Considering the changes in basketball throughout the years?

Question

Who is the greatest Basketball player that ever lived...
Wilt Chamberlain or Michael Jordan?

Explain your answer.

Answer 1

bill russell was way better than anyone else who played the game/russell was a contemporary of wilt and in his 13 years as a pro he played in 12 nba finals and won 11 of them/chamberlain may have had all the individual statistics but time and time again when he played against russell and the celtics he would be on the losing end/remember russell was only 6 foot 9 inches (a good five inches shorter than wilt) and yet always found a way to beat him in the end/if you were to ask wilt if he could trade all his statistics for the rings that russell was able to achieve, i think it would be a definite yes/its incredible to me how russell is so overlooked and underappreciated since he was a player that was not about individual greatness but it was all about doing everything to make your team win/as lombardi so aptly put it "winning isnt everything, its the only thing"/look at all the records/no one won more than russell

Answer 2

You can't compare the two, there were less teams when Wilt played so it can be argued that he was going up against better players more often than Jordan, but the game had become much more popular by the time Jordan came into the league so more people were playing the sport and there was greater competiton to make it to the NBA. Wilt had better statistics, but at a different position. Also wilt was physically superior to most of his competitors, where as Jordan was just a gifted athlete. When it is all said and done I think LeBron James will be crowned best player of all time because he has the added competition of all the international players to consider. He just needs to win a few championships and work on his defense.

Answer 3

I think it's not really fair to say. They arte two totally different players, and at two totally different positions. Wilt had the better statistics, but Michael had more championships. Michael, however, played when the NBA was a big deal after the 80's and the Lakers and Celtics. The NBA wasn't as big when Wilt was playing and some of his outstanding statistics and accolades go unnoticed and are overshadowed. Going by stats, I would say Wilt by far. Going on Championships and making the league grow to what it is today, I would go with Mike.

But no one can argue that these are two of the five best players in NBA history.

Answer 4

Michael Jordan. He's done it both on the offense end and the defense end, leading the NBA in scoring, steals and being on the All Defense first team for several seasons. Plus he CAN fly!

Answer 5

not fair to compare generations. Wilt was the man of his time but he was a freak. Not many other players could physically match up with him. Jordan was the best of his time and wilt in his. who is the best now?? kobe..or that dude in cleveland lebron james??

Answer 6

MJ. Jordan did more for his team than Chamberlain did for his. Plus Jordan needs two hands for his rings.

Answer 7

G'day Ailene,

Thanks for the question.

It is Michael Jordan for mine even though Wilt Chamberlain was a great player of his time.

Born in Brooklyn, New York City, "M.J.", considered a remarkable force at both ends of the floor, ended an NBA career of 15 seasons with a regular-season scoring average of 30.12 points per game, the highest in NBA history (marginally ahead of Wilt Chamberlain's 30.06). He won six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls (during which he won all six NBA Finals MVP awards), won 10 scoring titles, and was league MVP five times. He was named to the All-NBA First Team 10 times, All-Defensive First Team nine times, and led the league in steals three times. With all these things taken into account, Jordan is considered by many to be the greatest basketball player of all time. Since 1983, he has appeared on the front cover of Sports Illustrated a record 49 times, and was named the magazine's "Sportsman of the Year" in 1991. He has also appeared on the cover of SLAM Magazine nine times (a record), including as the cover athlete for the magazine's 50th and 100th issues. In 1999, he was named "the greatest athlete of the 20th century" by ESPN, and was second only to Babe Ruth on the Associated Press list of top athletes of the century. His leaping ability, vividly illustrated by dunking from the foul line and other feats, earned him the nicknames "Air Jordan" and "His Airness."

Wilt Chamberlain played in two NBA winning teams with the 76ers and Lakers although he played in the period where the Celtics were the dominant team. In the early part of his career, he set several scoring records.

Chamberlain scored 31,419 points in 1,045 professional games. This was the most in NBA history when he retired in 1973, though his scoring total has since been exceeded by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone, both of whom played several more seasons than Chamberlain, and by Michael Jordan. His career scoring average of 30.06 points per game (ppg) is second-highest in league history, fractionally behind Jordan's 30.12 ppg.

Chamberlain's 1961-62 scoring average of 50.4 ppg, accomplished with the Philadelphia Warriors, is by far the NBA record. Chamberlain also holds the next two spots on the NBA's season scoring average list with 44.8 and 38.4 points per game. Chamberlain scored 60 or more points in a game an astonishing 32 times, more than all other NBA players combined (26 times). The closest player on that list is Michael Jordan, who accomplished the feat 5 times. His scoring dropped off markedly during the latter part of his career.

He stated : I look back and know that my last seven years in the league versus my first seven years were a joke in terms of scoring. I stopped shooting—coaches asked me to do that, and I did. I wonder sometimes if that was a mistake.

—Wilt Chamberlain, speaking to the Philadelphia Daily News

He remained a dominant player in terms of rebounds and he won his two championships in the last seven years.

I enclose sources on both these great basketballers for your information.

Answer 8

Jordan. He did unbelievable things.

Answer 9

I don't think you can really comapre the two. They played in such different eras, but if they played one-on-one, I would have to take Jordan in a close one.

Answer 10

gotta go with jordan. the biggest influence and entertainer ever to play the game.