“Didn’t do s**t for us but break his foot” – NBA fans stir debate over Ron Harper’s proposal of retiring Bill Walton’s jersey for Clippers

Fans react to ex-NBA player Ron Harper’s take that the LA Clippers should retire Bill Walton’s jersey

The NBA family lost one of its legends after it was announced that Hall of Fame center Bill Walton died at the age of 71 due to cancer. Walton and his family have been showered by tributes after the sad news of his passing was initially reported and will likely continue to pour in the coming days.

Among the former players who have taken the time to pay tribute to the late Bill Walton is ex-NBA player Ron Harper. In a post he shared on X, Harper said that he thinks the LA Clippers should retire the number 32 jersey that Walton wore as the first-ever jersey to be retired in franchise history.

https://twitter.com/HARPER04_5?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1795159986496000318%7Ctwgr%5Eb4b3ce93d7aba151d563c47fadcd9f16077ea03f%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sportskeeda.com%2Fbasketball%2Fnews-didn-t-s-t-us-break-foot-nba-fans-stir-debate-ron-harper-s-proposal-retiring-bill-walton-s-jersey-clippers

Harper’s take proved to be divisive among NBA fans. Some believe that Walton does not deserve that honor as he did not do enough for the franchise as well as the fact that Blake Griffin wore the same number and is more deserving of that honor.

“And didn’t do shit for us but break his foot. Stop it. Blake deserves it more.”

https://twitter.com/PrimeLAC_?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1795177167300530601%7Ctwgr%5Eb4b3ce93d7aba151d563c47fadcd9f16077ea03f%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sportskeeda.com%2Fbasketball%2Fnews-didn-t-s-t-us-break-foot-nba-fans-stir-debate-ron-harper-s-proposal-retiring-bill-walton-s-jersey-clippers

“Lol he didn’t play there barely,” @arichiee tweeted.

“I definitely think he should be honored but as a Blazer,” @Fenwaysnark countered.

Meanwhile, other fans simply fully agreed with Harper’s idea to retire Bill Walton’s jersey with the LA Clippers.

“100%. It is a great call,” @UWMoose said.

“Now this is a great idea,” @RikDaddy chimed in.

“I’m all in for this proposal unless BG is willing in too at the new arena.”

https://twitter.com/hasanjabbar1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1795166457677910350%7Ctwgr%5Eb4b3ce93d7aba151d563c47fadcd9f16077ea03f%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sportskeeda.com%2Fbasketball%2Fnews-didn-t-s-t-us-break-foot-nba-fans-stir-debate-ron-harper-s-proposal-retiring-bill-walton-s-jersey-clippers

Both Ron Harper and Bill Walton share the distinction of playing for the LA Clippers when they were active in the NBA but they played in different eras. Walton ended up playing with the Clippers when they were still in San Diego. However, he spent most of his time there sidelined due to injuries.

Meanwhile, Harper played in the NBA more recently, starting in 1986 and ending in 2001. He was a member of the Clippers from 1989-1994.

Bill Walton missed two full NBA seasons in five years with Clippers

Bill Walton is considered as one of the NBA’s greats. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993 and was named to both the NBA’s 50th and 75th Anniversary teams.

However, fans can only wonder how much more he could have done had his career not been hampered by various injuries.

Even as a rookie, he already dealt with various ailments. This led to him only playing in 35 games in his maiden season with the Portland Trail Blazers. In the next three seasons, he never played in more than 65 games in a single year but he still led the Blazers to an NBA title in 1977, earned one MVP award (1978) and was also named to two All-Star teams (1977 & 1978).

Bill Walton signed with the San Diego Clippers in 1979 but was only available for 14 games. He also missed the entirety of the 1980-81 and 81-82 seasons due to a foot injury. He remained with the Clippers until 1985 but only suited up for 155 games in his last three seasons with the team.

In 1985, Walton played the most games in his career after joining the Boston Celtics. He played in 80 games but mostly came off the bench. He was awarded with the Sixth Man of the Year award that year. This was followed by a ten-game season in 1986-87. That would be the final year of his career as he remained sidelined for the entirety of the 1987-88 season.

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