Family backs plan to honor Bill Walton in hometown of La Mesa and near Balboa Park

Family members of the late Bill Walton on Wednesday announced twin proposals to rename a street in San Diego and create a memorial in La Mesa to honor the basketball legend.

Walton, the basketball great from La Mesa, died in 2024 at the age of 71.

The proposals, which activist Shane Harris will send to the respective cities, were unveiled on what would have been the Hall of Famer’s 73rd birthday. They call for:

• San Diego to rename a portion of Park Boulevard between Upas Street and Zoo Drive – a stretch that runs along the edge of Balboa Park where Walton frequently cycled – “Honorary Bill Walton Way.”
• La Mesa to expand Walton’s 2003 Walk of Fame display and create a “Bill Walton Square” or “Bill Walton Corner” near Helix High School, where his basketball journey began.

His wife, Lori, thanked those gathered on Zoo Drive Wednesday for remembering her late husband.

“Bill gave so much of himself to this city because it gave so much to him. Our family is humbled and deeply moved by this outpouring of love,” she said.

Walton was born on Nov. 5, 1952, in La Mesa, where he led the Helix Highlanders to San Diego Section championships in 1969 and 1970. He was selected Player of the Year in all three of his varsity seasons at UCLA where his team won NCAA championships in 1972 and 1973.

Walton was the first player selected in the 1974 NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers, but was hampered by injuries, playing at least 60 games in only three seasons. He led Portland to the NBA championship in 1977 and was selected as the NBA Finals MVP and the league’s MVP in the 1977-78 season.

He played for his hometown San Diego Clippers from 1979 through 1985, the team’s first season after moving to Los Angeles, before being traded to the Boston Celtics and winning another championship there.

After retiring, Walton overcame a stutter to become an Emmy-winning broadcaster. He began his broadcasting career in 1990 as an analyst on Clippers’ telecasts.

Walton was also an analyst for CBS, ESPN, ABC and the Pac-12 Networks, winning a Sports Emmy for best live television sports telecast in 1991 and being selected as one of the top 50 sports broadcasters of all-time by the American Sportscasters Association in 2009.

Padres Hall of Famer and longtime sports broadcaster Ted Leitner spoke Wednesday about Walton’s character and impact.

“Bill was a force of nature,” Leitner said. “His love for people, for this city, and for life itself was unmatched.”

Walton considered himself a lifelong San Diegan and had lived in the same home near Balboa Park for over 40 years.

“Bill didn’t just live in San Diego – he belonged to it,” Harris said. “Now, this city will forever belong to him.”

La Mesa officials, according to Harris’s office, confirmed that they will take up the proposal to honor Walton “in the near future” at a city council meeting. San Diego councilmembers Sean Elo-Rivera and Stephen Whitburn also either have discussed the proposal with Harris or signaled a willingness to do so.

City News Service contributed to this report.