Bill Walton’s Broadcast Partner Dave Pasch Shares Hilarious, Unhinged Texts Bill Would Routinely Send Him

As the sports world reels from the news of the death of NCAA and NBA legend Bill Walton, stories about his immense personality have been popping up from all the chapters of his life, whether that be his college days at UCLA, his NBA career with the Blazers, Clippers, and Celtics, or his final chapter as a beloved broadcaster.

For most people born after the year 1990, Walton is best known as the longtime Pac-12 basketball color commentator who perhaps took the responsibility of adding “color” to a broadcast more seriously, and literally, than any other person in his field.

Walton, a famed Dead Head, would often show up to games in tie-dyed shirts, and yet his clothes were often the least colorful part of his persona, with his energetic and imaginative personality earning that distinction.

During many of those late-night (on the East Coast) Pac-12 games, Walton was partnered alongside Dave Pasch, who has likely and understandably been as hurt by the Hall of Famer’s death as anyone not in his family.

In a process that Pasch himself described as being “cathartic,” Walton’s long-time broadcasting partner and friend shared a bunch of hilarious and often unhinged texts he’d get from the late, great big man.

Sometimes he’d text Pasch about the game he was in the middle of calling and pretend he didn’t know who the play-by-play announcer was.

“I hope you’re watching this Knicks/Cavs game. Superb. Check it out, still time. Hopefully the announcer will reset the scene for you. Enjoy, BW,” one text reads.

Other times he’d text Pasch as if he didn’t know who he was at all and would detail stories of “fighting off snakes, condors, other birds of prey, wild turkeys and peacocks, stampeding goats, wild boar, deer, elk, iguanas,” and so on.

 

All of the texts, as out there as they may be, do have one thing in common: Walton and Pasch loved each other in each of them.

Heartbreakingly, Pasch also shared a photo of the t-shirt he planned to wear during his final game with Walton, which he says “sadly never happened.”

Rest in Peace, Bill. We’ll see you in the stars.