Bill Walton's estate sale, hosted by Hunt Auctions on Thursday afternoon, had no shortage of eclectic pieces and high-flying items — not unlike the man himself.
One of the most significant lots featured a UCLA jersey worn by Walton during a January 1974 game between UCLA and Notre Dame, in which the Fighting Irish snapped the Bruins' historic 88-game winning streak. It sold for $258,500, blowing away the previous record for a Walton jersey.
The estate also sold another Walton jersey from his 1977-78 MVP season for the Portland Trail Blazers for $131,625.
The first lot in the auction was, fittingly, the basketball rim that started it all for a young Walton. Taken from his childhood home where he learned the game of basketball in La Mesa, California, and accompanied by a well-worn wooden backboard, it sold for $1,645. Kobe Bryant’s childhood basketball hoop fetched $39,600 in February 2021.
Multiple rings from his career sold as well, including his 1986 Boston Celtics championship ring ($95,715) and his 1977 Blazers ring ($188,000). Red Auerbach’s from the 1986 Celtics team sold for $110,000 in 2022.
Walton’s 1977-78 NBA MVP trophy went for $176,250.
One of the many pieces of Grateful Dead memorabilia included in the sale from the estate of the world’s most famous “Dead Head” was a stage-used cymbal inscribed to Walton and signed by the band, including Jerry Garcia, Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, Phil Lesh, Bob Weir and Brent Mydland ($39,375)
Walton’s hand-painted Grateful Dead chair sold for $$6,227.50, and a framed collage of his backstage passes exploded past the high estimate of $1,000 to close at $3,910.40.
A copy of “Shoe Dog” signed by Phil Knight to Walton sold for $10,105.
Walton’s signed letter of intent to UCLA, on which he wrote his full name — a rarity — went for $2,937.50.
An autographed letter written by Walton in 1998 regarding Michael Jordan sold for $705. It reads: "Fans have been drawn in record numbers to the NBA because of the dynamic skill, suspense, style, and class of Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls. If any challenger ever conquers the Bulls ... it will be a result of superior levels of the qualities that make Chicago such a special team."
The sash and outfit Walton wore as “Father Time” at midnight on New Years Eve in 2009, a perfect embodiment of the larger-than-life figure’s attitude, sold for $1,645.
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct, the premier company for collectible culture.