By the time the Seattle SuperSonics earned their first NBA Championship in 1979, reserve forward Wally Walker had to believe he was living a charmed life. By that point, all three of Walker's pro seasons had culminated in a trip to the NBA Finals, and he had earned a pair of championship rings. Walker is recognized as one of the greatest players in the history of Virginia basketball and is one of six players to have his number (41) retired by the school. As a senior, Walker was named second-team All-ACC and won ACC Tournament MVP after scoring 24.3 points per game in the tournament while leading Virginia to its first and only ACC Tournament Championship. As a result, the Cavaliers made their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament. For the season, Walker averaged 22.1 points and 6.8 rebounds per game.

Walker finished his career at Virginia with career averages of 17.4 points and 6.4 rebounds, averaging double-figures scoring each of his four years. He still ranks sixth all-time at Virginia in scoring, fifth in field goals and eighth in scoring average, and his points total during the 1975-76 season is the sixth-best in Cavaliers history.

Following his outstanding career at Virginia, the Portland Trail Blazers made Walker the fifth pick of the 1976 Draft. Only center Ralph Sampson, who was taken first overall by the Houston Rockets in 1983, has ever been selected higher amongst Virginia players in the NBA.

As a rookie, Walker had a limited impact, playing 627 minutes over 66 games and averaging 5.2 points and 1.6 rebounds. The Blazers, buoyed by the acquisition of Maurice Lucas from the ABA, rode center Bill Walton all the way to the top, winning the Championship.

In Portland, Walker's path to playing time was blocked by fellow small forward Bob Gross, who had been drafted in the second round the year before Walker and started 81 games during the 1976-77 season. As a result, the Blazers dealt Walker to Seattle for a 1978 first-round pick and a 1979 second-round selection nine games into the following season.

In one of his first games in Seattle, Walker got his first career start at Denver and scored a team-high 17 points. After the game, however, Lenny Wilkens replaced Bob Hopkins as Sonics coach and soon after made John Johnson the starting small forward. Johnson's point forward style clicked with the rest of the starting five, and Walker settled into a bench role.

Walker would back up Johnson for most of his Sonics career, including during the team's consecutive NBA Finals appearances, making three straight trips for him. He averaged 6.5 points during the 1977-78 season, bumping that to 6.6 in 1978-79.

As Johnson began to age, Walker took more of his playing time in the years following the championship run, replacing him in the starting lineup during the 1981-82 season. Statistically, that was Walker's best season. He averaged 9.9 points and 4.4 rebounds in 28.1 minutes while shooting a strong 48.0% from the field.

After the season, Walker became a restricted free agent, and the Sonics chose to go in a different direction. Initially, the team tried to trade his rights to the Denver Nuggets as part of a blockbuster deal for All-Star guard David Thompson. However, special master Kingman Brester ruled that teams could not trade their rights to restricted free agents, and the Sonics sent Bill Hanzlik to Denver instead. After signing a contract with the Sonics during training camp, Walker was dealt to Houston for a second-round draft pick. His first year with the Rockets was a virtual carbon copy of his last with the Sonics. Walker started 59 games, averaging 9.7 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. Year two, however, saw Walker's playing time diminish, and he retired after the 1983-84 season.

Possibly overshadowed by his Sonics teammates during his playing days, Walker has attained greater fame in management.

After the conclusion of his playing career, Walker attended Stanford University's Graduate School of Business and earned his MBA. He spent seven years with Goldman, Sachs before founding his own company, Walker Capital, Inc., a money management business in 1994.

Despite his flourishing business career, Walker was never far from basketball. He provided color commentary for the Sonics and Pac-10 conference games.

Walker returned to the game full-time in 1994, initially joining the Sonics as a consultant prior to the 1994 Draft as the Sonics prepared to draft without a GM or President after the departure of Bob Whitsitt. Later that summer, Walker was named general manager.

With Walker at the helm, the Sonics would go on to win three consecutive Pacific Division championships from 1996-98, advancing to the NBA Finals and setting a franchise record with 64 wins during the 1995-96 season. After the 1997-98 season, Walker was the runner-up to Cleveland's Wayne Embry for the Sporting News' Executive of the Year honors.

In 2001, Walker was a key member of The Basketball Club of Seattle LLC, which purchased the Sonics from previous owner Barry Ackerley. As part of the move, Walker took on a new role with the Sonics, adding the title of CEO while dropping general manager from his responsibilities.

In that new role, the player who experienced precocious team success in the NBA continues to seek it from the front office.