Bill Walton in the Philippines

DID you know that NBA legendary center Bill Walton once visited the Philippines?

When Walton appeared as a guest on the ESPN show The Jump with Rachel Nichols today, Nichols asked him about his experience in the Philippines way back in 1979 when he went there to film a segment on his documentary "The American Sportsman".

During filming, Walton met a monkey-eating eagle which is an endangered specie in the Philippines. His efforts won for him an Emmy Award for Best Documentary.

Not too many NBA fans also know that Walton's second wife, Lori, is part-Filipina. That's why he once said that he would welcome another chance to visit the Philippines if his wife asked him to.

Walton, who played for the Portland Trail Blazers, Los Angeles Clippers and Boston Celtics in the NBA, currently works for ESPN as an analyst for the channel's college basketball telecasts. During his playing days, he guided the Blazers to their only NBA title in 1977 and won another ring with the Celtics in 1986. But nagging foot injuries forced him to retire from playing and concentrate on  broadcasting.

During his college days, Walton led UCLA to two NCAA titles and shot 21-for-22 from the field in leading his team to victory in the national championship game. His Bruins also won 88 straight games during that span.

Initially, Walton had a hard time speaking and was often stuttering.

"I have been cursed and plagued by a horrendous speech impediment that has kept me from speaking, from communicating," he once said to sports columnist Quinito Henson. "It wasn’t until I was 28 years old I could actually say anything at all. It’s something you never get over. 

"Playing basketball was easy. So many great things have come my way but the fact that I am able to speak, to be a television broadcaster, to make a living as a public speaker, is undoubtedly the greatest thing I’ve ever been able to accomplish. And it’s certainly the most far-fetched career path anyone could ever prescribe for me." 

Walton's second son from his first wife, Luke, is now the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Watching Walton speak on TV is fun and you can't help but admire his efforts to overcome his stuttering problem. Clearly he is one of the best analysts on TV and perhaps he can do more NBA games in the future like what he did when he was part of an NBA-NCAA crossover telecast early this past season during a game between his two former teams, the Clippers and Celtics.