Wilt Chamberlain's highlights from 1959 to 1966

[coastalmarker99]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFjgYTgQoEo

[coastalmarker99]

Wilt Chamberlain Statistics (1959-1966)
Points: 39.6
Rebounds: 24.8
Assists: 3.4
FG% 51%
Blocks: 10.3* (based off 28 games of available data)

[coastalmarker99]

You know I don't think people really appreciate the fact that Wilt averaged basically a 40 point triple-double over a span of seven seasons.


While leading the NBA in scoring and rebounding along with blocked shots and field goal percentage plus minutes played.

[Axe]

From 1959-66?

Zero chips.

[coastalmarker99]

Wilt Chamberlain playoff Statistics (1959-1966)

Points: 33.0

Rebounds: 26.3

Assists 3.0

FG% 51%

Blocks: 11.5*(based off 13 games of available data.




In this time span of seven years from 1959 to 1966




Wilt had

Four entire post-seasons of

33.2 PPG

34.7 PPG

35.0 PPG

37.0 PPG


He also had a post-season series of 38.6 ppg on .55.9 shooting.

He also had four 30+ ppg post-season series against Russell including a 30 ppg, 31 rpg seven-game series in 1965.





He also had four 50+ point games in the playoffs, including a 56-35 game five, in a best-of-five series; and a 50-35 in a must-win game five against Russell in the '60 ECF's.

He also had a 46-34 game five in a must-win game in the '66 ECF's, and again, against Russell.

[coastalmarker99]

From 1959-66?

Zero chips.

Basketball is a team game.

Jordan was 1-9 in his first ten playoff games despite the fact that his play had been GOAT tier due to how bad his teammates were.


Lebron won zero rings from 2003 to 2010 despite the fact that his play had been GOAT tier in the 2009 playoffs due to how bad his teammates were.


Kareem only won one ring from 1970 to 1980 despite the fact that his play had been GOAT tier in the 1974 and 1977 playoffs due to how bad his teammates were.

[Horatio33]

Basketball is a team game.


So it's a team game when Chamberlain loses but you only talk about his stats and how great he was. You wouldn't know teamwork if it punched you in the face.

[coastalmarker99]

So it's a team game when Chamberlain loses but you only talk about his stats and how great he was. You wouldn't know teamwork if it punched you in the face.


"I call Wilt Chamberlain a very honest workman. By that, I mean he always did what his employer wanted. No star athlete has ever given his boss more for their money than Wilt did during his career.

Eddie Gottlieb owner of the Warriors wanted Wilt to score like no man ever had, so Wilt did.



Alex Hannum and some of his other coaches wanted him to pass and play defence, so he did that and he played 48 minutes a night.


Those who criticized Wilt -- first for his scoring, then for not scoring more -- really should have criticized his employer."

--Leonard Koppett, Tall Tales (by Terry Pluto) p. 329


The point.


Wilt proved himself unusually adaptable. He was willing to be a massive focal point of offence at the level of no other player in history with the Warriors.


(people often talk about Wilt's 50 point season as though it was Wilt's idea; it wasn't.)



He was willing to be a mid-post passing center that ran the offence with the 76ers


He was willing to be a super high-efficiency scorer/defensive standout with the Lakers. Basically, I think Wilt did whatever was asked of him by his coaches throughout his career.

[coastalmarker99]

So it's a team game when Chamberlain loses but you only talk about his stats and how great he was. You wouldn't know teamwork if it punched you in the face.


"I have great respect for Wilt. When I was with the Lakers, he never missed a practice or a game or was late for a plane.

If I asked him to make an appearance, he did it. This man has gone through life with a bad rap. We are talking about a very good person."--Fred Schaus, Tall Tales (by Terry Pluto) p. 334


"It was hard for Wilt to put his faith in many people. Being in his position, many people tried to exploit him. I say little in reference to character, not size.



There were always those who enjoyed hanging around to pick up the crumbs that might fall off their 7' cake.

No matter where we went to play ball, It seemed that he had a thousand cousins who needed tickets to the game-free tickets, that is.


One of Wilt's weaknesses was being too big-hearted. He never turned down any of these requests, and very often he was holding the bag.


You'd expect a 7 foot person to have an extra big heart, but his was even out of proportion to his size."Bob Billings in a college English paper that profiled his friend.


“Wilt is playing better than I used to -- passing off, coming out to set up screens, picking up guys outside, and sacrificing himself for team play."

Bill Russell, Great Moments in Pro Basketball, (by Sam Goldaper) p.24



Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on Chamberlain "Chamberlain played the game the same way Russell did, except he scored so much more.

But his teams had to get more points from him. He'd score 45 points and his teams would still lose."

"Wilt had to fight people's dissatisfaction that his teams didn't win. There he was, this great dominating player, and his teams didn't win championships.


Well, Wilt wasn't playing for the right team. As an individual, he was in a class by himself, but his teammates--they were OK, but not the supporting cast Russell had."

[nayte]

Laz he is right. You praise Bill's teamates and kareems teamates while always trashing Wilts.
You are just another 3 ball man.

[coastalmarker99]

So it's a team game when Chamberlain loses but you only talk about his stats and how great he was. You wouldn't know teamwork if it punched you in the face.


Tom Gola: I first played with Wilt when I was in college and he was a 6-foot-8 junior high kid. He held his own with all these hotshot players from Philly, even at 13 years old. If Wilt had come into the NBA and not scored 50 points a night, he would have been booed.


Those were the kinds of expectations he faced -- not just from the fans, but the other players. No other player ever had to deal with the kind of pressures that Wilt did. He was expected to be perfect.

Earl Strom: There were games when Wilt would block a shot, Tommy Gola would pick up the loose ball and instead of taking down the court on the fast break, he'd hold it.

Wilt said, "Tommy, somebody has to help me score."

Tommy said, "Hey, big fella, you got the hot hand, we're working it to you."

Al Attles: I probably played 500 games with Wilt and never once did I hear him say, "Get me the ball."

Wilt Chamberlain was a unique player, a 7-2 track star who could run and jump and had athletic ability, so tall, strong, and skilled that he could score unlike anyone the game had ever seen, so it was natural that he would be asked to score, and score a lot.


In those early days of the league, when teams were struggling to attract fans and stay financially solvent, Warriors owner Eddie Gottlieb saw Chamberlain as a gate attraction, and he intended to take advantage of him.


From Tall Tales:

Tom Gola: Gotty believed in the star system. It began with Joe Fulks, who was one of the first jump shooters and set an NBA scoring record with 63 points in 1949 and it continued with Paul Arizin and then Wilt.

He liked guys who scored big numbers because he thought that was how you attracted fans.


Wilt: Early in my career it was made very clear to me, "Wilt, you've got to score a lot of points." Eddie Gottlieb believed it was good for his franchise and for the league for me to set records.


Wilt: When you go out there and do the things you're supposed to do, people view you as selfish.


Wilt Chamberlain was indeed proud of his individual stats and accomplishments, but it's interesting that he was not proud of his most famous achievement -- the 100-point game.

From Tall Tales:

Al Attles: After the game, Wilt was in the dressing room and he wasn't celebrating like the rest of us.

I said, "Wilt, what's the matter."

He said, "I never thought I'd take 60 shots in a game."

I said, "But you made 36, that's better than 50 percent."

He said, "But Al--63 shots, Al." Then he just shook his head.

Frank McGuire: I do think we were more excited about the game than Wilt was.

Wilt: The 100-point game will never be as important to me as it is to some other people.

That's because I'm embarrassed by it.

After I got into the 80s, I pushed for 100 and it destroyed the game because I took shots that I normally never would. I was not real fluid. I mean, 63 shots?

You take that many shots on the playground and no one ever wants you on their team again. I never considered myself a gunner.

I led the league in scoring because I also led it in field goal percentage.


I've had many better games than this one, games where I scored 50-60 and shot 75 percent.

Al Attles: Wilt gave me the ball that he scored the 100th point with, even though some kid claimed to have run off with it.

Wilt: I wanted Al to have that ball because he's a great friend and he spent his whole career sacrificing to make other guys better players.

[nayte]

Just another 3 ball

[coastalmarker99]

Laz he is right. You praise Bill's teamates and kareems teamates while always trashing Wilts.
You are just another 3 ball man.



I do acknowledge that Wilt had some excellent teammates in his career.

With

Chet Walker

Hal Greer

Billy Cunningham

Luke Jackson

Wali Jones


West

Goodrich

Happy Hairston.



I mean two of the teams that Wilt played on in the 1967 76ers and 1972 Lakers were voted number one and number two as the best NBA teams of the first 35 years of the league.

[nayte]

I put wilt in my tier one on the other thread I don't deny he is a beast. I've shown my kids clips of him when they try to denigrate him.
Still I think you can make wilts good case for goat without crapping on everone

And to edit you just did give his teamates some credit.nice

[coastalmarker99]

Just another 3 ball

Any player that wins 11 championships probably had the best collective team in the league more often than not.


When Jordan retired to play baseball the 1994 Bulls without him only lost two more games than the previous title season and almost beat the Knicks in the playoffs.


The Knicks barely lost the title to Houston that year.



There are only three seasons in which Wilt had better teammates than Russell and that was in 1967 and 1968 and 1969.

You could make the case for 1966 as well, though Cunningham was a rookie and they didn't have 3rd guard Larry Costello.




Wilt at the very least should have beaten Russell twice during those three years as he flat out choked in the 1969 finals.



As with West averaging 37PPG in the 1969 finals, there was no excuse for Wilt to not beat a retiring Russell that year as he had the help he needed.

[coastalmarker99]

I put wilt in my tier one on the other thread I don't deny he is a beast. I've shown my kids clips of him when they try to denigrate him.
Still, I think you can make wilts good case for goat without crapping on everyone

And to edit you just did give his teammates some credit.nice


My tier one is

Jordan

Lebron

Kareem

Wilt

Russell



All of them have great cases to be labelled as the Goat.


I would have put Magic and Bird in my tier one as well had their careers not been cut short by injuries and HIV.



It is amazing to me that both Magic and Bird accomplished so much despite them both playing only 11 full seasons.

[nayte]

My tier one is

Jordan

Lebron

Kareem

Wilt

Russell



All of them have great cases to be labelled as the Goat.


I would have put Magic and Bird in my tier one as well had their careers not been cut short by injuries and HIV.



It is amazing to me that both Magic and Bird accomplished so much despite them both playing only 11 full seasons.

That's where I get longevity but if someone does accomplish more in lesser years I'm kinda meh. For all the seasons lebron has played he still hasn't gotten as much acclaim as Jordan and u can throw bird and wilt in there etc.and yes I'm quite cognisant about circumstances but still you can only play who u play