For nearly a decade, the debate surrounding the Greatest NBA Player of All Time (GOAT) has been an endless quarrel of two parties. Apart from the occasional out-of-touch old head pushing Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as a third option, LeBron James and Michael Jordan are considered the only two reasonable players to be named the GOAT. However, my GOAT pick is: none of the above. Each of the three groups I have mentioned does not consider the accomplishments of one key candidate. Wilt Chamberlain was the indisputable greatest basketball player of all time, with unmatched talent and legacy, on and off the NBA court.
Wilt Chamberlain is arguably best known for his 100-point game. In March of 1962 in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, he dropped the record total in a game whose film has been lost to time. Some believe he did not score one hundred that night. So, let’s discard that from this debate. Chamberlain’s scoring dominance is far from limited to that game. If one is to remove that game from Chamberlain’s resume, his scoring average for that season drops from 50.4 points per game to 49.77 per game. For reference, the highest points average for a season by a player not named Wilt Chamberlain was attained by a young Michael Jordan in 1987. That season, he averaged a comparatively small 37.1 points per game. Regarding single-game scoring dominance, still discarding that hundred point game, Chamberlain’s five other career 70-point games match the total of the entire rest of NBA history prior to 2020. His career high would be 78 points, which would still lead the league until Kobe Bryant’s 81 and still be good for second in league history today.
Chamberlain’s dominance is far from limited to his scoring. He holds the record for single-game rebounds, with 55 boards in one 1960 game against Bill Russell’s Celtics. Chamberlain was a two-way player; his defensive stats are also out of this world. According to Basketball Network, in 112 career games in which shot block data exists, he averaged 8.8 blocks per game. Most of these games were near the end of his career at ages 35 and 36, making this stat even more impressive. If one is conservative and extrapolates his blocks per game in his worst seasons throughout his entire career (unlikely given the many anecdotes about his blocking ability, to be discussed later), this would total to 9,196 career blocks. For reference, the All-Time leader in career recorded blocks is Hakeem Olajuwon with just 3,830.
A common discrediting factor for Chamberlain is that he played against weak competition and still has only a few championships. Beginning with the competition: as there were only a few teams in the league, Chamberlain played a lot of games against Bill Russell, his big man rival and widely considered to be one of, if not the greatest defender in NBA history. With a smaller league, he ended up against Russell significantly more often than the top teams match up today. In 94 career games against Russell, Chamberlain averaged 30.0 points, 28.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists (StatMuse). These are MVP-level stats against the greatest defender to ever live. So, why did Chamberlain only win two championships, and one in the 1960s?
Bill Russell had a super team around him that has not been replicated since. Led by one of the greatest coaches of all time in Red Auerbach, Russell had the help of twelve hall of fame players over the course of his career including well-known legends such as John Havlicek and Bob Cousy. Chamberlain teamed up with Elgin Baylor and Jerry West, but only at the end of his career in 1972, after Russell retired. However, he did not have any superstar teammates in his 1967 championship in which he interrupted the Boston dynasty by defeating them in the Eastern Conference Finals. Chamberlain had mainly Hal Greer for help, while Russell had Havlicek, Sam Jones, and other hall-of-famers in his supporting cast. His 1967 ring is thus one of the most valuable championships ever, rivaling Dirk’s 2011 championship.
Another reason Chamberlain failed to win a lot of championships is that the NBA was forced to change the rulebook because he was so dominant. The NBA website admits that the league had to change a lot of rules because of Wilt. They had to widen the paint so that Chamberlain could not get as many easy points by standing close to the basket and scoring. They had to institute an offensive goaltending rule to stop him from getting all of his teammates’ rebounds and turning them into points too easily. They had to alter foul shot rules because, despite his massive stature, Wilt Chamberlain was dunking his free throws. Despite everything the league tried to stop him, Chamberlain is still tied atop the all-time career points-per-game leaderboard with Michael Jordan at 30.1. These new rules created to stop Wilt are the most impactful changes caused by one single player (except maybe Stephen Curry) to not just the NBA but basketball as a whole.
One counterargument to Chamberlain’s statistical dominance is that his high per-game averages were spread out across all 48 minutes of a faster-paced game, which is not typical in the NBA. Chamberlain did indeed average 48.5 minutes per game in the 1962 season that is widely considered his prime and in which he averaged the famed fifty points, and the possessions per game were indeed slightly higher than the modern day. However, these metrics can also be considered one of Chamberlain’s greatest strengths as a player. Who comes to mind when you consider a modern-day player who can play 48 minutes per game? The best examples are guys who have been coached by Tom Thibodeau, such as Josh Hart who played 48 minutes in certain games in the 2024 Eastern Conference semifinals. However, Hart was not near a superstar in his elevated playing time — he was as much of a role player as he had ever been — and he was gassed after just a few games of this. Chamberlain put in superstar effort on both ends of the floor for over forty-eight minutes a night (plus overtime) for an entire season, with an even faster pace than the modern game. This durability is absolutely insane and if a modern player could match it they would be considered one of the most valuable players in the league even if their production was middling. Wilt Chamberlain was the most durable player we will ever know, as he also did not have any major injuries that could have been caused by this high workload.
Wilt Chamberlain’s NBA career consists of Jordan-like dominance, unparalleled defensive superstardom, Curry-esque impact on the game, and one of the most valuable championships of all time. His list of records is so long that there is an entire Wikipedia page dedicated to it. His durability is unmatched since his era. But is he athletic enough for the modern NBA?
Wilt Chamberlain is easily the most athletic man to ever play professional basketball. Starting with strength: Chamberlain threw a 56-foot personal record with the shot put at the University of Kansas. However, this is not as impressive as his lifting feats later on: his all-time bench max is believed to be north of five hundred pounds. This has been disputed, however, the verified fact is this: at fifty-nine years old (around 1995), multiple decades after his NBA retirement, Chamberlain was benching 465 pounds. For reference, Shaquille O’Neal’s all time bench max is 475 pounds. Chamberlain was about as strong as prime, rim-breaking, Orlando Shaq AT NEARLY SIXTY YEARS OLD, WHILE SHAQ WAS IN ORLANDO. Returning to the beginning of his career, according to an old newspaper clipping, Chamberlain once lifted up the back half of a car with his bare hands to help change a tire. So, Wilt was strong. But was he fast and high-jumping as is demanded of modern NBA bigs?
Along with his strength, Chamberlain is a great jumper and is quite fast for his size and strength. A three-time Big 7 (predecessor to the Big 12) conference high jump champion during his time at Kansas, he could jump out of the building. His High Jump Personal Record was an impressive 6-6.75”. Also in Kansas, Chamberlain was known for dunking on twelve-foot rims. Chamberlain was also fast. Sprints? Sub-11-second PR in the 100 meter dash. Distance? Sub-2-minute PR in the 800 meter run. No one in the modern NBA (or at any point in league history) can keep up with a pure athlete at this level for forty-eight minutes a night.
To be a GOAT candidate, one must have some anecdotes to tell of his dominance. Think of “MJ stories, Kobe stories,” etc. Who has the most insane, out-of-this-world stories of anyone in NBA history? The GOAT himself, Wilt Chamberlain, has easily the most wild stories from before, during, and after his NBA career.
Before his NBA career, Chamberlain played professional basketball for the Quakertown Fays. The Fays were a semipro team and a teenage Chamberlain balanced high school basketball with averaging 40.5 PPG in the regular season and 74 a night in the playoffs against professionals. This pre-NBA pro ball story was credible enough to get him investigated; officials tried to catch him with professional experience which would disqualify him from playing college ball while he was at Kansas, but Chamberlain was able to build enough plausible deniability to keep his eligibility.
During his NBA career, Chamberlain has some great anecdotes proving his underrated defensive dominance. Walt Bellamy told a story of how, after rookie Bellamy had introduced himself, Wilt said to him, “Hello, Walter. You won’t get a shot off in the first half.” Chamberlain held true on his promise, blocking all nine of Bellamy’s shots in the first half. At halftime, Chamberlain came back up to him and said, “Okay, Walter, now you can play.” Bellamy finished with 14 points, to be compared to Chamberlain’s 51 (and the win) that night. Bellamy ended his career as a four-time All-Star and Hall of Famer. Additionally, despite his high block averages, Chamberlain never fouled out in his 14-year career. This is an incredible achievement that remains unmatched. For reference, Michael Jordan (another GOAT candidate known for his defense) fouled out fifty-two times in his career.
After his NBA career, Chamberlain still dominated the basketball court. In his mid-forties, Wilt Chamberlain played a pickup game against prime Magic Johnson, who couldn’t get a shot off. In 1986, a month before his fiftieth birthday, Chamberlain received a contract offer from the Brooklyn Nets. He declined the offer, but said to the LA Times that he could still play if he wanted to because he was in shape for volleyball.
Indeed, after his NBA career, Chamberlain did return to the professional sports world, this time entering the volleyball scene. He was a major part of launching the International Volleyball Association and was a player-owner for a team called the Southern California Bangers in 1975. He also played for the Orange County Stars in 1977, when he won the league’s All-Star Game MVP. He played for a third team, the Seattle Smashers, in 1978 while serving as league commissioner. After bringing great popularity to the game of volleyball in America, Chamberlain was inducted into the International Volleyball Hall of Fame.
Chamberlain’s anecdotes in the weight room may be his most impressive, however. Arnold Schwarzenegger said that Wilt and heavyweight champion Andre the Giant had a competition over who could make Schwarzenegger look lighter. Both men picked him up like a feather. Former NBA player Johnny Kerr said he believes Chamberlain could have picked Shaquille O’Neal up and threw him through the basketball hoop. Kerr happens to be a highly credible witness regarding Chamberlain’s strength because Wilt once dunked the ball so hard he broke Kerr’s toe.
All of this begs the question, how would Wilt perform in the modern NBA? The closest comparison in terms of athletic dominance is perennial MVP candidate (and two-time winner of the award) Giannis Antetokounmpo. However, this is a poor comparison because Chamberlain is stronger, faster, and more durable than Antetokounmpo. Essentially, Wilt would be the ultimate “run and dunk man” and be unstoppable in the modern NBA just as he was in his day.
On his athleticism alone, prime 1962 Wilt could likely be transported to the modern day and immediately win the MVP in a landslide. Within a few years, given his competitive drive, I wouldn’t rule out the development of a league-average jump shot as his career progresses, although it would be unnecessary with his strength and speed.
A major upgrade to Antetokounmpo (which is what Chamberlain would be in today’s NBA) means a major upgrade on two MVPs and a Finals MVP. This gives us some idea of what Chamberlain’s resume could be if he played today. What is a major upgrade from Giannis? I imagine it looks like something north of six championships and five MVPs. Wilt would likely break both the scoring and rebounding records if given modern medicine to add to his already-insane durability. Does that sound like the Greatest of All Time to you?
As demonstrated by his basketball career, his alien athleticism, and his many anecdotes, Wilt Chamberlain is the greatest player in NBA history. His impact on the game was enormous, and he would be great in the modern NBA as well. I’m tired of seeing him outside of the top 5 on people’s GOAT lists. Please, put some respect on Wilt’s name.
Sources: https://fanspo.com/nba/s/lakers/trades/idrDmVUnGqUKEu/the-wilt-article-sources