It is easy to identify some of the dominant big men in early NBA history, especially if they were associated with one team. George Mikan with the Lakers and Bill Russell with the Celtics are two players that immediately come to mind. However, Walt Bellamy was one of the league’s true forces in the 1960s and 1970s and had a sparkling NBA career. He did bounce around to a few teams during his career, but his impact was undeniable. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1993.
Walt Bellamy – Life Before The NBA
The story of Walter Jones Bellamy begins in New Bern, North Carolina on July 24, 1939. He was a dominant player in the North Carolina basketball scene but had a difficult time finding a college that would take him on. At that time, many programs were not recruiting African-American players. As a result, Bellamy had to expand his search a little bit farther, which led him to Indiana University.
Although the Hoosiers were never really in contention to win a national championship, Bellamy was rebounding and scoring machine. During his three years in college, he averaged a mind-blowing 20.6 points and 15.5 rebounds per game.
Before his final year with the Hoosiers, Bellamy had the chance to rub elbows with some of the game’s greatest players with the United States Olympic Team in 1960. The Olympic team featured Oscar Robertson, Jerry Lucas, Jerry West, and Bellamy. They cruised through the tournament on their way to a gold medal.
Walt Bellamy – Rookie Season
By any metric, Walter Bellamy was the crown jewel of the 1961 NBA Draft. It was evident to decision makers even at that time—his skills were sure to translate on the next level, and there wasn’t anyone particularly close from a skills perspective. Bellamy ended up playing 14 years in the NBA, four more than anyone else in his draft class.
The expansion Chicago Packers had the first pick in that draft and took Bellamy. Their team, to put it kindly, was an abomination. Even without any real help from his teammates as a 22-year-old, Bellamy put the league on notice. He averaged 31.6 points and 19 rebounds per game in his first year, which goes down as one of the greatest rookie seasons in basketball history. Walt Bellamy would easily walk away with the 1961-1962 NBA Rookie Of The Year award.
Walt Bellamy – Baltimore Bullets
Bellamy certainly set the bar for his career sky high after year one. His numbers would continue to remain other-worldly, even though the franchise continued to struggle on the floor and off of it with name changes and city relocations.
On this day in 1957: The great Walt Bellamy and other Hoosier freshman basketball players are photographed. Bellamy was the #1 pick in the 1961 NBA draft and is in the Hall of Fame. At IU he averaged 15.5 and 17.8 rebs/game in his career and senior season respectively.??#iubb pic.twitter.com/DlqAfyuatA
— Saint Tom Allen (@SaintTomAllen) November 1, 2021
Walt Bellamy was an All-Star for the first four seasons of his career, and although it took a little while, he was finally able to lead the Baltimore Bullets to the postseason in the 1964-1965 campaign. They defeated the St. Louis Hawks in the first round of the playoffs but lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the second round.
Walt Bellamy – New York Knicks
In November 1965, the Bullets sent Bellamy to the New York Knicks. Although Walt Bellamy’s scoring and rebounding would decline slightly(he still had amazing numbers) in New York, he would get to play with an exciting young core. Throughout his Knicks tenure, the team acquired Willis Reed, Walt Frazier, Bill Bradley. There were signs that New York was building towards something special with all this talent on the roster.
In 1966 … Philadelphia's Wilt Chamberlain in action vs New York's Walt Bellamy.#NBA75 #1960s pic.twitter.com/JgRcu454am
— JVAN (@VanderlansJim) November 2, 2021
Unfortunately for Bellamy, New York decided that the team needed to get tougher while finding a better fit to play alongside Reed. The team ended up trading Bellamy to the Detroit Pistons during the 1968-1969 campaign for Dave DeBusschere.
Walt Bellamy – Detroit Pistons
The Knicks ended up being right, as the DeBusschere acquisition helped lay the foundation for a championship team in 1970. Walt Bellamy would end up being a respected veteran on another rebuilding team in Detroit.
Walt Bellamy – Atlanta Hawks
He would only end up being in Detroit for a little over a season before he was traded again, this time to the Atlanta Hawks. He would essentially play the last five years of his NBA career there.
October 18, 1969: The Pistons opened their season in Milwaukee for Kareem’s NBA debut. An injured Dave Bing tried to assist Walt Bellamy and Eddie Miles, but Kareem got help from fellow rookie Bob Dandrige. The two would score more playoff points in the 1970s than anyone else. pic.twitter.com/XQfm8bNMYF
— Keith Black Trudeau (@Charlottean28) October 17, 2021
Even though he was an aging veteran, Walt Bellamy remained among the league leaders in games played for Atlanta. They weren’t quite talented enough to make a serious run in the playoffs, but they qualified for the postseason in all but one of Bellamy’s years with the team. The Hawks had a fun roster as well, pairing the likes of Bellamy with young flashy guard “Pistol” Pete Maravich.
Walt Bellamy would play one game with the New Orleans Jazz in 1974-1975, which would be the final contest of his career.
Walt Bellamy – Net Worth
Walt Bellamy was an NBA star who had a net worth estimated to be between $1 million and $5 million at the time of his death. He was an All-Star four times, a Rookie of the Year, and is a member of the Hall of Fame. He retired from the NBA in 1975 after 14 seasons.
Was Walt Bellamy good?
When he retired, he was the NBA’s sixth-leading scorer all-time. That statistic alone implies his greatness.
How tall was Walt Bellamy?
He was 2.11m, which is 6.92 feet.
