Luke Walton

Luke Walton

Walton with the Lakers
No. 4, 32
Small forward
Personal information
Born	(1980-03-28) March 28, 1980 San Diego, California
Nationality	American
Listed height	6 ft 8 in (203 cm)
Listed weight	235 lb (107 kg)
Career information
High school	University (San Diego, California)
College	Arizona (1999–2003)
NBA draft	2003 / Round: 2 / Pick: 32nd overall
Selected by the Los Angeles Lakers
Pro playing career	2003–2013
Career history
2003–2012	Los Angeles Lakers
2012–2013	Cleveland Cavaliers
Career highlights and awards
2× NBA champion (2009, 2010) 2× All-Pac-10 First Team (2002–2003)

Luke Walton (born March 28, 1980) is a former American professional basketball player. He played the small forward position. After the 2010 NBA Finals, Walton and his father, Hall of Famer Bill Walton, became the first father and son to both have won multiple NBA championships. Bill won in 1977 and 1986, and Luke in 2009 and 2010.^[1] His best season statistically was 2006–07 with over 11 points, 5 rebounds, and over 4 assists per game.

Biography

Early life

Luke Walton is the son of former NBA and UCLA great Bill Walton, and was named after Bill's close friend and former Portland Trail Blazers teammate Maurice Lucas.^{[citation needed]} He has three brothers — Adam, Nathan (who unsuccessfully ran for governor during the 2003 California recall), and Chris. He attended University of San Diego High School in San Diego, California.

College

After graduating from University of San Diego High School in 1998, Walton enrolled at the University of Arizona and majored in family studies and human development. There, he played for the Wildcats under coach Lute Olson. In his junior year, Walton averaged 15.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 1.6 steals and 0.6 blocks per game. As a fifth-year senior, he averaged 10.8 points, 5.6 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 0.9 steals.

Walton graduated from Arizona at the end of 2003, and was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2003 NBA Draft with the third pick of the second round (32nd overall). Walton stands 6 feet, 8 inches tall and weighs 235 pounds.

NBA career

Walton in 2008.

In 2006–07, Walton had a career year, with career high per game averages in minutes, field goal percentage, steals, blocks, rebounds, assists and points. His Player Efficiency Rating (PER) also reached a career high. He scored a career high 25 points against the Atlanta Hawks on December 8, 2006. Following the season, on July 12, 2007, Walton was signed by the Lakers to a 6-year, $30 million contract.^[2]

On March 15, 2012, Walton was traded along with Jason Kapono and a 2012 first-round draft choice to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Ramon Sessions and Christian Eyenga.^[3]

Coaching

On August 22, 2011, the University of Memphis hired Walton as an assistant coach for the duration of the 2011 NBA lockout.^[4]

In November 2013, Walton was hired as a player development coach by the Los Angeles D-Fenders of the NBA D-League for the 2013–14 season.^[5]

Personal

On his right arm, there is a tattoo of four Grateful Dead-type dancing skeletons, each one with a basketball; the skeletons represent Luke and his three brothers.

In 2006, Walton made a cameo appearance on the television soap opera The Young and the Restless.^[6]

In December 2008, a woman named Stacy Elizabeth Beshear pleaded no contest to charges of stalking Walton. At one point, she pulled up to Walton's car and "pretended to fire gunshots at him with her hand." She was sentenced to three years' probation, told to attend weekly counseling sessions for a year and ordered to stay away for three years from Walton's home and from the Lakers' games and practices.^[7]

In 2009, Luke and his father became the third father-son duo to both win NBA championships as players, following the Guokases (Matt Sr. and Matt Jr.) and the Barrys (Rick and Brent).

NBA career statistics

Regular season

Playoffs

Notes

External links

• Career statistics and player information from NBA.com
• Luke Walton at Basketball-Reference.com