Neal Walk

Who they were

Neal Eugene Walk was an American college and professional basketball player who was a center in the National Basketball Association (NBA) for eight seasons during the late 1960s and 1970s, playing overseas afterward. Walk played college basketball for the University of Florida, and remains the Florida Gators' all-time rebounds leader. The Phoenix Suns picked Walk second overall in the 1969 NBA draft, having lost the coin toss with the Milwaukee Bucks for Lew Alcindor. Walk played professionally for the Suns,

Early life

Educated at: University of Florida and Miami Beach Senior High School.

Early life Walk was born in Cleveland, Ohio to a Jewish family, and moved to Miami Beach, Florida , with his parents Al and Sylvia at the age of 6. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] [ 4 ] [ 5 ] He attended Miami Beach High School , and played high school basketball for the Miami Beach Hi-Tides, starting for the first time in his senior year. [ 5 ] His high school team made the state semifinals and due to its makeup of mostly Jewish players,

Path and career

Awards / honours: University of Florida Athletic Hall of Fame.

Professional career Walk was drafted in the first round (second pick overall) of the 1969 NBA draft by the Phoenix Suns, after they lost a coin toss with the Milwaukee Bucks for the number one pick, which turned out to be Lew Alcindor (later known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar ). [ 1 ] In an interview with author Charley Rosen near the end of his life, Walk commented on his perception as one of the league's great "booby prizes", saying "I never paid attention to that bullshit.

Why this date

Neal Walk appears on our October 4 calendar for 2015 as a death entry.