In it, the basketball great claimed to have slept with 20,000 different women during his life. "The Big Dipper" dropped 100 points in 48 minutes of work as thePhiladelphia Warriors defeated the New York Knicks. Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Karl-Anthony Towns, Kawhi Leonard, Anthony Davis and Brandon Ingram will play outsized roles in how their respective teams close the season. The five seasons with the most qualifying players with a rebounding percentage of 20 or better are the five most recent seasons, as many traditionally sized rebounders leave the court (or spread out on it) and yield more space for the few remaining close-to-the-basket bigs. Coaches and front offices understand the importance of rest much better than they did a half-century ago. Chamberlain was one of the few players of his . Chamberlain's 100 point game is an NBA record that will likely never be touched. https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/status/1379037502430830595, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/status/1379037548207480836, Deflection Steal #2: (Phil Jackson) https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/status/1379037597045944322, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/status/1379037633913921536, New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/status/1379037597045944322. Wilt Chamberlain played 14 seasons for the Lakers, Warriors and 76ers. The guy I've noticed getting a lot of poke aways and steals was actually Russell. He had a reputation as having many partners. Due to the schedules forboth teams, he went on to play the Pistons' remaining 53 games and ended up with 88. In Wilts final 40-rebound gamethe one celebrating its 50th anniversaryhis rebounding percentage was just 28 percent, as he benefited from playing all 53 minutes in a fast-paced overtime duel. Head to Head: Wilt Chamberlain vs. Bill Russell. To put that number in perspective, in the past decade, just four teams have taken 109 or more shots in a non-overtime game (and three of those four hit 109 exactly). Draft Wilt Chamberlain Today! Yes, the league hadfewer teams in the 60s than it does nowbut that doesn't take awayfrom the fact that Bill Russell and the Boston Celtics clinched 11 NBA titles in a span of 13 years. ", I have Bird #19 and Kobe #20 on my all-time list and both guys will probably get passed by Jokic by the end of this season, Jonathan Isaac Out For Season Following Adductor Surgery, Norm Powell To Be Re-Evaluated In One Week Due To Shoulder Injury, Bucks Emerge As Favorites For Goran Dragic, Stephen Curry Targeting Return From Leg Injury Sunday At Lakers, The Lottery Pick Gleam Still On Kris Dunn, The 2023 Title Contenders Are Already Here, Six Biggest X-Factors After The All-Star Break, Ty Lue Says Clippers Need 'To Be Tougher', Spurs Claim And Convert Sandro Mamukelashvili, Waive Isaiah Roby, Thunder Sign Jared Butler To Two-Way Contract. Ive examined all of Wilt's footage that is available to the general public at the moment and collected data, as well as numerous clips that showcase what I believe to be a very underrated aspect of his game on the defensive end. Before retiring, Chamberlain earned three MVP trophies, including Finals MVP and two NBA titles, in addition to MVP and Rookie of the Year. Join us for a March Madness Webinar on Tuesday, March 7 at 8pm ET. He just happened to come up 67 points short of his opponent. Jordan did it three times. On November 24, 1960, Philadelphia Warrior Wilt Chamberlain snags 55 rebounds in a game against the Boston Celtics and sets an NBA record for the most rebounds in a single game. It would be like saying Michael Jordan averaged 40 PPG because of newspaper headlines that only pointed out his great games. 1 that suggests Drummond would struggle to challenge Chamberlains total is that teams in 2019 dont take enough shots. Of course this is all s. The modern game has caused records to fall and statistical outliers to erupt at the same frenetic pace as its games are played. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. All content 2000-2023 RealGM, L.L.C. That's exactly what the Warriors did, feeding Chamberlain at every opportunity in the fourth quarter. Thats good! He averaged 30.1 points, 22.9 rebounds and 4.4 assists in 1,045 regular-season games. Wilt Chamberlain's stat line was insane, even beyond the 100 points. When he retired following the 1972-73 season, it was 128 times. The country was at the height of the AIDS crisis, and activists criticized Wilt for his promiscuity. Pokes the ball from Kareem + steals Oscars pass attempt. The Alabama passer is one of the smallest QB prospects to be pegged as a first-round pick. A close childhood friend, Tom Fitzhugh, said, "I don't remember him having a date. "The inside scoop was he was hungover," said Darrall Imhoff(via the Los Angeles Times), the man who took Jordon's spot in the starting lineup. Those arent trivial totals; theyre the precise pace needed to reach 40 boards in a game. However, the only NBA player in history to allegedly record a quintuple-double is Wilt Chamberlain. Duality underpins practically everything about the brief existence of the KD, Harden and Kyrie Nets. According to statisticians, Chamberlain dropped 53 points, 32 rebounds, 14 assists, 24 blocks, and 11 steals in a game against the LA Lakers. Thats 37 percent. His basketball battles against his own personal David, Bill Russell, became a morality play which did neither man justice, but defined the essence of sporting success for generations of American fans. There is some selection bias. Before Chamberlain, basketball's lumbering giants mostly set immobile screens for more skilled shooters. Whats different about the Sixers this year? The secret of Wilts extraordinary rebound totals is that compared to modern centers, he wasnt actually an extraordinary rebounder. He won the Rookie of the Year award, 4 MVP awards, 1 Finals MVP award and 2 NBA championships. Everyone gets sick once in a while, which would have cost Chamberlain precious time during those 37 to 40 sexually active years. Moderators: trex_8063, Doctor MJ, PaulieWal, Quotatious, Clyde Frazier, penbeast0, Post#1 by coastalmarker99 Tue Apr 6, 2021 1:46 am, Post#2 by coastalmarker99 Tue Apr 6, 2021 1:53 am, Post#3 by penbeast0 Tue Apr 6, 2021 5:50 am, Post#4 by coastalmarker99 Tue Apr 6, 2021 10:11 am, Post#5 by penbeast0 Tue Apr 6, 2021 11:05 am, Post#6 by ty 4191 Tue Apr 6, 2021 10:28 pm, Post#7 by feyki Wed Apr 7, 2021 9:15 am, Post#8 by 70sFan Wed Apr 7, 2021 9:38 am, Post#9 by feyki Wed Apr 7, 2021 9:45 am, Post#10 by BullsFan45 Wed Apr 7, 2021 10:44 am, Post#11 by DCasey91 Wed Apr 7, 2021 10:55 am, Post#12 by 70sFan Wed Apr 7, 2021 10:57 am. The Knicks tried fouling other Philadelphia players to keep the ball away from Chamberlain, but the Warriors countered by committing fouls of their own to get the ball back. But rebounds stand distinct, their records untouched, even from a distance, by modern man. "And I couldn't miss anything. Mal, Jo, and Ben get together to talk about where the Mandalorian people are, what adventure awaits Din and Grogu, and much more. But because of rest minutes, that kind of pace is simply unsustainable over a full game, or even just a half. Wilt Chamberlain On March 2, 1962, Wilt Chamberlain set the NBA single-game scoring record by tallying 100 points for the Philadelphia Warriors in a 169-147 victory over the New York Knicks. Re: All known blocked shot data of Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain. Wilt Chamberlain, 7ft 2ins tall and 23 stone, was forced to play that role all his life. If you do not want us and our partners to use cookies and personal data for these additional purposes, click 'Reject all'. LA Lakers' Elmore Smith was the first player to lead the NBA in blocks per game, with an average of 4.85 and 393 total blocks. . So,here are the most striking ones that are quite certain to not be surpassed by any player: most 50-point games (118), most consecutive league scoring titles (7 - tied with Michael Jordan), games with 50 or more points in a single season (45) and most rebounds in a single game (55). He scored 100 points in a single game. When he bragged in his 1991 autobiography A View From Above about sleeping with some 20,000 women, he again found himself cast as the villain. Yet even if pace rocketed back to 1960s levels, and even if shooting percentages regressed half a century, Drummond still wouldnt challenge the record unless his coach were in on the scheme, too. The Ringer has surveyed the field of NFL players who are set to hit free agency this month. His NBA years: from 1960 to 1973 Wilt Chamberlain NBA Stats Summary: Career Averages Wilt Chamberlain Full Stats by Year : Per Game: Regular Season Stats Playoffs Stats and our If you would like to customise your choices, click 'Manage privacy settings'. If this is all just based on newspaper reports the stats are not trustworthy at all. Yes, he averaged more than a regulation game. 2023 Minute Media - All Rights Reserved. For all records held by Chamberlain, click here. In his nine-year career, the . Todays stats are just an estimation just as they were in the 60s. After losing in the national collegiate final in his third year, he left Kansas to join the Harlem Globetrotters, where his skills made him a huge attraction. But I'm sure he wouldn't keep this up in the remaining 78 games. All the pieces fell perfectly into place. Please logout and login again. On one it says "Blocked 9 shots and nicked at least a dozen more" and it's just tallied as 21 blocks. All known blocked shot data of Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain: https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fRFgkADAK80/VkG0j3zRocI/AAAAAAAAHTA/swVybP9vvpE/s0-Ic42/Russell%252520blocked%252520shots%252520135g.jpg, https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tTIVEWsAP14/VkFK-IE7GHI/AAAAAAAAHSo/n_u04_ScpoQ/s0-Ic42/Wilt%252520blocked%252520shots.jpg. That puts Wilt at 7'4". NBA Playoff Seeding, Conference Championship Previews, and Best Bets, Adidas 2023 Sneaker Preview and Dillon Brookss Wild Outfit, Bucks Continue to Dominate, Believing in the Knicks, and Yet Another Live Show Announcement, The Mandalorian Season 3 Episode 1 Deep Dive, The Ploys and Tactics Behind Oscar Campaigning, A Secret Laundromat Meetup, New Jersey Episode 4, and Potomac Reunion Part 2. Seriously, just take a moment and think about this: 50.4 points and25.7 rebounds per game on 50.6 percent shooting from the field and 61.3 percent from the line (a career high, by the way). Thirty seven years after he retired at the age of 37, Chamberlain s name appears in the NBA s record book a whopping 97 times. He also came under fire in African-American circles for promoting Black racial stereotypes. Your default site has been set for 7 days, NBA's notable unbreakable records including Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game and more. He did it as a member of the Philadelphia 76ers on March 18, 1968. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1979. In the 132 Warriors games in that span for which Basketball-Reference has rebounding data, Wilts rebounding percentage was 20 percent on the nose. In sports, and possibly even in life, that's true in about 90% of all instances. Raptors. We will take a closer look at his remarkable quintuple-double performance and the myths surrounding the record. All 4 are legit hall of fame players and are well deserving. Since the official NBA record for steals is 11, that means Russell's unknown quadruple-double also contains an unknown NBA record. The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA or its clubs. Every guy in human history has been turned down by a woman at some point. But Chamberlain's enduring legacy is his series of losses to the Boston Celtics. Logos were compiled by the amazing SportsLogos.net. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? Is Golden State a sleeping giant? Out of those 60 occasions, only onefor Howard in his 30-rebound gameyielded a 20-rebound half. We are not making it all up in our heads, thinking well of Kris Dunn because we want to: he has real talents to bring, and a body that for the time being will allow him to use them. (And you guys complain about Russell Westbrook chasing triple-doubles.). Wilt would have encountered even more, given his workload. He scored 23 points in the first quarter and had 41 by halftime, then tallied 28 in the third quarter, when the fans began to chant, "Give It To Wilt! And that discrepancy carries single-game ramifications as well. (Not impressive at all!). Wilt collected 55 of 149 total rebounds in his record game. Privacy Policy. Theres a reason Joel Embiid told NBA Desktop that he considers Chamberlain the GOAT because of all his records. Wilt Chamberlain: Sample Average - 8.63 BPG Sample S.D - 4.05 Sample Size - 112 Estimate Career BPG (99% Conf Interval) - ~7.7-9.6 BPG If one believes that there is a "high" bias going on, taking out the 11 highest block numbers leads to a range of: Bill Russell - 6.7-8.0 BPG Wilt Chamberlain - 7.0-8.5 BPG Fittingly, Chamberlain has been named to the NBA's 35th, 50th and 75th Anniversary teams. Lets contrast Wilts situation with that of Andre Drummond, whos averaged at least 13 rebounds per game every season since he was a rookie and led the league in three of the past four. How many times did Wilt Chamberlain win MVP? Wilt Chamberlain PPG 30.1 RPG 22.9 APG 4.4 HEIGHT 7'1" (2.16m) WEIGHT 250lb (113kg) COUNTRY USA LAST ATTENDED Kansas BIRTHDATE August 21, 1936 DRAFT 1959 EXPERIENCE 14 Years Stats Career Per Mode. He probably would take a woman to bed any time he couldn't fall asleep. https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/status/1379037281479139334, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/status/1379037314924474370, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/status/1379037346641813505, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/status/1379037380640841738. I've (also) found out that having one woman a thousand different times is more satisfying.". Or write about sports? This exercise is meant to gaze in awe at Wilts statistical hegemony, not conclude that he was Drummond or Whiteside with a heavier workload in a different era. "There were no hotels for us to go to or stay in because we didn't do those kinds of things in those days," Chamberlain said. March 4, 2015, 4:00 PM. Five things you didn't know about Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game. But he possessed the coordination of a much smaller man. Wilt Chamberlain Center 7-1, 250 lbs. For his career Wilt averaged 30.1 points, 4.4 assists, and 22.9 rebounds. But it is believed that Chamberlain achieved a quintuple-double in that game. So, it's highly improbable that any player would come close to Stockton's record, let alone break it. It's safe to say we won't see any NBA players eclipsing those season numbers anytime soon. Who has the most points in a half in NBA history? With the way the game is played today, it will be tough for anyone to come close to that record. His 'Ironman' streakbegan on November 19, 1986when the Lakers defeated the Spurs in San Antonio and it ended with the final game of his career in 2001 as a member of the Miami Heat against the Orlando Magic. Thats because of factor no. Rules were changed to help teams cope with Wilt's skills; the same thing would happen when he turned professional. In the 2 games in the link he averaged at least 14.5 per game. So let us assume Wilt really started around the age of 18, which ups the average to 1.5 women per day for 37 years. Chamberlain, who has been found dead in his Los Angeles home after an apparent heart attack, aged 63, always strained against his role. Born in Philadelphia, one of 10 children, Wilt began attracting attention after growing five inches the summer he entered high school. Since then, Charles Oakley has the most single-game rebounds with 35 in 1988. RRR Deserves to Make Oscar History. Keep in mind Chamberlain shot 51.1 percent from the line for his career, so hitting nearly 90 percent of his free throws in one game is some kind of anomaly. Regular season: PTS, FG, FT, 3P complete all-time. The publicity turned the book into a bestseller. Only one player has even eclipsed the 80-point threshold since Chamberlain's historic night the late Kobe Bryant poured in 81 against the Raptors on Jan. 22, 2006. Chamberlain attempted nearly 40 field goals and shot 17 free throws per game. Accounting for pace yields a massive differenceabout an extra 40 rebounds every game for teams in the 1960s to chase. Go back in time and learn about Wilt Chamberlain's early years growing up, and early years in the NBA. FTA complete back to 1948-49. The single-game record is 55, courtesy of Wilt in November 1960, which is so absurd from a modern vantage that it might as well be a million. This record is most certainly going to remain untouched. However, it's highly unlikely that this record will be broken simply because of a rule change that was enforced in 2006. Wilt Chamberlain, 7ft 2ins tall and 23 stone, was forced to play that role all his life. authenticate users, apply security measures, and prevent spam and abuse, and, display personalised ads and content based on interest profiles, measure the effectiveness of personalised ads and content, and, develop and improve our products and services. Chamberlain finished with 100 points on 36-of-63 shooting from the field (57.1 percent) and 28-of-32 shooting from the free . Even more than his 50.4 points per game, Chamberlains most unbreakable single-season record might be his minutes-per-game mark: 48.5 in 1961-62. Russell Westbrook has made the triple-double look easy. Not 98 points, not 102 . Powered by phpBB Forum Software phpBB Limited. The irony of Wilts rebounding records is that more of todays centers are collecting a higher percentage of rebounds than ever before. https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/stat37281479139334, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/stat37314924474370, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/stat37346641813505, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/stat37380640841738, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/stat37412291084288, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/stat37446818594825, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/stat37502430830595, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/stat37548207480836, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/stat37597045944322, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/stat37633913921536. Wilt was also a lifelong insomniac, sometimes just not sleeping at all. He would have a lot more steals if every opposing big took the challenge of playing him 1 on 1 as Kareem does here: https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/status/1379037412291084288, https://twitter.com/bullsmanguy/status/1379037446818594825. Despite the backlash, Chamberlain never backed down from his claim. Let's go back 60 years to learn more about Chamberlain's iconic performance. Wilt Chamberlain, in full Wilton Norman Chamberlain, bynames Wilt the Stilt and the Big Dipper, (born August 21, 1936, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.died October 12, 1999, Los Angeles, California), professional basketball player, considered to be one of the greatest offensive players in the history of the game. Could James Harden Potentially Return to Houston After the Season? Lets zoom in on the three-season stretch from 1960-61 to 1962-63, when he produced the best rebounding numbers of his career and also played in 99 percent of all possible minutes. Imhoffstruggled with foul trouble throughout the game, leaving 6-9 rookie Cleveland Buckner to battle Chamberlain, and as everyone now knows, that didn't go well. Miss only one extrafree throw, and he's stuck on99. If Drummond sought to claim the single-game rebounding record in 2019, three main factors would stand in his way. And what about turndowns? These 'unbreakable' recordswere set in a time and under circumstances that can never be duplicated. A newspaper won't report it if they had like 2 blocks in the game. To believe that any of 2023's neo-contenders can become bonafide champs over the next few months is to believe that a once-in-a-quarter-century occurrence is about to transpire. The 76ers came away with a 158128 win. It's not easy being Goliath. Let's analyze it. On March 18, 1968, Wilt Chamberlain allegedly put up a stat line of 53 points, 32 rebounds, 14 assists, 24 blocks, and 11 steals. In a career lasting from 1959 until 1973 he scored 31,419 points. "Wilt Chamberlain had a great deal to do with the success of the NBA," Auerbach said. His skills revolutionised the game, yet his own prowess seemed to bore him, and he played best answering internal challenges. Lakers Forward Was the Steal of the Trade Deadline. Ultimately, while Drummond might expect to be on the court for about 60 rebound opportunities in the average 2019 game, his half-century-ago predecessor would have expected to be on court for about 110. And considering he never had any children, I would suggest that he could have been infertile from an STD he caught early in his career. Maybe that tally isnt fair to Chamberlain, given that it comprises the end of his career rather than his peak. To succeed in the NFL, hell need to be an outlier among outliers. Chamberlain routinely went off for 50or 60 points throughout his career, but this one felt different, especially when the crowd got behind the chase for 100. In 1960-61, when Chamberlain set the record, teams attempted ONE HUNDRED AND NINE shots per game. Thats barely more than Drummonds average now. Data Provided By Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. This performance played a big role in how he's perceived by fans to this day. Two hundred colleges chased his services, and he chose rural Kansas University, but soon found the college game stifling. James Harden cant stop climbing historical leaderboards. Something went wrong. Data runs from 1946-47 to present unless otherwise noted. He also claimed he never fathered a child, but Aaron Levi has some strong evidence that Wilt was his dad. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Who could be a value signing? My friend thinks if they kept track of blocks, Wilt would have been the triple-double leader of the NBA by a wide margin to boot. Moderators: trex_8063, Doctor MJ, PaulieWal, Quotatious, Clyde Frazier, penbeast0, Post#1 by CavaliersFTW Tue Nov 10, 2015 9:31 am, Post#2 by Jaivl Tue Nov 10, 2015 11:12 am, Post#3 by Johnny Firpo Tue Nov 10, 2015 11:20 am, Post#4 by colts18 Tue Nov 10, 2015 2:04 pm, Post#5 by CavaliersFTW Tue Nov 10, 2015 2:09 pm, Post#6 by CavaliersFTW Tue Nov 10, 2015 2:11 pm, Post#7 by Mazter Tue Nov 10, 2015 3:29 pm, Post#8 by D.Brasco Tue Nov 10, 2015 5:48 pm, Post#9 by Johnlac1 Tue Nov 10, 2015 7:43 pm, Post#10 by Cuban_Linx Tue Nov 10, 2015 7:57 pm, Post#11 by Quick Eye Tue Nov 10, 2015 8:49 pm, Post#12 by CavaliersFTW Tue Nov 10, 2015 10:22 pm, Post#13 by Warspite Wed Nov 11, 2015 12:23 am, Post#14 by MyUniBroDavis Wed Nov 11, 2015 2:34 am, Post#15 by Johnlac1 Wed Nov 11, 2015 2:54 pm, Post#16 by Perkele Wed Nov 11, 2015 3:59 pm, Post#17 by Doctor MJ Wed Nov 11, 2015 5:38 pm, Post#18 by Tinseltown Wed Nov 11, 2015 8:06 pm, Post#19 by CavaliersFTW Wed Nov 11, 2015 9:46 pm, Post#20 by theonlyclutch Wed Nov 11, 2015 10:01 pm. Coach Bill Sharman, a former Celtic, challenged Wilt to play "like Russell" for a season. Learn more and register, Scores from any date in BAA/NBA or ABA history, Frequently Asked Questions about the NBA, WNBA and Basketball, Basketball-Reference.com Blog and Articles, Subscribe to Stathead Basketball: Get your first month FREE. He loved proving he could do anything, spending years perfecting a "fadeaway" shot which actually worked against his strengths, taking him away from the basket. Powered by phpBB Forum Software phpBB Limited. Even todays reb, blocks, steals and assists recording has an error rate of 20-30%. All those extra shots often missed, and they often found their way into Chamberlains giant paws. Chamberlain averaged 48.5 minutes per game. Wilt Chamberlain claimed that he slept with 20,000 women. It's not easy being Goliath. 4. To believe that any of 2023's neo-contenders can become bonafide champs over the next few months is to believe that a once-in-a-quarter-century occurrence is about to transpire. He holds dozens of unbreakable basketball records. The NBA did not count steals and blocks at the time, so the record is unofficial. The difference in shooting percentage between 1961 and 2019 would lead to about 8-10 extra rebounds per night in a single game, even before accounting for the former seasons heightened pace. But not historically so, or even particularly notable next to totals from this decade. He managed his money shrewdly, and found his reputation growing as his ground-breaking statistical domination came to overshadow his failure in championships. So many more shots meant so many more rebounds, especially when combined with factor no. This is constrained. Please enter a valid email and try again. In the case of the remaining 10%, thoserecords are unbreakable. I've never seen Wilt stealing the ball from ball-handling guard and I've seen Bill doing that quite a few times. At least his totals stand alone, a numerical testament to the unassailable mix of right player, right time, and right place. Anthony Davis and Jusuf Nurkic posted quintuple-nickels (five each of points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks) just six weeks apart. He was probably a virgin when he left high school." We ask all these burning questions, and more! In 2018-19, 11 qualifying players boast a higher mark, and that group includes Embiid, who lauds Wilt as superior to Michael Jordan specifically because of records like these. He simply stated: "I was just laying it out there for people who were curious.". All my points are not only valid, but carry a level of weight that would sink a rubberized yellow plastic duck. That works out to roughly 1.4 women a day. But most incredibly, even with those reported 20,000 sexual liaisons, Chamberlain is not known to have contracted any serious sexually transmitted diseases. A quintuple-double means a player recorded at least 10 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists, 10 steals, and 10 blocks in a game. I always knew Wilt blocked more shots than Russell. Since it's inception in 1947, the NBA has witnessed plenty of such records. Both had different ideas as to what Wilt's role should be on the team. Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Saturday, March 4, 4:50AM. He looks Hakeem level at it in the clips I've seen which isn't surprising as Hakeem is the closest modern player to Russell defensively. The Knicks finished as the worst team in the Eastern Division that year, and they didn't have their full frontcourt to challenge Chamberlain in the paint. Off the court, he embodied Hugh Hefner's 60s "Playboy philosophy"; a hipster who owned a popular jazz club, Smalls, he made no bones about romancing women of all races. Since 1971when the Lakers set the benchmark for most consecutive wins, only a couple of teams have had their sights on it or even come close to tying it or breaking it the Miami Heat in 2012-13 (27) and the Golden State Warriors in 2014-15 (24). So why are rebounds seemingly immune to other sorts of statistical inflation? "The key is being able to stop him once or twice when you need to.". So perhaps he made time for repeats after all. Because of the lack of comprehensive play-by-play data for most of Wilts career, we have exact rebounding percentages for only the final three seasons of his career. Despite not winning the MVP that year, his 1961-62 is one of the greatest ever with his insurmountable season averages of50.4 points and 48.5 minutes. If this is a representative sample, using the blocked shot numbers: "If I walk outside somebody might just hit me with their car, or say anything negative to me. Heck, Chamberlain might have posted a 100-point triple-double. Copyright 2023 Sporting News Holdings Limited. One unbreakable record is the Big Man scoring 100 points in a single game. Heres why. But the man who loved 20,000 women never married, and apparently died alone. We have tools and resources that can . Which players will have the most active markets? Chamberlain spent the last five seasons of his career with the LA Lakers from 1968-1973. As expected, crazy numbers. Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game & more . I don't have steal numbers from available footage (yet) but I'm almost sure that Russell averaged more steals per game - he was Hakeem-esque in terms of disruption both down low and on perimeter. Chamberlains besting of Bill Russell on the boards wasnt just the most recent 40-rebound game; it was the last. For instance, according to Basketball-References records, Chamberlain and Russell combined for 22 of the 24 40-rebound games in NBA history, as well as the top 18 single-season rebounding averages. --------------------------------------------------------------------, Or more likely, newspapers only reported on the number of blocks when Wilt and Russell had an unusually high number of them. I've examined all of Wilt's footage that is available to the general public at the moment and collected data, as well as numerous clips that showcase what I believe to be a very underrated aspect of his game on the defensive end. But it is believed that Chamberlain achieved a quintuple-double in that game. Three decades later, even Oakleys mark looks unattainable: Dwight Howards 30-board game last season was the leagues first since 2012 and just the third since 1996. But the 42 boards he gobbled up 50 years ago Thursday in an overtime win over the Boston Celtics represent his most relevant rebounding feat viewed from todays context. As he blocked 15 shots and grabbed 11 rebounds in the 2nd half alone. His is a name I know, although I have never followed basketball. He put up video game numbers on a regular basis. Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain didn't have the ability to use the "100" emoji on March 2, 1962, so he had to settle for a simple piece of paper to illustrate his level of dominance that night. When Wilt grabbed a record 55 rebounds in one game against Russell, the Celtics still won.