Head-to-Head: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar vs. Bill Walton

This thread is H2H battles between Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Bill Walton. Walton came into the league in 1974 and had a relatively short career until the 77-78 season when injuries tore him apart. In those 4 years Bill displayed some of the best fundamental all-around basketball ever seen at the center position and his last 2 prime seasons '76-'77 and '77-'78 are some of the best ever. Many purists that have seen him play live have called him the greatest center of all time at his peak. His intelligence, defensive impact, and teamwork were perhaps on the level of Bill Russell.

John Wooden who was both players' coach at UCLA said that Walton is the greatest center he ever coached right as he was going to the NBA (possibly caught up in the moment?). Kareem took it as a slight and made it a point to completely destroy Walton in the first couple of games they played as pros! Walton is on record saying that Kareem is greatest player he ever played against better than Jordan, Magic, Bird, Barry etc.



[U]'74-'75 Season[/U]


1/19/1975

Kareem: 50 points, 15 rebounds, 11 assists, 3 blocks, 1 steal (18/30, 14/16) W

Walton: 7 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal (2/5, 3/4) L

Kareem got the a 50-point triple-double for the sixth and last time in NBA history as Milwaukee won the game. Total domination! Walton was injured for all the other three Bucks-Blazers games this season.



[U]'75-'76 Season[/U]


11/26/1975

Kareem: 48 points, 12 rebounds, 6 assists (19/33, 10/15) L

Walton: 12 points, 15 rebounds, 9 assists (6/11, 0/0) W


11/30/1975

Kareem: 22 points, 12 rebounds, 3 assists (11/18, 0/4) W

Walton: 19 points, 17 rebounds, 5 assists (7/19, 5/8) L


1/4/1976

Kareem: 39 points, 15 rebounds, 5 assists (15/22, 9/10) W

Walton: 11 points, 13 rebounds, 9 assists (5/16, 1/4) L


1/23/1976

Kareem: 26 points, 10 rebounds, 3 assists (11/25, 4/8) L

Walton: 27 points, 22 rebounds, 8 assists (11/23, 5/5) W


1/30/1976

Kareem: 35 points, 13 rebounds, 3 assists (14/24, 7/10) L

Walton: 16 points, 13 rebounds, 7 assists (8/21, 0/0) W


4/7/1976

Kareem: 29 points, 13 rebounds, 6 assists (12/25, 5/7) L

Walton: 26 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists (12/24, 2/4) W



[I]Cumulative Averages:[/I]

Kareem: 33.2 ppg, 12.5 rpg, 4.3 apg on 55.8 %FG/58.3 %TS

Walton: 18.5 ppg, 15.0 rpg, 6.7 apg on 43.0 %FG/45.0 %TS

In one game Walton didn't play Kareem had 41 points, 20 rebounds, 3 assists, and 9 blocks on 63% shooting. Walton's Blazers won the season series 4-2 vs. Kareem's Lakers when both men played.




[U]'76-'77 Season[/U]


11/26/1976

Kareem: 32 points, 14 rebounds, 2 assists (13/28, 6/8) W

Walton: 26 points, 21 rebounds, 5 assists (9/16, 8/8) L


12/18/1976

Kareem: 35 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists, 7 blocks (17/26, 1/3) - 6 points in OT W

Walton: 28 points, 26 rebounds, 3 assists (10/24, 8/12) L


4/9/1977

Kareem: 8 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist (2/9, 4/4) L - only 23 min, last game of season
Walton: 19 points, 16 rebounds, 7 assists (9/14, 1/1) W


[I]Cumulative Averages:[/I]

Kareem: 25.0 ppg, 12.3 rpg, 2.3 apg on 50.8 %FG/53.9 %TS

Walton: 24.3 ppg, 21.0 rpg, 5.0 apg on 51.9 %FG/57.7 %TS

Walton missed 2 potential H2H games due to injury. Kareem's Lakers won the season series 2-1. Cumulative numbers are misleading since Kareem easily outscored Walton in the two games he played full minutes in and LA won both games. Kareem averaged 33.5 ppg, 15.0 rpg, 3.0 apg on 55.6 %FG/56.9 %TS in the two aforementioned games.



[U]'77 Western Conference Finals[/U]


Game 1:

Kareem: 30 points , 10 rebounds, 5 assists, 0 blocks (11/19, 8/9) L

Walton: 19 points, 14 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 blocks (8/22, 3/5) W


Game 2:

Kareem: 40 points, 17 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 blocks (17/23, 6/9) L

Walton: 22 points, 15 rebounds, 9 assists, 2 blocks (11/20, 0/0) W


Game 3:

Kareem: 21 points, 20 rebounds, 7 assists, 8 blocks (5/12, 11/13) L

Walton: 14 points, 17 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 blocks (7/13, 0/0) W


Game 4:

Kareem: 30 points, 17 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 blocks (12/20, 6/9) L

Walton: 22 points, 13 rebounds, 6 assists, 0 blocks (10/16, 2/3) W


[I]Cumulative Stats:[/I]

Kareem: 30.3 ppg, 16.0 rpg, 3.8 apg, 3.8 bpg on 60.8 %FG/66.0 %TS

Walton: 19.3 ppg, 14.8 rpg, 5.8 apg, 2.3 bpg on 50.7 %FG/51.7 %TS

Lakers' second best player and starting PF Kermit Washington missed the series due to injury and third best player Lucius Allen played through serious pain and dressed in only two games of the series. Walton did a phenomenal job facilitating the Blazers' offense with his passing.



[U]'77-'78 Season[/U]

12/23/1977

Kareem: 27 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 blocks (9/26, 9/9) L

Walton: 19 points, 14 rebounds, 3 assists (8/21, 3/3) W

Kareem missed much of the initial part of the season and the first potential H2H game due to a broken hand after punching Kent Benson. Walton succumbed to injuries 60 games in and was never the same player again.



Anyways to summarize...



[B][I]Regular Season H2H Cumulative Stats (11 games)[/I][/B]

Kareem: 31.9 ppg, 12.6 rpg, 4.2 apg on 53.0 %FG/57.1 %TS

Walton: 19.1 ppg, 15.7 rpg, 5.9 apg on 44.8 %FG/48.7 %TS

Walton has a 6-5 edge in wins.


[B][I]Postseason H2H Cumulative Stats (4 games)[/I][/B]

Kareem: 30.3 ppg, 16.0 rpg, 3.8 apg, 3.8 bpg on 60.8 %FG/66.0 %TS

Walton: 19.3 ppg, 14.8 rpg, 5.8 apg, 2.3 bpg on 50.7 %FG/51.7 %TS

Walton has a 4-0 edge in playoff wins all of them coming in a 1977 WCF sweep of the Lakers.

[QUOTE=dankok8]1/19/1975

Kareem: 50 points, 15 rebounds, 11 assists, 3 blocks, 1 steal (18/30, 14/16) W

Walton: 7 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal (2/5, 3/4) L

[B]Kareem got the first and still only 50-point triple-double in NBA history[/B] as Milwaukee won the game. Total domination! Walton was injured for all the other three Bucks-Blazers games this season.
[/QUOTE]
Hold up.
[url]http://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/196803180PHI.html[/url]

Statline of that night:
53pts 32reb 14a 24blks 11stl while shooting 24-29 from the field 5-10 at the line.

That's a 50 point triple double. Quintuple double actually. On insane fg%.

March 18, 1968 Wilt Chamberlain vs the Lakers.

[QUOTE=CavaliersFTW]Hold up.
[url]http://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/196803180PHI.html[/url]

Statline of that night:
53pts 32reb 14a 24blks 11stl while shooting 24-29 from the field.

That's a 50 point triple double. Quintuple double actually. On insane fg%.

March 18, 1968 Wilt Chamberlain vs the Lakers.[/QUOTE]

Beat me to it...

Don't say "H2H", you might lure in those goofs that think Chamberlain could do the damage he did in the current NBA atmosphere. They will use this thread as their platform and soon trickle in to change the topic to make it about their idealized nymphomaniac rich-mans version of Javale McGee.

Nice thread though. I would love to see KAJ and Walton in the modern NBA, where they would murder with their skills and not just their athleticism and towering physical makeup.

[QUOTE=dankok8]Kareem got the first and still only 50-point triple-double in NBA history as Milwaukee won the game.[/QUOTE]

There have been 6 50-point triple doubles in league history:

Wilt Chamberlain (PHI vs LAL) 03/18/1968 53p 32r 14a
Elgin Baylor (LAL vs STL) 12/13/1961 52p 25r 10a
Wilt Chamberlain (SFW vs DET) 02/13/1963 51p 29r 11a
Richie Guerin (NYK vs PHI) 02/25/1962 50p 11r 13a
Elgin Baylor (LAL vs BOS) 02/13/1963 50p 15r 11a
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (MIL vs POR) 01/19/1975 50p 15r 11a

[QUOTE=Proctor]They will use this thread as their platform and soon trickle in to change the topic to make it about their idealized nymphomaniac rich-mans version of Javale McGee.[/QUOTE]

Grow up. I'm not a Wilt fan, but the disrespect he gets on here is mind-boggling.

[QUOTE=fpliii]There have been 6 50-point triple doubles in league history:

Wilt Chamberlain (PHI vs LAL) 03/18/1968 53p 32r 14a
Elgin Baylor (LAL vs STL) 12/13/1961 52p 25r 10a
Wilt Chamberlain (SFW vs DET) 02/13/1963 51p 29r 11a
Richie Guerin (NYK vs PHI) 02/25/1962 50p 11r 13a
Elgin Baylor (LAL vs BOS) 02/13/1963 50p 15r 11a
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (MIL vs POR) 01/19/1975 50p 15r 11a[/QUOTE]
I was just in the processes of making a thread about this :lol care if I use this to contribute?

[QUOTE=CavaliersFTW]I was just in the processes of making a thread about this :lol care if I use this to contribute?[/QUOTE]
lol go ahead, I posted it there already.

For some reason NBA only takes stats post-Wilt. Yes other players had a few. I'll edit the OP.

[QUOTE=dankok8]For some reason NBA only takes stats post-Wilt.[/QUOTE] Because if they used his stats they can't blow other players' stats on espn.

[QUOTE=fpliii]Grow up. I'm not a Wilt fan, but the disrespect he gets on here is mind-boggling.[/QUOTE]
Thing is I actually think he is a legend. I don't dispute that at all. But I don't like getting caught up in all the mythology surrounding him. He is most certainly one of the best NBA players ever and I respect him even more than that as an athlete. His physical form and longevity athletically was nothing short of incredible, but I'm not going to pretend like that would empower him to bully around every single player in today's or even a 90s NBA setting. He would certainly cause a problem for most defenders but his offensive structure would also limit him greatly. To pretend he would even come close to half of his peak averages would be silly, and I don't even mean that as a slam against him. I also don't subscribe to the notion that Chamberlain played against only 6-foot tall white guys either, but I do think it's irresponsible not to acknowledge the disparity between the game then and the game now.

KAJ and Walton are naturally in the same discussion among the greats, but I don't care to hear them disrespected all because Wilt averaged this and Wilt averaged that. Let's put it this way, if KAJ and Walton were thrown into today's NBA, their games would suffer much less. That doesn't make them better players than Wilt but the fact that Wilt wrestled mountain lions doesn't make him a better player than them either.

They are all great players but this forum is incapable of having a discussion about KAJ without some loons getting flustered.

[QUOTE=Proctor]Thing is I actually think he is a legend. I don't dispute that at all. But I don't like getting caught up in all the mythology surrounding him. He is most certainly one of the best NBA players ever and I respect him even more than that as an athlete. His physical form and longevity athletically was nothing short of incredible, but I'm not going to pretend like that would empower him to bully around every single player in today's or even a 90s NBA setting. He would certainly cause a problem for most defenders but his offensive structure would also limit him greatly. To pretend he would even come close to half of his peak averages would be silly, and I don't even mean that as a slam against him. I also don't subscribe to the notion that Chamberlain played against only 6-foot tall white guys either, but I do think it's irresponsible not to acknowledge the disparity between the game then and the game now.

KAJ and Walton are naturally in the same discussion among the greats, but I don't care to hear them disrespected all because Wilt averaged this and Wilt averaged that. Let's put it this way, if KAJ and Walton were thrown into today's NBA, their games would suffer much less. That doesn't make them better players than Wilt but the fact that Wilt wrestled mountain lions doesn't make him a better player than them either.

They are all great players but this forum is incapable of having a discussion about KAJ without some loons getting flustered.[/QUOTE]

There's no such thing as "thinking" that Wilt was a legend or that he didn't play against 6 foot midgets. These are well established facts and disputing them only places one among the ignoramuses without challenging the facts in the slightest. You either know this stuff or you don't.
As for Wilt not coming close today or in the 90's to half his peak averages, you're basically claiming he wouldn't come close to averaging prime Ewing-like numbers...

[QUOTE=Psileas]There's no such thing as "thinking" that Wilt was a legend or that he didn't play against 6 foot midgets. These are well established facts and disputing them only places one among the ignoramuses without challenging the facts in the slightest. You either know this stuff or you don't.
As for Wilt not coming close today or in the 90's to half his peak averages, you're basically claiming he wouldn't come close to averaging prime Ewing-like numbers...[/QUOTE]
I probably shouldn't have said "close to," but if you take his 50.4/25.7 season and slice it in half, an average of those stats for a season would be be an overly ambitious expectation of Wilt if he were thrown into today's NBA. I didn't mean to say he couldn't come close, because with his uncanny stamina and ability to play full games without coming out, he probably could.

With how games are played now I don't see him getting enough touches to possibly average much beyond 15-20 PPG, but there is no dispute he would be an absolute nightmare and menace defensively.

[QUOTE=Proctor]I probably shouldn't have said "close to," but if you take his 50.4/25.7 season and slice it in half, an average of those stats for a season would be be an overly ambitious expectation of Wilt if he were thrown into today's NBA. I didn't mean to say he couldn't come close, because with his uncanny stamina and ability to play full games without coming out, he probably could.

With how games are played now [B]I don't see him getting enough touches to possibly average much beyond 15-20 PPG[/B], but there is no dispute he would be an absolute nightmare and menace defensively.[/QUOTE]
You're a fu[COLOR="Black"]c[/COLOR]king idiot dude :oldlol:

BTW...and regarding Kareem vs. Walton...

this battle was between a prime Kareem, and a peak Walton...

[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=coHMKlx7Was&playnext=1&videos=YqP06ya0k4w[/url]


Even with numerous double and triple teams, Kareem just annihilated Walton...

40 points on 17-23 shooting from the field...

[QUOTE=Proctor]Don't say "H2H", you might lure in those goofs that think Chamberlain could do the damage he did in the current NBA atmosphere. They will use this thread as their platform and soon trickle in to change the topic to make it about their idealized nymphomaniac rich-mans version of Javale McGee.

Nice thread though. I would love to see KAJ and Walton in the modern NBA, where they would murder with their skills and not just their athleticism and towering physical makeup.[/QUOTE]

lulz

So Jabbar & Walton would excel in today's NBA but Wilt Chamberlain would not.

And I read some of the other garbage you posted in this thread too.

I watched #13 for half his career, my friend. You aren't just way off base here, you're in the wrong universe altogether. Chamberlain as a Sixer in '66-'68 was playing the highest level of basketball that has ever been seen. Jabbar & Jordan are the only guys I've seen that could do what he was doing and they weren't better at it.

Sorry for this off-topic crap, OP - this is a real nice thread you got going. Kareem in his days was just....... [I]beyond[/I]!!!

[B]Wish we had footage for most of those at least. Both tremendous players :applause:

Such a shame that Walton got injured so soon, imho dude would've been AT LEAST close to top10 all-time player, and top5 center.

Oh, and 1977 (peak) Kareem :eek: :bowdown: [/B]