Hundreds of items of Bill Walton memorabilia gathered over a lifetime by the basketball Hall of Famer are currently up for auction, highlighted by Walton’s 1973 and 1974 NCAA championship rings at UCLA as well as NBA championship rings with the 1977 Portland Trail Blazers and 1986 Boston Celtics, his 1978 NBA MVP Award and college and pro jerseys.
Also included are everything from Walton’s Helix High School letterman’s jacket to tie-dyed Grateful Dead T-shirts to bikes ridden by Walton and books read by him.
A portion of the proceeds will benefit the new UC San Diego Health orthopedic center located on the Hillcrest campus. Walton said he got his life back in 2008 following an operation performed by Dr. Steven Garfin, a UC San Diego Health spine surgeon.
“His trophies and rings and jerseys, those are the attention-getting items in the auction,” Walton’s wife Lori said, “but the items like his books and his bike and his Grateful Dead memorabilia, that’s the stuff that was really his life and was so, so meaningful to him.
“The nice thing about the auction that was important to me is there’s all different price points. It’s not like it’s only big items going for a zillion dollars. The things at the back of the auction are the things that are more personal, that were in our house and that he really valued.”
The auction, handled by Hunt Auctions, is open until June 12. Go to huntauctions.com to view auction items, place bids and get other auctions details. Inquiries also can be made by emailing info@huntauctions.com or by calling (610) 524-0822.