The game was changed because of Wilt Chamberlain. Comparing players from different eras is difficult and perhaps impossible. Nobody has ever dominated an era more than Wilt and Jordan. But they didn't change the game to slow down Jordan....
This is correct, people who say Wilt was good just because he was bigger than everyone else, never saw Wilt play. Wilt was indeed huge, but he was also an incredibly skilled basketball player.
What a silly argument this is... so who's the best POWER FORWARD ever? Charles Barkley and Karla Malone shouldn't even be mentioned, then? That's what BRIAN_CHAPMAN said.
prime shaq changed the game. every team's worst nightmare was dunker shaq aka "11 out of 10x times im going to dunk on u" no one could stop him, it wasnt like wilt aka 10ft man playing with 2ft kids. it was 3ppl his height around him - he'd dunk it
Honestly, if dream won more rings it would definitely help media perception of his career. Just like how Duncan will be perceived as the superior player to Malone and Barkley.
When comparing players from different eras, you have you compare them to their contemporaries. Wilt was by far the best player during his time. His relative superiority is probably even more impressive than averaging >50ppg in a season or scoring > 100 in a game. I agree Wilt is the best. Hakeem is probably the most skilled. Shaq probably strongest during his prime. Russel supposed to be the best defender. Kareem great b/c of longevity... just impossible to compare unless you do it relative to their peers
In head-to-head matchups against Russell, Wilt scored more points, grabbed more rebounds, passed for more assists. But the Celtics won more of those matchups. I'd say Wilt was the better player, but Russell had the good fortune of being surrounded by superior talent AND was smart enough to play within the team concept that Auerbach laid out for them.
not trying to be an ass (being objective here ) 1. Bill (ultimate winner) 2. Wilt 3a. Dream 3b. Kareem 5. Shaq
See, this is just stupid. So many people just making stuff up. The players were smaller back then, but not that much smaller. Most of the centers were in the 6'9"-6'11" range, which is not much smaller than today. Wilt was 7'1" so he had a 2-4 inch advantage over most of his opponents. How much of an advantage did Yao Ming have over his opponents? Did Yao dominate his opponents like wilt? Not even close. Some of the players Wilt went up against: Kareem-7'2" Nate Thurmond-6'11" Walt Bellamy-6'11" Bob Lanier-6'11" Elvin Hayes-6'9" Bill Russell-6'9" Bob Pettit-6'9" Wilt went up against plenty of quality players, but they could not stop him. It's a shame that so many people who never saw Wilt play think they know so much.
A lot of these guys don’t understand how great of an athlete Wilt was. There was more to him than height. In college he was a very good Track and Field athlete. He dominated in the triple jump and high jump, ran the 100-yard dash in 10.9 seconds, and a 40-yard dash in 4.4 seconds. The guy was a physical beast in any era. Those that want to know how great Wilt was, just picture a taller, faster, stronger, Hakeem. Unfortunately, I’m old enough to have watched all these great centers with the exception of Russell. I think the poll is pretty accurate
Hakeem was really more suited to be a power forward, but he had all the skills and assets necessary to go against the real big men. I would say Hakeem is probably the best Center to be able to play multiple positions and still dominate. In other words, Hakeem is the most versatile center ever. None of the guys on that list could play any other position effectively. Hakeem could play the 3 if he wanted to.
