Wilt Chamberlain

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

According to former teammate Billy Cunningham, "The NBA Guide reads like Wilt's personal diary." Chamberlain holds 72 NBA records, including several regular season records in scoring, rebounding, and durability; blocks were not counted during his career. He remains the only player to score 100 points in a single game. He also once gathered 55 rebounds, and never fouled out. Chamberlain is the only player to average 30 points and 20 rebounds per game in a season, a feat he accomplished seven times. He once averaged 50 points per game, as well as 48 minutes per game, in a season. Chamberlain ultimately won two NBA championships, four regular-season Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards, the Rookie of the Year, one Finals MVP, and one All-Star Game MVP; he was selected to thirteen All-Star Games and ten All-NBA Teams (seven First and three Second teams). He won seven scoring, eleven rebounding, nine durability, and nine field goal percentage titles.

In Their Own Story

In his sophomore year at the University of Kansas, Chamberlain lost the national championship game to the North Carolina Tar Heels in triple overtime. Before joining the NBA, he played for the Harlem Globetrotters. He then played for the Philadelphia / San Francisco Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers, and Los Angeles Lakers. Following his professional basketball career, Chamberlain played volleyball in the short-lived International Volleyball Association (IVA). He served one term as league president and is enshrined in the IVA Hall of Fame. Chamberlain, who was always a poor free throw shooter, had the ability to dunk from the foul line, which led to the ruling that a free-throw shooter must keep his feet behind the line.

Reader's Guide

While in college, Chamberlain played for the Kansas Jayhawks, and lost the national championship game to the North Carolina Tar Heels in triple overtime his sophomore year. He also played for the Harlem Globetrotters before joining the NBA, where he played for the Philadelphia / San Francisco Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers, and Los Angeles Lakers. Chamberlain had an on-court rivalry with Boston Celtics' center Bill Russell, suffering a long string of losses before breaking through and winning the 1967 NBA Finals as a member of the 76ers. Chamberlain won his second championship as a member of the 1972 Lakers, a team which set a record with a 33-game winning streak. Following his professional basketball career, Chamberlain played volleyball in the short-lived International Volleyball Association (IVA). He served one term as league president and is enshrined in the IVA Hall of Fame.

Did You Know?

• Sportswriters had known Chamberlain by several nicknames during his playing career, calling attention to his height since his high school days. He disliked the ones that negatively portrayed his height, such as "Wilt the
• The name "the Big Dipper" was retained in one of Chamberlain's signature moves, the "dipper dunk".
• He was one of the first players to make prominent use of shots like the fade away jump shot, and the finger roll.
• His success near the basket led to the widening of the lane, offensive goaltending rules, and the banning of inbound passes over the backboard.
• Chamberlain, who was always a poor free throw shooter, had the ability to dunk from the foul line, which led to the ruling that a free-throw shooter must keep his feet behind the line.