Rich Eisen shared a humorous and heartfelt tribute to Bill Walton (2024)

Morning Sports Update

"Shine the light. Be the light."

By Hayden Bird

May 29, 2024

Rich Eisen offered a great Bill Walton anecdote: Following the recent news of Bill Walton’s death, numerous tributes have poured in from a wide range of figures (testament to the inimitable Walton’s legacy).

Among those was an especially funny and heartfelt anecdote shared by longtime broadcaster Rich Eisen. Speaking on his eponymously named show on Tuesday, Eisen recalled a particular interaction with Walton during their time as extras in (of all things) a Katy Perry music video in 2017.

Eisen acknowledged that prior to that day, he hadn’t known Walton especially well. But during the course of filming, the two became friendly, as was usually the case with Walton. One issue was that the Hall of Famer had to get back to his hotel, though his prearranged car pickup was delayed due to the usual level of Los Angeles-area traffic.

Volunteering to drive Walton himself, Eisen explained that the only problem was fitting the UCLA legend’s custom metal chair (which he used to deal with back issues) into the smaller car.

After rearranging things to fit the chair, it appeared there was just enough room.

“Sure enough, we jam the chair in and the corner of the metal part of the chair is up against the glass as [the door] finally closes,” Eisen recalled. “We jam it down, and I’m, ‘OK, we did it Bill. Get in the front seat.’

“As we begin to walk to the front of the car, we hear a crack,” Eisen continued. “It broke the windshield. And the entire half hour ride with Bill Walton in the front seat, sitting shotgun in my car, was him apologizing.”

Eisen, offering his own impression of Walton, added that he ended up saving the half-cracked windshield (which cameras showed currently resides inside his studio). And to top it off, he received a letter shortly afterward from Walton that read:

Please Rich,

Sorry to ruin your life, career, and your car all in such a brief period of time. Thank you for your kindness, patience, sense of honor, and my life. Thanks for your moral clarity, ethics, and humanity. Shine the light. Be the light.

– Bill Walton

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Eisen added that he immediately decided to not cash the $1,000 check that Walton enclosed with the letter, keeping both as memories of such a unique run-in.

“I will never cash this check. I will always keep this note,” said Eisen. “I will always remember the cracked windshield, and that day with Bill Walton on the set of a Katy Perry video that, remarkably, is the most watched thing I’ve ever done.”

Trivia: Bill Walton was traded to the Celtics from the Clippers in 1985 for Cedric Maxwell and a first-round pick. What future Hall of Famer was eventually selected using that pick?

(Answer at the bottom).

Hint: The pick was ultimately made by the Trail Blazers (after a second trade with the Clippers), but the player in question didn’t play for Portland until 1995. In between that time, he won a gold medal in 1988.

Scores and schedules:

Tonight, PWHL Boston face Minnesota at the sold out Tsongas Center in the decisive Game 5 of the Walter Cup Finals. The puck drops on the title-decider at 7 p.m.

The Red Sox defeated the Orioles 8-3 on Tuesday, with Rafael Devers collecting four hits and Brayan Bello striking out seven in five innings. The two teams play again this evening in Baltimore at 6:35 p.m.

Also from Tuesday, the Timberwolves won Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals 105-100, staving off elimination. Minnesota still trails Dallas in the series 3-1, with Game 5 happening on Thursday night. The winner will face the Celtics in the NBA Finals starting on June 6.

More from Boston.com:

• What to know ahead of PWHL Boston’s must-win Game 5, Walter Cup Finals
• PWHL Boston’s title game against Minnesota is hottest ticket in town
• Abreu, Refsnyder hit HRs, Bernardino solid in relief as Red Sox halt Orioles’ 5-game win streak
• Patriots agree to terms with first-round pick Drake Maye
• Could Martin Necas be an offseason target for Bruins in a Linus Ullmark trade?
• What Patriots’ exec Eliot Wolf said about Drake Maye’s development, offseason regrets, and more
• Matt Hasselbeck compared Patriots’ Drake Maye to this Pro Bowl quarterback
• Of the 515 men to play for the Celtics, Bill Walton will forever be remembered as one of one
• One question remained: Can they step up in the clutch? The Finals-bound Celtics answered emphatically.
• Red Sox weren’t built for the challenges they’ve faced, never mind the ones looming

Here’s the full interview with Patriots executive vice president Eliot Wolf: Wolf discussed several topics, including Drake Maye’s development, offseason regrets, and not “burning” free agent cash.

On this day: In 1993, the Red Sox crushed the Rangers 15-1. The lopsided scoreline was achieved somewhat improbably without the hitting of any home runs.

The story, however, emerged in the bottom of the eighth inning. Power-hitting Jose Canseco, just three days removed from his all-time blooper moment when a home run ball bounced off his forehead over the wall, was called in to pitch to provide relief for the depleted Texas bullpen. Canseco walked three of the first four batters he faced, eventually yielding three runs before retiring the side.

The worst part was that while the move was a short term benefit to the Texas pitching staff, it ended up causing Canseco an injury. After missing several games in the following weeks, he tried to return but had to be shut down for the rest of 1993 to have Tommy John surgery.

“I don’t feel good about it,” Rangers managed Kevin Kennedy told The Dallas Morning News in June. “I’ll take any heat you want to throw my way. I truly felt at the time that we were doing the right thing. I did it for a reason. I did it to save the bullpen.”

Daily highlight: Matt Chapman is doing everything he can to add a fifth Gold Glove to his trophy room making plays like this one from Tuesday’s 1-0 Giants win over the Phillies.

Trivia answer: Arvydas Sabonis