BY SAM CAROZZA, CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Wilt Chamberlain might be the most disrespected legend in the NBA. People appreciate his greatness, but I feel like NBA fans don’t investigate him specifically as a player. His scoring feats alone could put him top 3 all-time in today’s game.
Some of his scoring records include: most points per game in a season (50.4 ppg), most points in a season (4,029), most points scored in a single game (100), most points scored in a single half (59), most career regular season 60-point games (32), 50-point games (118), 40-point games (271), and most 35-point games (381) just to name a few.
Wilt wasn’t just a scorer. Early in his career he was more basket oriented, but he has stated multiple times that he wanted to become an all-around type of player.
Later in his career, Wilt took the time to develop his skill set into a well-rounded offensive and defensive weapon. Scoring wasn’t the only place where he held records. He also has multiple rebounding records and was an excellent passer.
When ESPN brings up a scoring record graphic, a lot of the time you can find an asterisk on the graphic that says *not including Wilt*. There is not a single other player in history where they must remove them from a graphic so that more players can look better.
Wilt owns 72 NBA records and 68 individual records. He has the record for most records, which is crazy to think about.
Wilt played in a time period where defensive stats like blocks and steals were not recorded. Some reports say that Wilt used to tell someone in the stands during big games to keep record of these stats. Reportedly one night he reached 25 blocks, which would still stand as a record today.
Wilt wasn’t just a freak of the NBA, he was a freak of nature. He was 7’1” and reportedly had a 50-inch vertical. He could also bench press 500 pounds and run a sub-11 100 meter.
The NBA and NCAA had to change multiple rules because Wilt was so physically dominant.
In my opinion Wilt is a top 5 player of all time and better than Shaquille O’Neal. He’s more physically dominant and a better all-around player for his time. The basketball community will never see another human being like Wilt.
carozzsj22@bonaventure.edu
