Damon_3388 wrote:Doctor MJ wrote:Damon_3388 wrote:Aside from Wilt, there were only 15 other players in the entire league in 1959-60 who were 6'9" and above, and just one other 7-footer. In Wilt's final year (1972-73), there was still just 46 players in the league 6'9" and above, and just six other 7-footers. 40 years on from Wilt's NBA retirement, there is 173 players in the league 6'9" and above, and 34 of those are 7-footers.
Not saying it was all his size, but you put someone that big with the type of athleticism and strength he had too in there against guys who are significantly smaller, and he's going to dominate regardless.
Dude, I'm not one trying to defend Wilt's performance here, but the average height has barely changed since Wilt's time. You list X number of players, but there were only 8 teams. You talk about 7 footers, but the league is dominated by guys under 7 feet even at the center position today.
It's interesting because you basically just see his impact back then as a given, which it wasn't. You underrate the quality of the players at the time and partly as a result of that you overestimate what Wilt achieved against them.
Well take the numbers I provided as averages then:
1959-60 - 2 players per team 6'9" plus
1972-73 - 2.71 players per team 6'9" plus
2012-13 - 5.77 players per team 6'9" plus
Taller players (6'9"+) are far more common in the NBA now than they were in Wilt's era, any way you slice it.
EDIT: I'm leaving my post intact, but you should probably check the next page before responding.
Basically that 4 number is totally wrong.
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Ha, take these averages then:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/leagues/stats.htmlThe average height has gone from 6'5" when Wilt entered the league, to 6'6" early in his career, and has never gone beyond 6'7".
Even if you don't buy that they measure height differently now, how is that really a huge difference? btw, they're saying height was measured differently because player's today are typically measured in their shoes which wasn't always the case. I still don't necessarily trust the numbers back then as being completely honest, so I understand skepticism, but getting back to the b-r page, it's critical to understand how developed the NBA was by the mid-60s. It was in the '40s & '50s that the game utterly transformed. In the 1930s, Tarzan Cooper was the best center and he stood 6'4". Clearly any change that's happened in the past half century is incredibly minor compared to what took place before hand.
But your specific example intrigues me so I find myself asking this:
We already know that the players by far most likely to bust in the NBA today are the bigs. Teams see a 7 footer, they draft him, and he proceeds to do nothing.
So my question is: How big of a presence do 6'9" or higher guys have in the league today?
Figure there are 150 starters in the league, so if I take the top 150 players by minutes played, I can include basically everyone who is making an impact on the league.
How many of these guys are 6'9" or taller? Sixteen.
Pause for a second.
By your numbers there are over 5 guys per team 6'9" or taller, however basically 9 out of 10 of those guys ride the bench. The bench in the NBA is taller than the meaningful core...because everyone thinks they need tall guys, they draft them, and for the most part, they suck.
The league is thus taller than it should be now based on these types of measurements...and still only an inch taller than when Wilt played.
One other number to note. I use 6'9" as the cutoff because you did. What if I up it just one more inch.
The number of players in the NBA playing starter-level minutes who are taller than 6'9" is...
FOUR.