Wilt Chamberlain: 24 Inch Vertical

[DaniloGallinari]

Let all the fanboys dream about this guy. 23-26 standing vert is excellent for a 7 footer. Running vert would be around 30-34, which is excellent.

Watch out though. If you talk about Wilt lying about his girl count, these fanboys might harass you with proof...

[MasterDurant24]

Haha... You're a Durant fan...

Sorry.


See how stupid you are?

But there are tons more Durant fans than Gallinari fans. I was laughing because I never heard of anyone being a fan of him. So excuse me...

[DaniloGallinari]

But there are tons more Durant fans than Gallinari fans. I was laughing because I never heard of anyone being a fan of him. So excuse me...

English might not be your first language, but that's no excuse for your lack of smarts. Wise up, boy.

People can be fans of whichever player they desire. Do they have to ask for your opinion first? How stupid can you be?

You know John Amaechi had fans too right?


You were implying that with me being a Gallinari fan, my opinion on Wilt is worthless? How about your opinion? Chicken shit.

[MasterDurant24]

[QUOTE=DaniloGallinari]English might not be your first language, but that's no excuse for your lack of smarts. Wise up, boy.

People can be fans of whichever player they desire. Do they have to ask for your opinion first? How stupid can you be?

You know John Amaechi had fans too right?


You were implying that with me being a Gallinari fan, my opinion on Wilt is worthless? How about your opinion? Chicken shit.[/QUOTE]
What? Nah nah man. I wasn't saying your opinion was worthless at all. I was just being off topic and acknowledging the rarity of a Gallinari fan. Sorry if I gave you the wrong vibe...

[Calabis]

http://www.sportingnews.com/archives/wilt/article3.html

Certainly doesn't sound like the athletic freak we've heard so much about. He also had only a 7'2 wingspan which is pretty surprising. And 225lbs is just embarassing. Shaq weighed something like 310lbs at the same age with 10x the athleticism.

For comparison, Shaq had a 7'7 wingspan and 36 vertical.

I'm reading that article and I believe that was when Wilt was a freshman possibly

The Stilt is most effective simply because of his physical qualities. He stands 7-feet in his sweat socks. Over this frame are spread 225 sinewy pounds. He is almost as agile as a 5-11 playmaker. He can jump 24 inches straight up. Against the varsity he was not bothered noticeably by the new 12-foot lane. His timing on the slightly off-target shots of his mates, in another year, will match that of Bill Russell, the fabulous human funnel of San Francisco. Spectators can actually see his pie-plate hands jam down inside the net.

Dude probably increased his standing vert by the time he entered the NBA

At his athletic peak, he was said to have been measured with a vertical jump of 48-50 inches

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1...ba-player-ever

[MasterDurant24]

I'm reading that article and I believe that was when Wilt was a freshman possibly

The Stilt is most effective simply because of his physical qualities. He stands 7-feet in his sweat socks. Over this frame are spread 225 sinewy pounds. He is almost as agile as a 5-11 playmaker. He can jump 24 inches straight up. Against the varsity he was not bothered noticeably by the new 12-foot lane. His timing on the slightly off-target shots of his mates, in another year, will match that of Bill Russell, the fabulous human funnel of San Francisco. Spectators can actually see his pie-plate hands jam down inside the net.

Dude probably increased his standing vert by the time he entered the NBA

At his athletic peak, he was said to have been measured with a vertical jump of 48-50 inches

No 7 foot man can jump 48 inches. It doesn't happen.

[jlauber]

No 7 foot man can jump 48 inches. It doesn't happen.

And no way anyone can have a vertical of over 50" either, right? And, obviously, 60" would be a physical impossibility.

[MasterDurant24]

And no way anyone can have a vertical of over 50" either, right? And, obviously, 60" would be a physical impossibility.

Randy Moss had a 50 inch vertical; I'm pretty sure somebody can jump higher then he did in his younger days. Or perhaps you're being sarcastic?

[jlauber]

Randy Moss had a 50 inch vertical; I'm pretty sure somebody can jump higher then he did in his younger days. Or perhaps you're being sarcastic?

Well, from what I have read, the world record is 61". If someone can jump that high, why is implausible for a 7-1 high jump champ to have reached 48"?

[Calabis]

Randy Moss had a 50 inch vertical; I'm pretty sure somebody can jump higher then he did in his younger days. Or perhaps you're being sarcastic?

Randy Moss vertical leap is with a couple steps up, his standing was 39inch

* New York Jets rookie Darrelle Revis has a 38-inch vertical jump this year (NY Times, Oct 2007).
* Randy Moss has a vertical leap score of 51" (130 cm), while 265 lbs Jevon Kearse has a best jump of 40" (102 cm).
* The best vertical jump at the NFL Combine is 46" by Gerald Sensabaugh (FS), from North Carolina in 2005 (more NFL combine results).

[MasterDurant24]

Well, from what I have read, the world record is 61". If someone can jump that high, why is implausible for a 7-1 high jump champ to have reached 48"?

Name a 7 footer who has even jumped 42 inches. But s***, maybe it is possible. I just would be suprised if it was.

[MasterDurant24]

Randy Moss vertical leap is with a couple steps up, his standing was 39inch

* New York Jets rookie Darrelle Revis has a 38-inch vertical jump this year (NY Times, Oct 2007).
* Randy Moss has a vertical leap score of 51" (130 cm), while 265 lbs Jevon Kearse has a best jump of 40" (102 cm).
* The best vertical jump at the NFL Combine is 46" by Gerald Sensabaugh (FS), from North Carolina in 2005 (more NFL combine results).

Hmm, didn't know that.

[Psileas]

Sorry, but every time I'm hearing numbers like 61 inches, the only thing I think of is the technique box jumping. I've heard 56 about Kadour Ziani, and this would mean that his head should be 6 inches above the rim, which I've never seen him doing.
The highest I've seen anyone jump is Michael Wilson in his 12-foot dunk. AFAIR, his whole palm was above the 12-foot rim, which may mean that he had jumped about 50-52 inches. Too bad there are not many good films of him.

[jlauber]

Sorry, but every time I'm hearing numbers like 61 inches, the only thing I think of is the technique box jumping. I've heard 56 about Kadour Ziani, and this would mean that his head should be 6 inches above the rim, which I've never seen him doing.
The highest I've seen anyone jump is Michael Wilson in his 12-foot dunk. AFAIR, his whole palm was above the 12-foot rim, which may mean that he had jumped about 50-52 inches. Too bad there are not many good films of him.

Obviously we don't KNOW what Chamberlain was actually capable of. And for those that point out that they have never seen footage of a spectacular dunk or block by Wilt, which would demonstrate a 42"+ leap...of course, we have only seen a relatively small sample of what he accomplished.

Still, aside from the ridiculous OP, in which was inaccurate to begin with, we have several, if not many, accounts of amazing leaps by Wilt. Sonny Hill, who is truly a very respected sports figure, stated that he witnessed Chamberlain touching the top of the backboard. Well, that is KNOWN to be 13 ft. George Kisida, a well-known sports writer who covered Wilt, stated that he measured a leap in a hospital that he measured at at least 42". There have been accounts of Wilt dunking on a 12 ft. rim that mysteriously arose DURING Chamberlain's stay at Kansas.

I have read several books on, or by, Wilt, and in virtually all of them, there are usually several stories of an amazing leap. In one of them, in the early 60's, he made a block that the official called goal-tending. When Wilt's coach protested, the official told him, "what we both just witnessed was physically impossible." Another took place after he retired, and was coaching San Diego. During a practice, the ball got stuck high up in a guide-wire. One-by-one, the players attempted to knock the ball out, but none of them, including 6-11 "jumpin" Caldwell Jones, could reach it. Wilt showed up late, wearling a suit-and-tie, and asked them what was going on. When the players explained what was going on, Wilt took off his dress shoes, and easily tapped the ball down.

There is also a photo in Wilt's first book, which shows him playing volleyball, and in his 30's, and his waist is above the top of the net. I believe in Charley Rosen's book on the '72 Lakers (of which I either listened to, or watched EVERY game that season), he mentions Chick Hearn making the comment that he estimated that LA won over 80% of the center jumps that season (that was in the era when they jumped at the beginning of every quarter.)

There have been posted photos of Kareem and Gilmore, in their college careers, with their heads near rim level...and yet there is footage of Wilt outjumping both of them. Bill Russel hadworld-class high jumping ability, but he seldom outjumped Chamberlain. And speaking of high-jumping, Wilt won a conference title...however, with all of his track events and basketball practice, he could only devote a small portion of his time to that event. His technique was poor, and even his track coach believed that he was capable of close to seven-feet with proper training.

The bottom line, though, was that Wilt was the greatest rebounder, and shot-blocker that the NBA has ever seen. Clearly, his athletic ability was the major factor. He won ELEVEN NBA rebound titles, which is EIGHT more than all of the other 7-0+ players in NBA history...COMBINED (Kareem with ONE, and Motumbo with TWO.) Gilmore won three in the ABA, but even his numbers would not have won in the NBA during those years. And of course, Olajuwon was nowhere near 7-0. In any case, Chamberlain was an amazing seven-footer with incredible athletic ability. Whether his vertical was 48", as he has claimed, or closer to the more realistic 42"...he was certainly jumping much higher than 24". AND, as I have long maintained...no other NBA player has ever reached the apex that Wilt did in his career.

[no pun intended]

And no way anyone can have a vertical of over 50" either, right? And, obviously, 60" would be a physical impossibility.

Anyone? How about Kadour Ziani..60 inch vertical