Corky Siemaszko is a senior reporter for NBC News Digital.
Two-time NBA champion Bill Walton, who dominated the hard court during a 13-year pro basketball career and later excelled as a broadcaster who both delighted and dismayed sports fans with his sometimes zany color commentary, died after a 'prolonged battle with cancer,' the league announced Monday. Walton, who was 71, was with his family when he passed, NBA spokesperson Mark Broussard said in a statement.
Selected as the first overall pick in the 1974 NBA draft, Walton led the Trail Blazers to a championship three years later and also won the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award. In 1978, Walton won the NBA's Most Valuable Player Award. But starting in high school for the rest of his career, Walton was dogged by foot and leg injuries that forced him to play through the pain. He missed three seasons because of injuries that required some three dozen surgeries to correct.
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