How good is prime Wilt Chamberlain in today's game?

[RayBan-Sematra]

Dwight's career PPG is around 18.
His usage rate is also pretty low. He isn't in a Shaq or Kareem role where he is constantly thrown the ball and asked to create.

I am pretty sure Wilt could fill that role better then Dwight does but that doesn't mean he will be scoring 30ppg.

I mean let us say he is on the 2010 Magic.
Dwight was shooting 60% from the field that year.
So... let us say Wilt shoots 70% that is 2+ more pts.
Or if he shoots 60% on 2-3 more attempts a game... not sure how much that adds but it probably isn't much.
Plus he would also potentially shoot 20% worse from the line which takes away 2+pts or more if he got to the line more then Howard (who was getting 10+ a game).

If anything I think his biggest edge over Dwight would be that he would turn the ball over less and garner more assists.
So if you add that to him scoring a few more points a game on similar efficiency then yes he'd still be far more effective then Dwight generally was.

[mooncheese]

so why doesn't anyone give Wilt credit for playing a style of basketball that was much more strenuous, particularly on the bigs?... why do you think Duncan can still play at a high level at his age?... it's because he only has to take open shots in today's game - go watch the 2003 Finals and see how much tougher Duncan had it back then - at that time, the offense ran through Duncan, he created shots for everyone else and had to score ON defenders as a standard - he needed actual moves.. ways to elude a defender and/or shoot over them... then he had to navigate and bang around in a crowded paint because they didn't have floor-spacing strategy back then or defensive 3 seconds... and the rules allowed for much more physical play.

nowadays, the point guard creates the offense and then just dumps it off for the big for an open look... the offense never runs through the bigs anymore and they don't have to create offense or take as many contested shots... even in offenses where the point guard isn't running a bunch of screen rolls for open shots, the bigs still never have offense run through them anymore or take contested shots as a standard - the spacing, defensive 3 seconds, and easier penetration has turned the game into an open shooting contest and made it so there is both the expectation and pursuit of an open shot on every play... pass it around long enough and there WILL be an open shot - hot potato anyone?... the bigs play a much easier game today.. it's like night and day... it can't be anymore evident just comparing how Duncan plays now, to how he played when he was in his prime.

also, the reason why no one has been able to average 30ppg since Malone and Shaq is because there hasn't been a big man in the league SINCE then with their dominant scoring skill or ability... if there has been... please name them... because I can't think of any... the main reason for this is that the game has changed and bigs no longer NEED to practice post moves... todays bigs are basically D-and-dunk, just like the wings are 3-and-D... diluted skill sets... every possession is essentially some hot potato and then another open shot... it's a league of more and more commoditized player skill where now the best coaching wins... sounds like fun.

[eliasrapp98]

Best player in the game.

Unlike LeBron he'd be up against the weakest field of his position ever. His combination of athleticism and skill would be overpowering.

I would expect a line like 23-24 ppg/14.5-15 rpg/4.5-5 apg/3.5-4 bpg on about 60% from the field.

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Centers now a day are worse than the 6'6" embarrassments from the 60s?


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[mooncheese]

people knock wilt's 50% FG percentage.

but he was taking literally 40 shots per game (39.5) the year he averaged 50 points and 26 rebounds.

by comparison, Duncan shot half as many times and ALSO shot "only" 50% from the field.

pace adjusted, wilt's 40 shots per game would be between 27 and 32 shots in today's game.... I'd reduce his 48 minutes per game to that of today's comparative wimps, but that doesn't make sense because wilt was playing 30% more possessions per game at that time - they really got up and down back then - so there is no reason to believe he wouldn't play the same minutes today given how much slower the game is today.

shaq shot 58% for his career, but he only took 20 shots per game just like Duncan - that was his high for his career.

once wilt's shot attempts per game went down to 25, he never shot less than 54%... he shot 60% plus each year as a laker... his last year in the league, his lakers had a 112 pace, which would be near the top of today's league, and he averaged 19 rebounds.

his stamina was insane - 48 minutes per game in his prime year after year... never fouled out of a game for his career.

basically, take Anthony davis, make him 2 or 3 inches taller, add 50+ pounds to him, give him massive hands, give him a 9 foot 6 inch standing reach, and double or triple his stamina and durability... and you'll have wilt.

[Notanoob]

Centers now a day are worse than the 6'6" embarrassments from the 60s?

Even if there was a 6'6" center, that would be his height in bare feet, his listed height would be 6'7" or 6'8".

Willis Reed- 6'9", so 6'10 or 6'11" in shoes
Leroy Ellis- 6'10", so 6'11" or 7' in shoes
Walt Bellamy- 6'11", so 7' or 7'1" in shoes
Zelmo Beaty-6'9", so 6'10" or 6'11" in shoes
Reggie Harding-7', so 7'1" or 7'2" in shoes
Wayne Embry-6'8", so 6'9" or 6'10" in shoes
Bill Russel- 6'9", so 6'10" or 6'11" in shoes, and pictures clearly show him to be taller than Dwight Howard is now.

Those were the other starting centers in the NBA in 1965. You're simply totally wrong here.

[trex_8063]

I think he'd be very similar in overall impact to prime Shaq (rule changes not withstanding, more on that below). The physicality is so similar (that's all right there in the first few minutes of the video clip); Shaq perhaps slightly bigger (and presumably slightly more powerful???), but Wilt slightly faster and with better ups; longer arms, too.

I'm not sure if Wilt would use that size/power to quite as much advantage as Shaq did on offense, though. I think I recall reading somewhere that Wilt would actually lessen up on the aggressiveness when going to the hoop because he was afraid of hurting people; that he was very conscious of just how powerful he was. Whereas Shaq just attacked, and if you got in the way, that was your fault and your problem (at least that's how I perceived him).

And hard as it is to believe, he's even a marginally worse FT-shooter than Shaq, too. So I don't think he'd be QUITE as a dominant a scorer as Shaq, but I do think it would be close. They just have such similar physical characteristics, similar post footwork, similar range (Wilt maybe slightly more??), etc.
Wilt's easily as good (if not better) as a passer, too.

Defensively I'd have to give at least a small edge to Wilt. His length, ups, and quickness could make him the best rim-protector in the league. His size, strength, and length also make him a tough individual for even the most talented of today's big men to score on.

I think I'd estimate at least a slight rebounding edge for Wilt, as well. Can he bring it as hard in the playoffs as Shaq did in his peak? idk. I will allow that Wilt seemed to have......well, if not motivation issues, at least priorities that weren't always in the right place (I guess the same could be said of Shaq at some points, too).

So he'd EASILY be the best center in the game today, and very very likely a top 3 player overall imo. I think it's difficult to say how a prime Wilt (or a prime Shaq) would size up against Lebron (or KD) in the modern league.

Most of Wilt's statistically insane seasons came before they widened the lane (nullifying or at least lessening Wilt's ability to get the ball right under the rim). otoh, there was also no 3-pt line or associated floor spacing.

We may think we know exactly how Shaq would do today, because it wasn't that long ago. However, it was beginning in the '99-00 season (Shaq's peak) that they just began initiating some rules about hand-checking. Before the '01-02 season they initiated the Defensive 3-Second rule: shot-blockers could no longer hang out in the paint and protect the rim. Before the '04-05 season they further augmented the hand-checking rules. And offensive strategists have realized the scoring efficiency to be found in good 3-point shooting, too, particularly taking advantage of the closer-range corner trey (this has been awhile coming, but really seems to have come to fruition just in the last half-dozen years or so).

Don't kid yourself into thinking these things that have occurred just since Shaq's peak haven't had significant repercussions in how modern offenses operate, pushing AWAY from the dominant low-post scorer. And for those reasons, I'm not sure if a Wilt (or a Shaq) would have as much impact today as Lebron (or even KD). I think it would be awfully close, though, and I'll allow there's a chance either one could be the most dominant player in the game today (but rule changes have left me a little skeptical).

[tonyreyes123]

Best player in the league and would put up like 29/14/3 on a team like Chicago or Charlotte

[john248]

The big IF would be...If Wilt stopped worrying about his, at the time, size advantage and committed to a power post game while still using his fade away at times. I'd except a line closer to 25ppg/13reb/3ast/3blk as I don't see him getting close to 30ppg in today's league with his game.

[Warspite]

What ever stats he had to win the title each yr. I would be more interested to see if he could lead the league in apg more than ppg. With the lax assist rules and the ease in which you can get assists with 3pt shooters he would have a shot.

Wilt could do anything so he would do what his coach asked. The fact of the matter is that Wilt 1962 is inferior to Wilt 1967 so I see no reason to try to put up video game stats.

24ppg 15rpg 8apg is plenty to dominate the game.