Why Wilt Chamberlain would dominate in today's game ! Bruce Blitz

"There is a common belief that Wilt was so good because he played in an era where there was no competition or size to compete with Wilt. I am going to show that Wilt would dominate in today’s game.

There is an idea out there that the reason Wilt scored so many points and grabbed so many boards is that there was no size to compete with Wilt. This theory is false. The average height that Wilt played against was about 6-10, only 3 inches shorter then he was. There were a large amount of players that were able to go up against Wilt in terms of size. There was Bill Russell (6-9 215 lbs), Zelmo Beaty (6-9 225 lbs), Nate Thurmond (6-11 225 lbs), Walt Bellamy (6-11 225 lbs), Bob Lanier (6-11 250 lbs), and Willis Reed (6-9 235 lbs). These are all hall of famers (with exception of Zelmo Beaty) and players that Wilt had to go up against when he played. As you can see most of these players had the size to go up against Wilt. Wilt was just good enough to be able to dominate most of these guys.

Wilt was a great athlete. He was ahead of his time in athletics. Wilt was a track star, he played shot put, and could bench press 500 lbs. Wilt was a freak athlete. He was able to do this without all of the advances that there is today. For instance, these days most centers are wearing pads to protect themselves from the physical nature of being a big man. Wilt did not have this advantage. When Wilt played, the game was a lot more physical then it is today. The referees let a lot of fouls go that today would be considered a hard or even a flagrant foul. Wilt was able to still dominate every night even with these disadvantages.

The question is if you take Wilt and put him in today’s game, will he dominate. The average height of today’s players is 6-10 (sound familiar). The centers, these days, are not physically as strong as it used to be. Most centers, now, are more perimeter players, so they would not be able to handle Wilt on the inside. The game is no longer as physical as it used to be, so Wilt could dominate the game even more. The only player, in the game today, that has the physical ability to guard Wilt is Dwight Howard and even he would have a lot of trouble. No one in the NBA today has the ability to consistently guard Wilt. The closest resemblance to Wilt would be Shaquille O’Neal except Wilt is stronger, faster, and more versatile. If you think about how much Shaq dominated the game in his era, imagine Wilt except a lot better.

Many people try to undermine the accomplishments of Wilt by saying that he played in a weak era. However, if you look at the facts, you will see that his era was not weak, Wilt was just that good. He deserved every accomplishment he achieved. Wilt Chamberlain was one of the greatest players ever no matter what era he played in."

Also contributed by Artur Radetskiy


I want some more input on this from jlauber, Psileas, PHILA, ThaRegul8r, etc..

Most centers now are perimeter players?

[QUOTE=Kblaze8855]Most centers now are perimeter players?[/QUOTE]

Don't know what he meant, really.

I think he means they play more away from the paint, but I can't fathom how they all play like Dirk.

[QUOTE=AlphaWolf24][IMG]http://images4.fanpop.com/image/user_images/2963000/AlphaWolf-2963314_1611_930.jpg[/IMG][/QUOTE]

:roll:

JK

Wow load of crap. Sure they may have had a few 6'11 bigs... but were they 300 pounds? Did they have his insane wingspan? NO. He DID dominate purely because of his superior size and athleticism. Why do I say that? Because I watch his footage and I don't see a guy that's as skilled as everyone else at his position.

I'm not agreeing or disagreeing with OPs conclusion, but everything else he typed is junk.

People keep arguing this. It's obvious that Wilt would dominate in today's game. The NBA is in a low when it comes to centers. We have a lot of big and athletic guys, but their not very good basketball players. Wilt was big, strong, super athletic, and very skilled. He didn't just dunk balls. Very versatile. Maybe it just looked easy to him when you watch him play, he was not an angry guy. Actually too nice some people say when it comes to his play on the court. The NBA was always competitive.Wilt past his prime would still dominate today's NBA.

You really cant say its just size and athletic ability considering what he did vs guys like Nate, Bellamy, and later Kareem. Kareem was 7'3'', strong, and mobile and Wilt was fine vs him desite being past his prime.

He didnt really look much bigger than some of these guys:

[IMG]http://sharing.wpri.com/sharewwlp//photo/2010/08/08/WALT_BELLAMY_20100808172138_640_480.JPG[/IMG]

[IMG]http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/8918/70449886.jpg[/IMG]


He did fine vs everyone he played.

[QUOTE=Kblaze8855]You really cant say its just size and athletic ability considering what he did vs guys like Nate, Bellamy, and later Kareem. Kareem was 7'3'', strong, and mobile and Wilt was fine vs him desite being past his prime.

He didnt really look much bigger than some of these guys:

[IMG]http://sharing.wpri.com/sharewwlp//photo/2010/08/08/WALT_BELLAMY_20100808172138_640_480.JPG[/IMG]

[IMG]http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/8918/70449886.jpg[/IMG]


He did fine vs everyone he played.[/QUOTE]

Great pics Blaze. I'm not trying to imply not a single player was as big as him... but more that in general NOBODY had his combination of athleticism, size, strength and wingspan. Only one who was close was Russell and obviously they had epic battles. Kareem too but he came into the league when those 2 giants were older and on the way out. I think Kareem was a rookie when Wilt was 33 if I recall correctly.

It's no different than the way Lebron or Shaq dominated over the last decade plus. Nobody else had their combination of strength, size and athleticism to stop them. Doesn't mean Wilt was bad... just means that nowadays with players more advanced training, bulkier basketball frames and larger scale athleticism... he's less likely to dominate AS MUCH as he did.

Maybe he would be equal to a prime Shaq and put up 29, 14 and 4 or w/e. He sure as hell isn't putting up 30+, 25+, 5+, 5+ again in this era though I'll say that much.

I did the following post at the end of either the '09 or '10 season (I can't remember.) on another forum about this very issue. I don't feel like updating the specifics, but the point should be clear.


In 1972-73 Wilt was 36 about to turn 37. No matter who you are, at age 36 you are very much beyond your prime. That season the NBA had [B]at least 9 Hall of Fame big men[/B] that played center at some point in their career. Besides Wilt, 4 other were at least 6

[QUOTE=jlip]This year, D. Howard played less than 10 games against potential Hall of Fame big men

Total crap if anyone thinks that he wouldn't be the best in today's game. He is stronger than any NBA player in the NBA right now, and is more athletic. He'd have at least 25-13-6 (and those are low estimates...). He play in an INFINITELY better era than today.

[QUOTE=Clippersfan86]Great pics Blaze. I'm not trying to imply not a single player was as big as him... but more that in general NOBODY had his combination of athleticism, size, strength and wingspan. Only one who was close was Russell and obviously they had epic battles. Kareem too but he came into the league when those 2 giants were older and on the way out. I think Kareem was a rookie when Wilt was 33 if I recall correctly.

It's no different than the way Lebron or Shaq dominated over the last decade plus. Nobody else had their combination of strength, size and athleticism to stop them. Doesn't mean Wilt was bad... just means that nowadays with players more advanced training, bulkier basketball frames and larger scale athleticism... he's less likely to dominate AS MUCH as he did.

Maybe he would be equal to a prime Shaq and put up 29, 14 and 4 or w/e. He sure as hell isn't putting up 30+, 25+, 5+, 5+ again in this era though I'll say that much.[/QUOTE]

Not 25 boards, but 30-15-5-5 isn't that far off. Look at what Howard is doing! Wilt would crush this era, Howard wouldn't be the second best center in the 60s.

[QUOTE=Clippersfan86]Wow load of crap. Sure they may have had a few 6'11 bigs... but were they 300 pounds? Did they have his insane wingspan? NO. He DID dominate purely because of his superior size and athleticism. Why do I say that? Because I watch his footage and I don't see a guy that's as skilled as everyone else at his position.[/QUOTE]

If the NBA was scoring 120 points a game in this era, and shooting 40-45%, you mean he WOULDN'T average 50-25-10-10? People don't realize he much stronger he is than today's players. Russell was a better athlete than Wilt, but not as strong, but Wilt was still a crushing regular season player. Russell could jump higher than ANY NBA player in history, as Wilt is stronger than any NBA player in history. He would dominate any era.

:oldlol: at people saying "there'd be no centers to guard him". You don't think the vastly superior defensive schemes and help defense would cause a bigger problem?

I made this post comparing footage from a '67 game with Wilt and how he was defended.

[URL="http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?t=209939"]http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?t=209939[/URL]

Even if he would be the strongest player in the league(maybe he would, maybe he wouldn't), he wasn't backing guys down and overpowering them. Look at how he's able to dribble the ball for 3-4 seconds with no help, and not even going to a power move vs Russell who he had a good 3-4 inches and 50+ pounds on. Wilt really doesn't seem like he was a power player.

And honestly, if you even had to double him in today's game, it looks like it'd lead to a lot of turnovers considering he looks awkward with his back to the basket due to his ball handling and footwork. He also seemed to bring the ball down quite a bit which people criticize Howard for(and rightfully so). Good help defenders and hard double teams look like they could really bother him, if teams found it necessary to double him.

So I certainly don't see him dominating with his scoring, and to be honest, when Wilt scored more, it didn't seem to be the way that his teams were the most effective.

He could definitely have an elite impact as a shot blocker, post defender(later version at least when he committed to that end more) and he was a very good passer.

He seemed fast and athletic for a big man in the open court and I could see him running the floor, getting some dunks and put backs, but I haven't seen anything to suggest he'd be the most athletic player in the league.

And then there would be the questionable mentality(which people always bring up for Lebron)

he'll be great....

No way. Old school players ar enot as strong. NOt as fast. Not as athletic. Not as conditioned. Any player from before... 1990 would get dominated. Because today people prepare their bodies for their entire lives to play basketball.

They did not back then. This nostalgia is denying facts that todays athletes are FAR more athletic.

Dwight howard would stuff wilt over and over and over and over and over again.

That shit wouldnt even be a fun 1 on 1 to watch.


Your crazy. Stop being nostalgic. In 20 year swhen my generation is weaker, ill accept reality. Fact is wilt is not athletic enough.

Today there are 6' dudes whod rain points on oldschool dudes. They would destroy them.

[QUOTE=Fatstogie]No way. Old school players ar enot as strong. NOt as fast. Not as athletic. Not as conditioned. Any player from before... 1990 would get dominated. Because today people prepare their bodies for their entire lives to play basketball.

They did not back then. This nostalgia is denying facts that todays athletes are FAR more athletic.

Dwight howard would stuff wilt over and over and over and over and over again.

That shit wouldnt even be a fun 1 on 1 to watch.


Your crazy. Stop being nostalgic. In 20 year swhen my generation is weaker, ill accept reality. Fact is wilt is not athletic enough.

Today there are 6' dudes whod rain points on oldschool dudes. They would destroy them.[/QUOTE]

:roll: :roll:

I love posts like these

[QUOTE=Miller for 3]:roll: :roll:

I love posts like these[/QUOTE]

Its not wilt.

FACT of the matter is weve been shown a highly athletic 6'6 guy can out score a 7' guy on a regular basis.

Its not "oh in todays leage the size has gone down." No its that today smaller guys are better than they were before. So the size doesnt matter. wilt would get BLOWN by today. NOt enough speed. Or vert. Not enough lateral speed. Not even close. Dude would get left hanging while getting dunked on.

Dude played old fogeys with no skill. Today the average player is better than the average player then.

SCore 100 pooints? You cant cause eveyrone on the team can score now. In wilts day? Only he could score. Today everyone can score. So no one is gonna sit and watch 1 guy take shots. Like they did back then.

Its not entertaining either.

[QUOTE=ShaqAttack3234]:oldlol: at people saying "there'd be no centers to guard him". You don't think the vastly superior defensive schemes and help defense would cause a bigger problem?

I made this post comparing footage from a '67 game with Wilt and how he was defended.

[URL="http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?t=209939"]http://www.insidehoops.com/forum/showthread.php?t=209939[/URL]

Even if he would be the strongest player in the league(maybe he would, maybe he wouldn't), he wasn't backing guys down and overpowering them. Look at how he's able to dribble the ball for 3-4 seconds with no help, and not even going to a power move vs Russell who he had a good 3-4 inches and 50+ pounds on. Wilt really doesn't seem like he was a power player.

And honestly, if you even had to double him in today's game, it looks like it'd lead to a lot of turnovers considering he looks awkward with his back to the basket due to his ball handling and footwork. He also seemed to bring the ball down quite a bit which people criticize Howard for(and rightfully so). Good help defenders and hard double teams look like they could really bother him, if teams found it necessary to double him.

So I certainly don't see him dominating with his scoring, and to be honest, when Wilt scored more, it didn't seem to be the way that his teams were the most effective.

He could definitely have an elite impact as a shot blocker, post defender(later version at least when he committed to that end more) and he was a very good passer.

He seemed fast and athletic for a big man in the open court and I could see him running the floor, getting some dunks and put backs, but I haven't seen anything to suggest he'd be the most athletic player in the league.

And then there would be the questionable mentality(which people always bring up for Lebron)[/QUOTE]

Great post!
I always laugh when the old farts on this site claim that Wilt would abuse any center and that he would crush the centers of this weak era..

I've seen the '67 game you posted and it's pretty interesting to see him just hold the ball with his back to Russell in the post and without anyone coming to help Russell. Not only that, he looks so awkward when he has his back to the basket and he takes so long and he dribbles awkwardly in the post, it doesn't look skilled in any way. And haha, I saw the thread as well, you gotta laugh at Jlauber, whenever someone posts a link to a game where it's obvious that Wilt has flaws he always go "YOU POSTED THE WORST GAME WILT EVER PLAYED". Haha, so Wilt playing actual full games doesn't show his true game but highlight-videos of Wilt where the footage is carefully picked to make Wilt look better than what he was is more than ok..

Wilt always gets credit for being such an amazing scorer and that no other center comes close to him which is pure nonsense. In the playoffs we have 3 guys (Hakeem, Jabbar and Shaq) among the top 5 centers of all-time who all of them averaged more points per game on better FG% while facing superior defensive schemes and way more help defense in the playoffs. And it should also be mentioned that Wilt would never be able to average the minutes he did back then in the modern era so based on PER 36 his playoff scoring doesn't look all that dominant..

Bottom line, I don't think he'd be a dominant scorer today with his skills but it's a fact that he still would be a great defender, passer, shotblocker and rebounder.

It does look awkward. In todays league dudes would have a feild say stealing teh ball from him.

Dwight blocking him. CP3 stealing the ball.

It would be a joke seriously.

Wilt would average... 7 PPG in todays league.

you mean in the same league where Joel freakin Anthony started in the finals?Joel Anthony..one of the worst offensive centers i've seen in any level.

[QUOTE=Jon_Koncak]you mean in the same league where Joel freakin Anthony started in the finals?Joel Anthony..one of the worst offensive centers i've seen in any level.[/QUOTE]

Yet one of the better defenders youve seen, at a smaller size too. Your just too focused on offense.

Anthony provides more defense today, than wilt could offense.

In fact id prefer my center not even need to take shots. Although i think pittman will be a nice lil addition.

[QUOTE=Clippersfan86]Wow load of crap. Sure they may have had a few 6'11 bigs... but were they 300 pounds? Did they have his insane wingspan? NO. He DID dominate purely because of his superior size and athleticism. Why do I say that? Because I watch his footage and I don't see a guy that's as skilled as everyone else at his position.[/QUOTE]

Do you watch the NBA? Do you know of many 7' tall, 300 pound guys in the league right now?

These posts on this second page are just :facepalm
They make me lose even more faith in the youth of today

[quote]The question is if you take Wilt and put him in today

He even dominated Hyborian Age.
[IMG]http://www.golfleagueboys.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Bombaata.jpg[/IMG]

[QUOTE]Any player from before... 1990 would get dominated. [/QUOTE]

How do you think Kareem who played in 1969 was scoring 40 on guys who retired in like 2002?

How has robert Parish(out of 1976) had games with 18/14 vs a guy who retired in 2008(Chris Webber when he was a center in GS) Parish had 26/9 and 19/17 in back to back games vs one player who played until 02 and one who retired like 2 years ago. And he was 41. And he came in at 23. He was at an NBA age in 1974. This is a guy from almost 40 years ago who...in his 40s...was having huge games vs players who were solid today.

How does Moses Malone(drafted in 1974) drop 28/11 on the guy who was the DPOY in 2001 and still a great defender in 06 and 07? And this is old Moses 11-12 years past his prime.

How do you account for these things if its as simple as modern players would destroy old guys?

You could make a case that modern guards would outplay most old guards. Skills have changed. The yare expected to do different things.

Bigmen has been the same for 40 years. They weight train now....but it didnt stop any great old school player when he played modern players on his way out. These guys were often just country strong. Burly ass dudes like Wes Unseld, Wayne Embry, Lanier, reed, and so on. They didnt need much weight training.

And its not like they didnt have muscle anyway


[IMG]http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/slides/photos/000/684/724/natethurmond_display_image.jpg?1296580921[/IMG]


Centers have been pretty much the same since the late 50s or at least mid 60s.

They would translate better than guards do.

[QUOTE=Kblaze8855]
Centers have been pretty much the same since the late 50s or at least mid 60s.

They would translate better than guards do.[/QUOTE]

They'd definitely translate better than guards, imo, but I don't agree that they've been the same since before the 70's. Kareem and Walton were among the first with post games I've seen that still look good compared to the more recent great post players.

And it's not just about facing today's big men. 60's big men would also be affected by the progression of perimeter players and strategies. The much longer, more athletic perimeter players are often the ones helping out on the center.

Nevermind the fact that it'd also be much tougher to stay out of foul trouble with perimeter players so much more capable and willing to attack the basket now than in the 60's. How much footage have you seen of perimeter players in the 60's blowing by their man off the dribble and attacking the body of the center or trying to dunk on him? I have yet to see much due to the vastly superior ball handling skills as well as palming being enforced less and superior quickness and athleticism on the perimeter.

[QUOTE=Kblaze8855]How do you think Kareem who played in 1969 was scoring 40 on guys who retired in like 2002?

How has robert Parish(out of 1976) had games with 18/14 vs a guy who retired in 2008(Chris Webber when he was a center in GS) Parish had 26/9 and 19/17 in back to back games vs one player who played until 02 and one who retired like 2 years ago. And he was 41. And he came in at 23. He was at an NBA age in 1974. This is a guy from almost 40 years ago who...in his 40s...was having huge games vs players who were solid today.

How does Moses Malone(drafted in 1974) drop 28/11 on the guy who was the DPOY in 2001 and still a great defender in 06 and 07? And this is old Moses 11-12 years past his prime.[/QUOTE]A few games sure. They wouldnt be able to do it on a regular basis. Sure they are good at basketball. But they wouldnt be able to do it all the time in todays league.

[QUOTE]How do you account for these things if its as simple as modern players would destroy old guys?[/QUOTE]Naw im saying they are more into their craft. Back then there wasnt so many guys who were playing basketball their entire life. The whole league was "hey your big, you should come play basketball." Where as now they draft a kid who has been training his entire life to be a professional athlete.

Im not saying these guys werent good. they did not devote their entire lives to the game as guys do today. They werent eating the same. Working otu the same. They didnt have the same conditioning.

yea they had skill sure. But night in and night out? They couldnt hold up.

[QUOTE]You could make a case that modern guards would outplay most old guards. Skills have changed. The yare expected to do different things.

Bigmen has been the same for 40 years. They weight train now....but it didnt stop any great old school player when he played modern players on his way out. These guys were often just country strong. Burly ass dudes like Wes Unseld, Wayne Embry, Lanier, reed, and so on. They didnt need much weight training[/QUOTE].Not quite. I mean basically sure. But your seeing a change. Dwight being just the prime example. These older bigmen. Yes they can score. Shooting is something someone can do or not. If htey can shoot sure they can shoot.

CAN THEY PLAY DEFENSE. no.
[QUOTE]
And its not like they didnt have muscle anyway


[IMG]http://cdn.bleacherreport.net/images_root/slides/photos/000/684/724/natethurmond_display_image.jpg?1296580921[/IMG]


Centers have been pretty much the same since the late 50s or at least mid 60s.

They would translate better than guards do.[/QUOTE]

it aint just lifting weights. Today they have high tech workouts n shit. Nutritionists.

Yea and im saying centers would translate better. But im saying he would not score 100 pts in todays league. Not even close.

For one no one wants to see that. No player will want to be on is team. They didnt care then, cause they were garbage.

Now everyone can score.

But yea ill agree center would be the last position of change. Im more saying that these guys would not be allowed to hog the ball like they did back then.

How many bigmen right now have strong back to the basket games and loads of moves? That isnt an era thing. Those guys arent common in any era. And look into willis reed. Black and white footage 60s reed. He was operating in the post. Clean quick decisive moves. Up and unders. Hooks. He was nice. And of the guys less known as scorers many had more offensive talent than credited with. Nate thurmond had a wet jumper that ive seen. Ive seen lucas and dave d making outside shots. Bigmen have not really expanded skills wise since inaccurate sweeping hooks stopped being the norm.

You are very right about foul trouble and better help in the post. But for the most part i seen no real differences. Most of todays best centers arent terribly musclebound either. Thedays of zo and drob or willis types are gone. Noah? Horford? Bynum? Even bogut is that kina 60s farmer strong. Not just built.

I dont see the old guys having trouble at all.

[QUOTE=Kblaze8855]How many bigmen right now have strong back to the basket games and loads of moves? That isnt an era thing. Those guys arent common in any era. And look into willis reed. Black and white footage 60s reed. He was operating in the post. Clean quick decisive moves. Up and unders. Hooks. He was nice. And of the guys less known as scorers many had more offensive talent than credited with. Nate thurmond had a wet jumper that ive seen. Ive seen lucas and dave d making outside shots. Bigmen have not really expanded skills wise since inaccurate sweeping hooks stopped being the norm.

You are very right about foul trouble and better help in the post. But for the most part i seen no real differences. Most of todays best centers arent terribly musclebound either. Thedays of zo and drob or willis types are gone. Noah? Horford? Bynum? Even bogut is that kina 60s farmer strong. Not just built.

I dont see the old guys having trouble at all.[/QUOTE]

Again.

The point is the league has changed. Do you wanna watch wilt post up? Or lebron tomahawk?

The game changed on its own. Look at dwight. They do pretty good, best defense. But they have no real scorers on their own.

Dwight is the star. But then he demands the ball. And they can go to the post with him and he can shoot 60%. But at the loss of rythm of everyone else.

Everyone else passes the ball to get open shots. where as everyone else gets bored watching a guy post up over and over.

Both players and fans. So thats why the magic wont do good. Watch next time yous ee the magic. How people get frustrated knowing they have to pass to dwight in the post.

It disrupts teh flow of the other 4 players. Post isolation is boring to watch.

But the fact is only dwight gets off. Watch games where dwight goes off, they usually lose cause everyone else plays like crap. Because dwight is posting up too much.
They single cover and just let him score. Everyone else will start missing cause they are getting sad watching it. lol

Its efficient means in PPM. and FG%. But it lowers the team psychology.

Back in the day? People would watch wilt post up.

Today? No one would even play with him like that.

[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmLe-ZSAHsk&feature=related[/url]

Wilt in his Prime.

So your points are they arent conditioned, they cant play defense, and post play is boring?

You know there are nba players who live off candy and junk food right? Guys like Keon Clark who drank a bottle of gin before every game? You think Eddy Curry, Bogut, Boris Diaw, Baron Davis, and so on are on really strict diets? And conditioning?

The reasons guys then had such insane numbers is how many posessions they had each game. You think it takes less energy to play 220 posessions than 160? And guys like Wilt, Russell, Hayes, and so on might play 45+ minutes a night. Just dragging up and down the court and extra 30+ times would wear out a lot of players now. Especially the bigger ones. You had guys like Wilt who were top flight quarter mile guys and Russell who was the worlds 7th rated high jumper and guys like Reed who lived on a farm for 20 years in Louisiana used to working all day. And they did it in shoes with no padding, drinking water not G series gatorade, and not having a trainer on the road and hottubs after every game. These guys might ride a bus 6 hours then get out take a nap and play a game in an arena with the heat not working as the 4th game of a back to back to back to back.

Being tough/conditioned is the last issue they would have in a league where players wake up in 5 star hotels, to buffets 3 times a day, with a full medical staff, compression shorts, under armor padding, drinks designed to keep them going and oxygen tanks on the bench(dont think thats just NFL).


As for D? that would translate better than anything else. In the 60s with no three point line a center was there first and foremost to disrupt offenses that setup 15 feet away. Hes gotta guard his own man one on one and still prevent drives and try to catch up on dribble handoffs and offenses run through passing bigmen on either side of the lane. And stars guarded eachother.

Let Nate Thurmond hand off the other teams star to someone else so he can just roam the paint freely or play one of the 20 centers not a threat to score or get to rest as much as centers do on teams that just shoot from outside and dont look to drive.

Defensive centers of the 60s would have it easier than ever with the exception of the slashing swingmen being such freaks. But when you are guarding one of the 19-22 centers that dont require much attention its easier to be ready than if Kareem is leaning back on you or Reed is ready to pop a jumper if you take your hand off him.


As for post play being boring....

Thats just a whole other thing. Asking if id rather watch a guy post up or Lebron dunk?

You know a great post scorer can do so at will right?

Some guard flying in for a dunk isnt something we can count on.

There is a reason that every bigtime bigman to come along goes #1 in the draft. And it isnt boredom.

Wilt would be just fine today. He wouldn't be posting the same numbers, but his rebounding numbers would towards the top in the NBA, and I could see him averaging anywhere from 10-20ppg depending on the team he played for.

[QUOTE=Kblaze8855]Most centers now are perimeter players?[/QUOTE]
Most centers today lack post-up skills.

Wilt would be a 37ppg-18rpg-4apg-4bpg-60fg% player today

There were several good posts on the topic, but KBlaze and Jlip basically covered what I would have.

Here we go again...

IMHO, Kareem's greatest season, including post-season play, came in his second year (70-71.) You can argue that he had a greater regular season the very next year, but his numbers dropped dramatically in that post-season. You can also argue that he was in his physical prime in, say '77, or so, but his numbers were not as great (although it may have been his greatest post-season...BUT, there were no Wilt's or Thurmond's to battle.)

In that 70-71 season, Kareem led the NBA in scoring, at 31.7 ppg (his second highest ever.) He also shot .577, which came in a league that shot .449. What is the significance of that? It was his greatest shooting season, in relation to league average, of his career. In addition, he averaged 16 rpg (his third best season of his career. In the post-season, he averaged 26.6 ppg, 17.0 rpg, and shot .515. Here again, those were not his best post-season numbers, but given the fact that he had them against Thurmond, Unseld...and Wilt...well, it was pretty damned good. And he not only won the regular season MVP, he also won the Finals MVP.

Now, it could also be argued that that '70-71 season was the WORST of Chamberlain's career. He was 34 years old, and only a year removed from major knee surgery. His numbers were among the worst of his career, too. He only averaged 20.7 ppg, and on .545 shooting. Great numbers for 95% of the players who have ever played the game...but very sub-par numbers for Wilt. And, he averaged 18.2 rpg, too, which was the WORST of his career. Even his overall playoff numbers were very poor for him. 18.3 ppg, a career LOW 20.2 rpg, and a playoff LOW of .455 shooting.

However, THAT Kareem faced THAT Wilt in TEN H2H games in that 70-71 season (five regular season, and five post-season.) Here were the combined numbers. Kareem outscored Wilt, per game, 26-23, while Wilt outshot Kareem, combined, .490 to .454; and outrebounded Kareem, per game, 18-16.

Once again, that may not have been a PRIME Kareem, BUT, it was arguably his greatest season. And, FOR SURE, that was NOT a PRIME Chamberlain. In fact, it was Wilt at his WORST.

Now, think about this... in Kareem's 85-86 season, he was 38 years old, and a FAR cry from his PRIME (he could barely get 6 rpg.) YET, how about this... in one game against a 23 year old Patrick Ewing, he outscored Ewing, 40-9, while outshooting him, 15-22 to 3-17. And only a few games apart from that massacre, he overwhelmed a helpless 23 year old Hakeem, outscoring him 46-18, and outshooting Hakeem, 21-30 to 8-16 (and in only 37 minutes BTW.) In fact, in that 85-86 season, and in five regular season H2H's, a WAY past his PRIME Kareem averaged 33 ppg on a mind-boggling .634 shooting against Hakeem.

Here again...THAT Kareem was near the end of his career. He could no longer jump, and he was much slower than a 70's Kareem. And yet, he just MURDERED both Ewing and Hakeem. What would a PRIME Kareem have dropped on those two helpless defenders?

Furthermore, what would a PRIME Wilt have dropped on Kareem in the 70's? He certainly dominated many of the same centers that Kareem faced, FAR more than Kareem did.

And, by extension, what would a PRIME Wilt have carpet-bombed Hakeem and Ewing with. A 7-2 Wilt (and easily 7-3 in shoes), weighing between 275-300 lbs; and with enormous strength; incredible leaping ability (hell, he was blocking 4-5 of Kareem's "unblockable" sky-hooks, per game, at age 35), and sprinter's speed (there were many that claimed he was the fastest player in the league in the 60's.) And a player who could hit routinely hit 15+ ft bank shots, 15 ft. jump shots, quick turn-around jumpers in the lane, sweeping hook shots, finger rolls...coming from a 7-8 wingspan, and thunderous dunks.


And, as Jlip alluded too...here was a Wilt, at nearly 37 years of age, LEADING the league in rebounding (and by bearly two per game); being voted first-team all-defense (and ahead of the likes of Cowens, Lanier, Hayes, Thurmond, and Kareem); and setting a FG% record of .727, that will never be broken. THEN, in the playoffs and covering 17 post-season games, he played 47.1 mpg, and averaged 22.5 rpg (in a league that averaged 50.6 rpg.) Just how impressive was that? That 22.5 rpg post-season average was the LAST time ANY NBA player ever averaged 20+ rpg in the post-season. In fact, the next greatest season, since, was Kareem's 17.3 rpg in the '77 playoffs. My god...in Wilt's very LAST game, all he did was score 23 points, on 9-16 shooting, with 21 rebounds, in game five of the Finals.

There is no way of ever knowing what numbers a PRIME Wilt would be capable of putting up in TODAY's NBA, but I am convinced he would do quite well. How many other 7-2 (7-3 in shoes), 300 lb, 7-8 wingspan, college high-jump champion, with sprinter's speed, and massive strength that no player could match in TODAY's NBA...are currently playing in the NBA?

i remember reading an article of Isiah Thomas talking about when he first met Wilt.....he basically said he's seen and played against a lot of 7-footers, but Wilt just looked enormous compared to them.

[B]Wilt would destroy todays league

The 2000s is the Worst Era Ever for Centers. The 90s which where inferior to the 80s also had better Center Competition[/B]

[QUOTE=eliteballer][url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmLe-ZSAHsk&feature=related[/url]

Wilt in his Prime.[/QUOTE]
:roll: :roll: :roll: I just laught @ his "great post moves" :hammerhead: