first NBA playoff berth, leading the NBA in rebounds per game and blocked shots per game. The Blazers rolled to the NBA title that season, beating the Philadelphia 76ers 4 games to 2 to claim the title. Things looked promising for the young Blazers.

The following year, Portland was streaking through 60 games, and Walton was rolling, averaging 18.9 PPG, 13.2 RPG and 5 APG in 58 games (he also played in his only All-Star game, although he was selected to the West squad in 1977) before being forced to the sidelines with another foot injury. Although he missed the rest of the season, he was still named regular season MVP, and Portland finished with the best record in the league at 58-24. When their first playoff series against Seattle rolled around, Walton injected a painkiller into his foot prior to game 1, and played well despite losing the game and looking hobbled. Then, during game 2, X-rays revealed a broken navicular bone in his left ankle. Walton was lost for the series, and the Blazers lost to the Sonics. The rift that developed between Walton and the Blazers never healed; Walton eventually sued (the case was settled out of court) the team for poor medical treatment, and after missing the entire 1978-79 season, he was traded to the San Diego Clippers.

The Clippers paid a heavy price for Walton; they were forced to trade Kermit Washington, Kevin Kunnert, a 1st round pick and cash. Walton himself didn't want Washington to be traded, and star guard World B. Free compared the trade to a death in the family. Clippers management banked on Walton's star power to make the newly transplanted team more profitable. However, injuries popped up again; Walton reinjured the navicular bone, and played just 14 games that year, and then he missed the next two seasons entirely with the injury. Teammates called him a malingerer.

Walton, however, wasn't about to quit yet. He had radical surgery to repair the foot, and by 1982-83, he was back on a limited basis, playing one game per week. He then played 55 and 67 games over the next two years, but the Clippers eventually moved to Los Angeles (Walton would blame himself for the move), and were nowhere near being a competitive team. That's when Walton requested a trade to either the Los Angeles Lakers or the Boston Celtics. The Lakers were hesistent to take the risk of reinjury, but Boston was very willing to do so. Clippers owner Donald Sterling delayed the deal for weeks, trying to get more out of the deal. Eventually, the Clippers got Cedric Maxwell and a 1st round pick for Walton (Sterling was out of the country at the time). It was the start of a dream season for Walton and the Celtics.

In his first season with the team, Walton was spectacular as a reserve for Robert Parish and Kevin McHale, averaging 7.6 PPG, 6.8 RPG, and 2.1 APG in only 19 minutes of action per game. Walton played a career-high 80 games, and was rewarded with the Sixth Man of the Year award as the Celtics won a league best 67 games (including a staggering 40-1 home record) and won the NBA title for the 16th time. While Walton's foot injuries eventually forced him off the court for good after only ten games in 1986-87 (he retired offically in February 1990),  he left such an impact on basketball observers that he was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993. He has since become a broadcaster, working for NBC (1990-2002), the Clippers, and ABC/ESPN (since 2002).

Season-by-Season Statistical Review:
1974-75: 35 GP, 12.8 PPG, 12.6 RPG, 4.8 APG, 51.3 FG%, 68.6 FT%
1975-76: 51 GP, 16.1 PPG, 13.4 RPG, 4.3 APG, 47.1 FG%, 58.3 FT%
1976-77: 65 GP, 18.6 PPG, 14.4 RPG, 3.8 APG, 52.8 FG%, 69.7 FT%
1977-78: 58 GP, 18.9 PPG, 13.2 RPG, 5.0 APG, 52.2 FG%, 72.0 FT%
1978-79: did not play (injury and protest of team)
1979-80: 14 GP, 13.9 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 2.4 APG, 50.3 FG%, 59.3 FT%
1980-81: did not play (injury)
1981-82: did not play (injury)
1982-83: 33 GP, 32 GS, 14.1 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 3.6 APG, 52.8 FG%, 55.6 FT%
1983-84: 55 GP, 46 GS, 12.1 PPG, 8.7 RPG, 3.3 APG, 55.6 FG%, 59.7 FT%
1984-85: 67 GP, 37 GS, 10.1 PPG, 9.0 RPG, 2.3 APG, 52.1 FG%, 68.0 FT%
1985-86: 80 GP, 2 GS, 7.6 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 2.1 APG, 56.2 FG%, 71.3 FT%
1986-87: 10 GP, 0 GS, 2.8 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 0.9 APG, 38.5 FG%, 53.3 FT%
1987-88: did not play (injury)