Kareem's best days were when I was an infant and so of course I've no recollection of Wilt. Even though I'm sure that Russell, Robertson, Wilt, etc were greats, I'm not going to look at stats and try to rank them with guys I've seen. If the question is what I think "NBA greatness" implies (primarily personal dominance & winning), Tim Duncan is easily one of the very best. Of all Bigs I've seen, I'd put only Hakeem higher with Shaq & Kareem on a more or less equal level. STOMP
I saw Kareem play (I remember him in college, and even as a highly touted HSer). His stats do him justice. He so dominated in college that they banned dunking. I remember Bill Walton in college dropping the ball through the basket from above when he could have dunked (but it was illegal). The only thing is he would never stand up straight next to a tape measure. He's listed at 7'2", but they said back then he was a bit taller. His shot was unstoppable - the sky hook. He was a threat to lead the league in scoring every year. He was a monster rebounder, and he had great hands and passing ability. Jerry West frequently said Kareem was one of the best dribbling big men he ever saw. The bucks were an expansion team, drafted him in its second season. They won the championship in Kareem's second season. The knock on him was that he didn't hustle all the time, like back to defend on fast breaks. I think they made a joke about it in one of the Airplane movies (he had a cameo). I think he's arguably the 3rd best player in history, behind Wilt and Jordan. If he isn't, he's in the discussion.
If you want to see the dominant Jabbar, watch him as a Buck, not a Laker. The Lakers lay claim to him and Chamberlain, but the Lakers were late to the game on both.
Tim Duncan, because he leads slightly more advanced metrics than KG, IIRC. Not because of the Rings, Kobe has more rings and is inferior. It is about what can be ascertained statistically.
I agree in that Wilt was the greatest pure player ever. I wish I could have watched him in his prime. He played with much lesser teammates than Russell until he got to the Lakers late in his career.
Wilt would shoot free throws from about 3 feet behind the FT line and over to one side. He was terrible at free throws.
