Dude, seriously? Just because you don't have any players that played before the 80s doesn't mean there weren't good ones back then. Wilt was the most dominant center of all time. He would be dominant in any time. The whole basketball world can agree on that much. He averaged 48.5 minutes per game one season. Wilt was a high jumper. Yao could jump two inches off the ground.
Players from 60'/70's will be viewed at a disadvantage b/c their success came in an era with inferior speed, size, and athleticism. Wilt was 7'1 and 275 lbs. In his 50 ppg season, the average center was 6'9 and 220 lbs.
And... here we go again. Nobody disputes the game has changed. Nobody thinks Wilt would average 50/25 in today's game. But to say that he would be at a disadvantage is absurd. He would be dominating in today's NBA and with the training and shoes and such, he might even be better than I am thinking. Again, don't confuse changes in how the game is played and coached with athleticism, particularly when talking about the greats.
By the way, what was the average size of a center in 1970 when Wilt averaged 27/18 as a 33 year old? How about 1973 when he averaged 18.6 rebounds per game as a 36 year old? In 1973 Wilt went against Jabbar, Thurmond, Lanier, Cowens, Reed, Bellamy, and a number of second rate 7 footers like Boerwinkle and Elmore Smith and he still led the NBA in rebounding, playing over 42 minutes a game and shooting .727 while dishing 4.5 assists. Then he retired. I'll also point out that the weight measurement you have for Wilt is from his latter days. He was much thinner earlier in his career.
I chose Roxsquad because it's more of a team. Kobe, CP3, and Wilt all would need the ball in their hands too much to be successful. With Roxsquad you have Jordan handling most of the offense, while Dirk and co. are there to punish you when Jordan gets doubled.
wilt and garnett would shut the paint down, but wilt wasn't know for defense. however, you would need every ounce of jordan and payton helping on the defensive boards, and that would shut down some of their advantage. as much as i hate to see jordan going out, he's going down. i take the thing
Wilt--2× NBA All-Defensive First Team (1972–1973) Not known for defense because of his incredible offense, but he could defend in the post just fine. Averaged about 6-8 blocks per game but they weren't recorded.
My point has always been that the competition today is bigger, faster, and more athletic today than it was back then. Argue that all you want, but it's true whether you like it or not.
Defensive goaltending was instituted in 1945. Offensive goaltending was instituted in 1958. Both were before Wilt came into the league.
Wilt would still be dominant. I would say Prime Shaq level dominant. That's just me though. Wilt seemed smoother and could jump a little higher than Shaq. Both were really strong. Wilt could pass too though but had a huge ego.
He will have to face fierce competition today of Bogut, Varejao, Marc Gasol and Brooke Lopez? Wilt will rape everyone of them.
If you participate in this, whether you have a team or you're just voting, you have to give ALL of the legends respect and think of them as being on equal footing with the modern players. For the posters who have a team, if you don't think you should, then you should have tried to change the rules and made players who retired before X year ineligible or just passed on the project. For everyone voting, the posters who selected Wilt and others thought they would get as much respect as those who drafted Jordan. Am I wrong?
well then i'm going to have to dispute the 6-8 blocks, or we'll have to rack that up to inferior competition.
Why? Mark Eaton averaged over 5. Hakeem, Mutumbo, and Robinson got close. They don't get the inferior talent hit. The pace was way faster back then and he played a ton of minutes. It isn't inconceivable that he averaged around 6 blocks a game.
mark eaton averaged five doing nothing but playing defense. and he did that one year. as great as wilt was as an athlete, hakeem was built for blocking shots. i doubt wilt had hakeem's second jump quickness, coming down after challenging one shot to challenge another. dikembe never averaged over 4.5, 6-8 is just a ridiculous number
