Bill Walton recalls Tarkanian’s flashy recruiting pitch

Hall of Fame basketball gamer Bill Walton, left, talks with Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry prior to Game 3 of an NBA basketball Western Conference playoff semifinal between the Warriors and the Memphis Grizzlies in San Francisco, Saturday, May 7, 2022. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)Hall of Fame basketball gamers Chris Mullin, left, and Bill Walton prior to Game 3 of an NBA basketball Western Conference playoff semifinal between the Golden State Warriors and the Memphis Grizzlies in San Francisco, Saturday, May 7, 2022. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)Hall of Fame basketball gamer Bill Walton before Game 3 of an NBA basketball Western Conference playoff semifinal in between the Golden State Warriors and the Memphis Grizzlies in San Francisco, Saturday, May 7, 2022. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu).
HOUSTON - - The swapping of stories is maybe as big a part of Final Four weekend as the real basketball video games.

It's basically an enormous convention of tall people coming together and recollecting in dining establishments, hotel lobbies and bars with a periodic detour over to the stadium to find out who happens to wind up winning the national championship.

However primarily, it's the story-telling thing.

And almost everyone around these parts is equipped with a Jerry Tarkanian story they can't wait to tell, particularly once they discover their audience is from Las Vegas and went to UNLV.

By the way, simply wait until 2028 in Las Vegas. Tark will be Paul Bunyan. And rightfully so.

Many tales have actually been told a million times. Some aren't fit for a household newspaper. However my preferred this week was orated by one of Tarkanian's biggest fans and not likely supporters, UCLA legend Bill Walton, during a conversation on ESPN Las Vegas.

Watch out for Wooden.

As Walton tells it, he was 15 years of ages the first time he satisfied Tarkanian, then the coach at Pasadena City College. Walton was a prime target of every significant program in the nation to the point there would be a line of college coaches waiting to contend for his attention every day as he left practice.

Tarkanian probably had no organization being there at that time, however he was never ever one to pull back from a difficulty.

As Walton left the gym, Tarkanian existed to obstruct his course. He wouldn't let the gangly tennager through. Walton had no concept who Tarkanian was at that point, but quickly got an intro. As Walton remembers, Tarkanian poked his chest with each word.

" He says he's there to recruit me to come play for him at Pasadena City College," Walton said. "I shrugged. He states, ‘‘ Bill, the word on the street is you're going to play for Johnny Wooden at UCLA.' I simply lit up because that was my dream and my objective.".

At the time, Walton was a sophomore at Helix High School in La Mesa. Wooden had actually just won his third title at UCLA and was developing a juggernaut.

However that didn't stop Tarkanian from putting forward his best recruiting pitch for PCC.

" He's still poking me in the chest," Walton remembers. The rest is history.".

That history consists of Wooden leading the Bruins to the next 6 NCAA championships and 10 overall in his profession, including 2 with Walton. Tarkanian would move on to Long Beach State the next year prior to eventually building a national power at UNLV.

Walton and Tarkanian then grew very close over the years, with Walton acting as among Tarkanian's greatest supporters.

Las Vegas dream alive.

To this day, Walton stays irritated at how Tarkanian was treated by the NCAA and much of the basketball world.

" They unfortunately forced him to wait until he was nearly dead to be allowed the Basketball Hall of Fame, and I'm embarrassed and just embarrassed about that," Walton said. "When they finally let him in, they made the statement, and Jerry called me up and asked me to be his speaker. I am the luckiest guy in the world.".

Walton is likewise enthusiastic about Las Vegas as a sports town.

" The Final Four is concerning Las Vegas in 2028," he stated. "It's happening. The dream is alive. We've made it!

There's so much going on in Las Vegas. It looks like baseball is coming. I just hope we have sufficient water.".

Do not stress over it, Bill. The human need for water is probably just a flash in the pan.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on Twitter.