Bill Walton Makes Murder Joke On Ray Lewis During NCAA Game Live On ESPN (Video); Does He Deserve Suspension?

Anything can happen on live TV, and that doesn't always bode well for some announcers-in this case, for ESPN's Bill Walton.

The Basketball Hall of Famer and on-air ESPN personality got into hot water with the network for some jokes he made Thursday during a basketball game at the expense of retired NFL great and new ESPN analyst Ray Lewis and fellow analyst Bill Simmons.

Walton, a color commentator since 1990 who has worked with ESPN since 2002, raised some eyebrows on Thursday during an Oregon vs Washington game on ESPNU when he made a joke during a taped segment showing PAC 10 cheerleaders and mascots getting out of a long stretch limo.

Dave Pasch was on-call alongside Walton when the ex-Portland Trail Blazers center made a joke about being in the back of the limo with Lewis.

Pasch: I think Walton is somewhere in the middle of that thing.

Walton: I was way in the back along with Ray Lewis and it was unbelievable how much fun -- oh my gosh -- how many people were in there?

Pasch: I think we'll just dismiss the Ray Lewis comment.

Walton was referring to the 2000 double-murder that Lewis was linked to in an Atlanta bar during the Super Bowl weekend. Blood was reportedly found in Lewis' limo, according to forensics experts in the case.

With Lewis having just been hired by ESPN to serve as an NFL analyst, it is likely that the network execs weren't too pleased with Walton's comments.

However, Walton wasn't done yet, as he made another crack during that same game about Simmons being suspended on Twitter earlier this week. Simmons, a longtime sportswriter, was suspended on the social media site by ESPN after he tweeted comments that criticized ESPN's "First Take" regarding their handling of controversial Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman's on-air blasting of analyst Skip Bayless.

"If they're going to suspend Bill Simmons, anything is possible," Walton said during a play action sequence of the game.

After a momentary pause, Pasch said, "Again, we'll just dismiss that and get back to the game."

Of course, ESPN anchors have gotten in trouble for comments made while the cameras were rolling in the past.

In December, ESPN suspended Rob Parker for questioning Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin, III's "blackness" during a game. Last year, Stephen A. Smith drew some head for using what some thought was the "N-word" live on air during First Take. However, as BigLeadSports reported, the network did not punish him.

Whether or not Walton will warrant any action by the network is still up in the air.