The Wilt Chamberlain Offensive Scouting Report Project Thread:

[CavaliersFTW]

Here's the latest version, 45 minutes contains scoring plays from ALL levels of competition (HS, NCAA, Kutchers, NBA)



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOBX9ikNzEk




And this is the old NBA-only version:

http://youtu.be/2eNdapKU494

Inspired by Fpliii, I'm working on a video that will cover the full range of Wilt's offensive abilities that have been captured on film.

Wilt made 12,681 regular season field goals
Wilt made 1,425 playoff field goals
Wilt made 72 all star game field goals

A total of 14,178 field goals made in the NBA. Of these I will try to gather a count of how many are captured on film and in my archive.

I will need/use this thread to discuss with Fpliii and others willing to offer input to flush out details on categorizing plays and figuring out how best to structure the video as I'm working on it.

Physical Tools and Athleticism
(intro and what tools he had to work with physically, which shaped his game)

Left block scoring ~87 NBA FGM on film (starts at 5:23)

Right block scoring ~67 NBA FGM on film (starts at 11:27)

Lobs - Deep catches - Transition ~59 NBA FGM on film (starts at 17:58)

Two Person Game ~52 NBA FGM on film (starts at 22:28)

Offensive Rebounding ~70 NBA FGM on film (starts at 27:08)

I've counted/sorted ~335 NBA field goals exist on film... or an estimated 2.36% of his career. Or another way of looking at it, approximately 28 random games worth of baskets.

[CavaliersFTW]

Currently wondering if I should include all his passing under 2 man game category, or perhaps even have a whole separate half of the video for passing and split passing and scoring entirely

[RightToCensor]

[CavaliersFTW]

Fpliii and Phila what do you think about these categories and subcategories so far?

[PHILA]

Currently wondering if I should include all his passing under 2 man game category, or perhaps even have a whole separate half of the video for passing and split passing and scoring entirely

It depends if you want to make a distinction between the various types of passes he made. With the Lakers especially he used the behind the back pass quite a bit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwCmKvHJNoQ&t=11m44s

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0faQ-6RJyA&t=3m37s


Even in the '67 game footage he was positioned at the mid-post

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiVAFBZzTac&t=5m36s


There was also the 3 man triangle with Greer & Walker, note how the defense shifts with the pass.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngg3owcJl1g&t=49s

Fpliii and Phila what do you think about these categories and subcategories so far?

This is a good idea based on the available footage, but I am just not sure if it will tell all that much. As you have said in the other thread, we are "looking through a small window".

[CavaliersFTW]

It depends if you want to make a distinction between the various types of passes he made. With the Lakers especially he used the behind the back pass quite a bit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZwCmKvHJNoQ&t=11m44s

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0faQ-6RJyA&t=3m37s


Even in the '67 game footage he was positioned at the mid-post

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiVAFBZzTac&t=5m36s


There was also the 3 man triangle with Greer & Walker, note how the defense shifts with the pass.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngg3owcJl1g&t=49s



This is a good idea based on the available footage, but I am just not sure if it will tell all that much. As you have said in the other thread, we are "looking through a small window".

We are looking through a small window, but this will definitely be a tool to show a wider audience much more about Wilt than they otherwise would know. His bread and butter moves we've got plenty of on film. The small window makes finding his rarer more creative ways of scoring slim pickings though. There's a couple of his moves we've only got 1 or 2 examples of, he executes them with quickness and good form as if it were comitted to muscle memory like any other of his post moves, yet the move clearly isn't well documented on the film of him available. An example would be his left side jump hook or his sweeping hook, or his left side baseline spin. Heck even his right side spin we've only got on film a few times. But he clearly had them down in his repertoire of how to beat certain types of defense being thrown his way. Moves like those indicate there may be other moves that simply have gone undocumented, given the very small percentage of his field goals that exist on film. Still though, would leaving Fatal9s 2 minute 'Wilt post up skill' video as the only source for people to see Wilt posting up be a better option? I think not, I'd like to make the video just to show clips like those do not encapsulate Wilt's ability to post up.

[PHILA]

I think not, I'd like to make the video just to show clips like those do not encapsulate Wilt's ability to post up.

Yes, that is a good point. But most of the posters who cite that (unlisted) video already have a bias against Chamberlain and will look for anything to use against him.

[fpliii]

Currently wondering if I should include all his passing under 2 man game category, or perhaps even have a whole separate half of the video for passing and split passing and scoring entirely

Good list, I'm not sure. Personally I wouldn't mind interweaving them (i.e. left block scoring followed by left block passing, etc.) but you raise a good point about keeping them separate. I'm not quite sure, tbh.

Fpliii and Phila what do you think about these categories and subcategories so far?

Great stuff. Just wondering, do you have any footage of Wilt shooting from the high post? If so, where would you want to put it?

[fpliii]

Yes, that is a good point. But most of the posters who cite that (unlisted) video already have a bias against Chamberlain and will look for anything to use against him.

Perhaps some have made their minds up, but a complete scouting video will be very useful to some. I can't speak for anyone else, but I know for me personally this will be huge in evaluating Wilt's offensive game. This kind of project is unprecedented IMO, could be a huge asset to the community.

[CavaliersFTW]

Good list, I'm not sure. Personally I wouldn't mind interweaving them (i.e. left block scoring followed by left block passing, etc.) but you raise a good point about keeping them separate. I'm not quite sure, tbh.
Great stuff. Just wondering, do you have any footage of Wilt shooting from the high post? If so, where would you want to put it?

So far I've come across no NBA footage of him shooting from the high post as far as 'setting up' there. He does make some passes and set screens, but as far as scoring he'll just pick and roll or be a backdoor finisher inside from there a few times. For example in one play where one teammate is already in the right block for spacing Chamberlain went up top, and he's stepping in and out of the paint for a few moments at the free throw line looking for his teammate to see him, and to avoid a 3 second violation, then once he has an opening he makes eye contact with his teammate who was in the post and barrels right down the middle - get's the hand off and jams.

He actually does shoot from the high post in NCAA footage at least a few times. In Wilt's 100 point game the 4th quarter announcer says one of his shots was taken from the top of circle too, so he may have rarely took that shot in the NBA too it just doesn't exist on film, but it also could have just been where he releases his fadeaway shot from the right block, because he fades into the high post for that shot on the right side. But he catches the ball and starts the play in the low post so that's what I'm counting those plays as.

[sd3035]

The Wilt Chamberlain Offensive Scouting Report Project Thread:

Man among children

[La Frescobaldi]

So far I've come across no NBA footage of him shooting from the high post as far as 'setting up' there. He does make some passes and set screens, but as far as scoring he'll just pick and roll or be a backdoor finisher inside from there a few times. For example in one play where one teammate is already in the right block for spacing Chamberlain went up top, and he's stepping in and out of the paint for a few moments at the free throw line looking for his teammate to see him, and to avoid a 3 second violation, then once he has an opening he makes eye contact with his teammate who was in the post and barrels right down the middle - get's the hand off and jams.

He actually does shoot from the high post in NCAA footage at least a few times. In Wilt's 100 point game the 4th quarter announcer says one of his shots was taken from the top of circle too, so he may have rarely took that shot in the NBA too it just doesn't exist on film, but it also could have just been where he releases his fadeaway shot from the right block, because he fades into the high post for that shot on the right side. But he catches the ball and starts the play in the low post so that's what I'm counting those plays as.

When he was on Sixers Wilt had a jumper in the paint. It was like an 8 footer, inside the free throw line and it was a straight up or a fadeaway.

I've never seen any video clips anywhere of that shot but a few of us guys have distinct memories of him shooting it over Willis Reed and Bells on the Knicks and LeRoy Ellis on the Bullets. It wasn't anything amazing, like a Dirk ostrich move, you know?
But it was a real solid part of his game.

It was a counter that he used instead of the finger roll/dunk from the right block.
Similar to his left block moves, where you didn't know if he was going up and under, or power dunk, or spin, or step back and turnaround fadeaway - but this was done from the right block, where over on that side his main "go-to" moves were the finger roll or dunk. But instead, he would sort of lurch out of the finger roll, take a quick step forward (toward the free throw line), and instead of the pass out to the guard, he would spin back around to face the hoop while leaping for the high release jumper.

He had such a vertical that his release was real high but that shot did get blocked by Bells according to my friend Joey (shameless Knicks fan notwithstanding).

edit ~ also I may have missed it in OP but do you have his finger roll listed? His most famous shot - it was actually a counter and absolutely unstoppable.

[fpliii]

Good stuff, both of you. CavsFTW, do you have any 8ft-ish jumpers from the paint that Fresco mentioned? Or do all of those plays originate on the block?

Also regarding the finger roll, in which categories did you mix it?

[trueDS]

Yes, that is a good point. But most of the posters who cite that (unlisted) video already have a bias against Chamberlain and will look for anything to use against him.

Oh c'mon, we could as well tell that you or CavaliersFTW have agenda, pro Wilt bias and no presented facts will change your opinion. It was discussed many times on realGM and most better posters, from polite ones like DoctorMJ, through Elgee, Chicago76, mysticcbb or fatal, to emotional ones like Bastillon agrees that Wilt was limited scorer and his impact on the game was lower than his box score numbers suggest.

[CavaliersFTW]

Oh c'mon, we could as well tell that you or CavaliersFTW have agenda, pro Wilt bias and no presented facts will change your opinion. It was discussed many times on realGM and most better posters, from polite ones like DoctorMJ, through Elgee, Chicago76, mysticcbb or fatal, to emotional ones like Bastillon agrees that Wilt was limited scorer and his impact on the game was lower than his box score numbers suggest.

Literally laughed out loud, a bunch of nerds on realgm convinced themselves Wilt Chamberlain 'was a limited scorer', aint that the cutest thing I ever heard