Bill Walton Michael Jordan - Veteran basketball commentator Bill Watson is known for his downright outrageous remarks, but - until now - many of his comments may have been overlooked because - let's face it - he's a former NBA All-Star Player. Now, it seems Watson may have bitten more than he can chew after he described the legendary Michael Jordan as an "average" player.
Bill Walton made this remark during a heated conversation with co-commentator Dave Pasch, while they were commentating about the game between the Oregon Duck and USC Trojans at the Galen Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday night.
"What I loved about Michael Jordan was his commitment to the team, his emphasis on physical fitness, footwork, fundamentals and his ability to figure out how they're going to get the job done," Walton said."Because Michael, face it - the gut was basically average in terms of size, strength, speed, jumping ability, all the things that you seem to think make a great player."
Walton's controversial comments have since gone viral and virtually everyone who has pitched in a comment has clearly disagreed with him.
"If Bill Walton was serious when he said Michael Jordan was an average athlete then he has lost all credibility," Bob Aten wrote on Twitter.
"Bill Walton said that Michael Jordan was average? I no longer value his opinion of basketball players or basketball period," KJ Brent wrote.
"Haven't noticed it before but wow is Bill Walton all over the place with in game commentary...Michael Jordan to Burt Reynolds," Ted tweeted.
"Bill Walton is trying to say that Michael Jordan is not in the top 3 best players ever to play in the NBA...SMH," Tanner Davis tweeted.
For what it's worth, while he downplayed the abilities of Jordan, Walton also praised the skill of the multiple award winning hall of famer saying "That guy was just a tremendous visionary like Thomas Edison - he turned the lights on."
Oregon edged past USC after beating them 80-75 on the night.
