Bill Walton once tried to convert Danny Ainge into a Grateful Dead fan
Danny Ainge is not a fan of noodling.
Appearing on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Toucher & Rich show Thursday morning, Ainge recalled a story from his playing days. Ainge, whose Celtics teammate for two seasons was the eccentric Bill Walton, said Walton once tried to get him into his favorite band, the Grateful Dead.
“When Bill first got there he gave me a disc of some sort to listen to the Grateful Dead, so I said ‘OK, I’ll try,’’’ says Ainge. “I came back the next day and said, ‘Bill, I tried listening to the Grateful Dead, and you know, I’m not feeling it. But tell me your very favorite song, and maybe I can listen to that and get started.’ He tears the thing out of my hand and says, ‘When you’re a Dead fan, it’s all one song.’’’
Walton wasn’t shy about spreading his love for the band among his Celtics teammates.
“We didn’t even have any music in the locker room those days,’’ said Ainge. “He had Grateful Dead stickers on every locker at Hellenic College (where the team practiced), but we didn’t listen to music. Now you have guys with ear plugs in shooting on the court, we’ve got speakers throughout the practice facility and in the weight room. We didn’t have any of that.’’
Walton continued to follow The Dead well after his playing days were over.
Photos: Memorable images from the old Boston Garden
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