Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain are two big men that dominated their respective eras in their way. Wilt was a freak athlete, it’s still a miracle when someone manages to top the statistics he produced during his career. Kareem had the most unstoppable shot in the history of the game in the skyhook and has been the NBA’s leader in points scored all-time for a while.
The beginning of Kareem‘s career overlapped with the end of Wilt‘s, and the big men faced off quite a few times. Wilt once blocked Kareem 5 times in 12 minutes in one memorable encounter. And the two had some issues with one another as well, especially as Kareem started moving toward earning the title of the greatest player the NBA had seen by the end of his career. Their first few interactions were as if between a star and a fan, though.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar On Meeting Wilt Chamberlain As A Teenager
When Kareem was coming up as a youngster, Wilt was already an established NBA superstar. But back in the 60s, even superstars were regularly seen playing in public parks and events of that nature. In his book, Becoming Kareem, Abdul-Jabbar recalled the funny interaction with Chamberlain he had at Rucker Park.
“I managed to choke out, ‘I’m Lew Alcindor,’” the center recounted. “‘Oh yeah, I’ve heard of you,’ Wilt said with a grin. ‘You’re the young boy that plays for the Catholic school. Supposed to be getting good.'”
“You’ve got good legs,” Abdul-Jabbar recalled Wilt saying. “Wish I had legs like that.”
It wasn’t just flattery that Wilt offered to Kareem either, there was some advice involved as well. Chamberlain told Abdul-Jabbar what he would need to do to get to the highest level as well.
“You’re going to need to pack on some meat if you want to bang with the big boys,” he explained while placing some dumbbells at Kareem’s feet. “You need muscle if you’re going to jump with three guys climbing on your back.”
It’s wild to think about the interactions these greats were having with one another before they knew how iconic they would end up becoming. While both Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain have complex legacies, their names will be mentioned any time someone talks about the greatest players to play in the NBA.
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