Awful Announcing recently paid tribute to the late Bill Walton with a podcast that included shared stories from Jason Benetti, Dave Pasch, and Roxy Bernstein. The podcast gave a glimpse of what it was like to work with Walton, who died earlier this week at the age of 71 after a prolonged battle with cancer.
One of the best stories from the Awful Announcing podcast came from a moment that didn’t even come on air. Bernstein told host Brandon Contes just how much Walton meant to his kids, and that story starts with a trip to the Maui Invitational years and years ago.
Initially, Roxy wasn’t assigned to go to Maui. He was going to do the Wooden Legacy in Anaheim. About a month and a half out, he got a call asking if he would be OK with switching to Hawaii. That didn’t take more than a second thought. He’d be with Walton, which he figured, but he also had to break it to his young kids, who revered Walton and would say his entire name as if it were one.
Bernstein said his kids broke down crying, as they would be going to Maui instead of Disneyland for Thanksgiving.
Talk about first-world problems.
“As soon as I let them get through it, I told them, ‘Well, we’re gonna go to Maui with Bill,'” recalls Bernstein. “‘With Bill Walton?'” All of a sudden, everything was fine. And they were good. Bill asked me on Sunday night before our first game, ‘Could I take your kids to breakfast tomorrow?’ Sure enough, 6 a.m., a knock on the door, and there’s this imposing figure in the doorway — it’s Bill, to take my eight and five year told to breakfast.
“It became a routine all week. Every morning, Bill would knock on the door at 6 a.m. and take my kids to breakfast. I was scrolling through pictures, and I found one of my son and him just sitting at the table. And my son was five at the time and his feet can’t even come down from the chair — and then he’s sitting next to Bill.
“From a personal standpoint, that was just so heartwarming. And, it was just the character of who Bill was. There was just so many more that I have off-air. The lasting impact he’s gonna have on my life is just incredible.”
Bernstein’s story of the “Maui Breakfast Club” perfectly captures the essence of Walton.
He wasn’t just a basketball legend or a captivating broadcaster; he was a kind and generous soul who left a lasting impact on everyone he met. His absence will be deeply felt, but his spirit and stories like this will continue to inspire for years to come.
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