The Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee is highly regarded among former team-mates.
Chet Walker will get inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame over the weekend alongside the likes of Reggie Miller, Don Nelson and Phil Knight. Walker is thrilled at the honour, but according to his former Chicago Bulls
team-mate Jerry Sloan and a few others, it has taken a long time for Walker to get inducted.
"He should have been in a long time ago," said Sloan. "He was one of those guys who knew how to finish a game and make plays down the stretch."
Perhaps the main cause behind his late induction is that Walker has always been underrated – the very same reason which led Philadelphia 76ers to trade him to the Chicago Bulls in 1969 with the common belief being that he was past
his prime.
However, Walker continued to silence his critics the same way he did upon his arrival in Chicago. He played six seasons with the Bulls and led the team by averaging 21 points per game to four consecutive 50 win campaigns.
Apart from his exploits in Chicago, Walker had a tremendous career with the Sixers as well as he was part of the 1967 championship team and held an average of 19.3 points per game.
But being considered useless at the closing stages of his career, he was shipped away to the newest franchise at that time, the Bulls, who were only in their third year of existence. Walker put up the most productive years of his
career in his time in Chicago and former team-mate Tom Boerwinkle acknowledges his brilliance.
"I think he played five or six years in Chicago, and I have to believe -- and they were different teams -- but I have to believe they were some of the most productive years of his career." – Boerwinkle said
From being a second round pick by the Syracuse Nationals, Walker cemented himself as one of the first ever point forwards to ever come through the NBA and his induction into the Basketball Hall of Fame is a testament to his great
achievements.
Tags: