Celtics dedicate Bob Cousy Trophy to Bill Walton after winning Eastern Conference Finals

Cancer taking another sports legend away from us can only be treated as a tragedy. In the case of Bill Walton, the timing of his passing felt as fated as it was sad.

Walton died at the age of 71 on Monday, just two days after the Pac-12 as we knew it shut up shop when Arizona won the Pac-12 baseball tournament championship game.

It was also the same day as the Boston Celtics beat the Indiana Pacers to become champions of the Eastern Conference and advance to the NBA Finals. Cedric Maxwell, who was traded for Walton in 1985, was on hand to give the Eastern Conference Finals MVP trophy to Jaylen Brown. That trophy is named after Larry Bird, who won a championship with Walton in 1986.

Celtics dedicated Eastern Conference Finals sweep to Bill Walton

Walton was on the mind for the Celtics as they celebrated their second trip to the NBA Finals in three years. Team owner Wyc Grousbeck accepted the Bob Cousy Trophy for the Eastern Conference Championship and dedicated it to Walton.

Walton played for the Celtics from 1985 to 1988. He received the Sixth Man of the Year Award in 1986 as Boston stormed to the championship. It was his second and final ring. He retired in 1990 because of injuries.

Since Walton's playing days, the Celtics have won just one NBA Championship, in 2008 over the Lakers, including Walton's son Luke. This will be their fourth trip to the NBA Finals since and they'll be looking to add to the trophy cabinet.

Jaylen Brown and company made it to the Finals in 2022 but they ran into the resurgent Golden State Warriors. After sweeping the Pacers, they will wait to find out which upstart team out of the Western Conference they will face. The Dallas Mavericks held a 3-0 lead over the Minnesota Timberwolves going into Game 4.