Actually Wilt Chamberlain led the league and set an NBA record for centers with 702 assists in the 67-68 season.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Rudeezy:</div><div class="quote_post">Actually Wilt Chamberlain led the league and set an NBA record for centers with 702 assists in the 67-68 season.</div> That was the year he averaged 8.6 a game so I was right. He also led the league in rebounding that year, and was fourth in scoring. Imagine if he got the necessary points to lead the league in points, rebounds, and assists in a season...
****EVERYONE READ THIS POST**** Now I guarantee I now as much, if not more, about Wilt Chamberlain than anyone else on this message board. I am not trying to boast, but he is after all my favorite NBA player ever, I have read countless articles and books and websites dedicated to him. Believe me when I say that he led the league in assists, like I previously stated, in the 1967-68 season with 8.6 per game. Oscar Robertson averaged 9.6 assists per game that year, but he didn't even play the necessary amount of games/minutes to make him eligible as a leader in any statistical category. Just thought I would clear it up again because I feel some of my posts get ignored. Another sidenote: I don't know if it has been mentioned yet, but the same season that Wilt led the league in assists he also led the league in rebounds and was fourth in scoring. Imagine if he got the necessary points to lead the league in all three statistical categories...
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting sunsfan1357 :</div><div class="quote_post">Believe me when I say that he led the league in assists, like I previously stated, in the 1967-68 season with 8.6 per game. Oscar Robertson averaged 9.6 assists per game that year, but he didn't even play the necessary amount of games/minutes to make him eligible as a leader in any statistical category.</div> Awha, I knew it. Thanks for clearing that up.
No problem. The thing about using different statistical resources is that some have different requirements to become a statistical leader. So in some you'll see the Big O as the leader and in others you'll see Wilt.
To go along with these great posts and the great thread, here's a video tribute to "The Greatest." Videos Just go to the middle of the page where you see the Multimedia thumbnail, and click on 56K or 300K, it is a great video! Sorry I couldn't direct link it, since it's a Javascript, meaning it pops up.
Wilt was mosdef the man. I wonder what his numbers would have been like if they had a 3 second rule back then? For those of you who don't know back then you could camp out under the basket for the entire shot clock. I'm not trying to take anything a way from him but that way it would be easier to compare him to todays centers. Could you imagine what Shaq would do if he could stay in the lane for 24 seconds!!!
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting DarkCloud:</div><div class="quote_post">Wilt was mosdef the man. I wonder what his numbers would have been like if they had a 3 second rule back then? For those of you who don't know back then you could camp out under the basket for the entire shot clock. I'm not trying to take anything a way from him but that way it would be easier to compare him to todays centers. Could you imagine what Shaq would do if he could stay in the lane for 24 seconds!!!</div> Did you not read previous posts or something? The three second violation was implemented after Wilt's rookie year. Unless you think his best year was his rookie year then the three second rule really had no effect on Wilt.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting DarkCloud:</div><div class="quote_post">Wilt was mosdef the man. I wonder what his numbers would have been like if they had a 3 second rule back then? For those of you who don't know back then you could camp out under the basket for the entire shot clock. I'm not trying to take anything a way from him but that way it would be easier to compare him to todays centers. Could you imagine what Shaq would do if he could stay in the lane for 24 seconds!!!</div> I don't think that's quite right. They actually widened the lane from 12 to 16 feet to make it difficult for Wilt the station himself near the basket after 3 or 4 years he was in the league. He still averaged 33+ ppg. In comparing Shaq and Wilt, I think Wilt was by far bigger and stronger relative to the competition than Shaq. Wilt was 7'1" and 280 which is pretty big by today's standards, and enormous at that time. Looking at it in absolute terms, Shaq is obviously more massive than Wilt, and so he's able to score through the defense more easily. In quickness, its probably a wash. Maybe Shaq has the edge there. Speed-wise, Wilt was probably better than Shaq running up and down the court. I think Wilt was probably a much better leaper than Shaq, which is saying a lot since Shaq is unbelievably agile for his size. Wilt had more stamina, and was probably a better rebounder, even adjusting for the difference in eras. If Wilt played today, at the height of his powers, I think he'd average about 30 ppg and 15 rpg, and maybe play 44 minutes a game. Someone mentioned above that Wilt was the only player to win MVP and ROY in the same year. That's not true. Wes Unself also did it (in 68-69).
wow i've never thought how good he really was. if he would have played against shaq in his prime years(every year he played) then he would have crushed him to dust! A man who scores 100 points in a game,gets 55 rebounds in a game and sleeps with 20000 women has my respect! may this greatest player of his era(and next to jordan of all time) R.I.P and everyone should remember him
yes wilt was the most dominating but he is the co-best player of all time with air jordan wilt is at least by far the best center ever and the onyl one who could stand up to him was bill rusell. and if bill russell wouldn't have been at the celtics then wilt and the sixers would have crushed them. so i blame russell that wilt won only 2 rings though bill russell was a terrific player he never was as good as wilt. no center ever was
There's no doubt he was the greatest. The only way to score in basketball is to put the ball in the basket and he was the toughest player to stop from doing that.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Voodoo Child:</div><div class="quote_post">Are you implying that rings make a player? Some of the best players never won one ring much less two.</div> Personally I believe rings make the player. The truth is a good player plays good but a great players makes his team better. Larry Bird was a great player because he made his team better. If you where playing with Larry Bird your going to be better. Wilt is a great player no doubt. Two rings is great, but Bill Russel is better. Would Wilt have beaten Russel one on one, most likely but it doesn't make him better. Bill Russel made his team better, no matter what team he played for he won. It didn't matter who else is on the team if Bill Russels on your team your going to win. Granted Havlichek (spelling) was a great player to and it did help. It all brings me to my point if your a great player your going to win because your going to make the people around you better. Allen Iverson not a great player. Tracy Mcgrady not a great player.
TimmyGinobli that is bogus. Rings don't make tha player accomplishments and skill makes a player. Mcgrady is a great player! So KG doesn't have a ring does that make him a bad player? Malone doesn't have a ring does that make him a bad player? It takes more than one player to win. Look at Wilt, he was basically a one man team. When he won his rings he had good supporting players. Bird had great supporting players and he was an all-star.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting AA13:</div><div class="quote_post">TimmyGinobli that is bogus. Rings don't make tha player accomplishments and skill makes a player. Mcgrady is a great player! So KG doesn't have a ring does that make him a bad player? Malone doesn't have a ring does that make him a bad player? It takes more than one player to win. Look at Wilt, he was basically a one man team. When he won his rings he had good supporting players. Bird had great supporting players and he was an all-star.</div> Wilt had some very good players around him in years he didn't get a championship. So I wouldn't say he was a one-man team (early on, when he was averaging 40, 50 points maybe you can say that). Anyways, if the question is, "Who's the greater player: Wilt or Russell?" I'll always answer Wilt. He was the greater all-around athlete and he had more skills. But Russell wins in the intangibles department. Russell made his teammates better throughout his career. And I think he had a better basketball-mind, particularly on defense.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting AA13:</div><div class="quote_post">TimmyGinobli that is bogus. Rings don't make tha player accomplishments and skill makes a player. Mcgrady is a great player! So KG doesn't have a ring does that make him a bad player? Malone doesn't have a ring does that make him a bad player? It takes more than one player to win. Look at Wilt, he was basically a one man team. When he won his rings he had good supporting players. Bird had great supporting players and he was an all-star.</div> I don't think you completely understood what I said. I was comparing the difference from "good" players and "great" players. Of course Mcgardy is a very skilled and talented player, but I don't this he is a great player. Lets look at the facts when Bird entered his first season it was the biggest turnaround in a team history at the time. Well, that changed when another great player David Robinson came into the league and then it changed again when another great player Tim Duncan came into the league. But my point is who did Larry Bird have on his team? Of course you could say he had a very very washed up Pete Maravich. The fact is he made everyone around him better, ask anyone who played with Larry Bird. Ask Bill Walton who only played with him for a couple of seasons he'll tell you that it was an absolute delight playing with Larry Bird and that he made everyone around him better. T-mac doesn't do it, Karl Malone does do it, and Kevin Garnett sure doesn't do it. Of course the team is going to get better but the players around them don't and frankly some of them get worse. Theres a huge difference and in the Nba we measure that in rings.
