Name: Neal Walk Position: Center Height: 6-10 (2.08m) Weight: 220 (100kg) College Team: Florida Gators Nationality: American Birthplace: Cleveland, Ohio Birthdate: 7/29/1948 - 10/4/2015 Drafted: Selected by the Phoenix Suns in the first round (2nd pick overall) of 1969 NBA Draft.

Neal Walk lives in the shadow of the legendary 1969 NBA Draft coin flip that gave the Milwaukee Bucks first choice for Lew Alcindor and left the Phoenix Suns "stuck" with him. But Walk was player who worked hard on the court, especially for rebounds, grabbing 1,006 in the 1972-73 season. Unfortunately, his reputation as a solid center took a back seat to the spectacular play of the man who would become Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Walk's professional spanned 12 years, a total of 9 with the Suns, Jazz and Knicks, and 3 more overseas for Italy and Israel.

In 1988 doctors discovered that Walk had a benign tumor on his spine and the surgery that followed confined him to wheelchair. But Walk made the most of his situation as a member of the L.A. Phoenix Samaritans in the National Wheelchair Basketball Association. In 1990 he was honored by former President George H. W. Bush as Wheelchair Athlete of the Year and was inducted into the Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.

Walk also went back to his roots with the Phoenix Suns, doing work in their community relations departments as a motivational speaker.

Story compiled by Brea Brown