Any NBA fan that has combed through any statistics of the game has come across the name Wilt Chamberlain with some of the craziest accomplishments in history. The only man to score 100 points in a game, Chamberlain is widely recognized as one of the greatest centers to play the game.
Wilt retired from the NBA in 1973 after a 14-year career in the league. He was the NBA’s all-time leading scorer at the time of his retirement and stayed there until Kareem Abdul-Jabbar broke it years later. Wilt was a titan of the game, whose opinion was highly sought-after until his untimely passing in October 1999.
Shaquille O’Neal had emerged as one of the best centers in the league, and fans often wondered how he would fare against Wilt on the court. Chamberlain was once on ‘Conan’ and was asked about Shaq, and he was quite dismissive of Shaq, claiming the only comparison between them is the fact they are poor free throw shooters. He followed that up with an analogy about legendary actor Clark Gable.
Wilt Chamberlain vs Shaquille O'Neal in their primes would be an absolute treat to watch pic.twitter.com/wHoN8GZnSL
— Ishaan Bhattacharya (@IshaanBhatta) August 4, 2022
“Yeah, we’re both terrible foul shooters. But Shaquille and I is like comparing me with Clark Gable. In this case, I am Clark Gable and he is me.”
Clark Gable was one of the most iconic Hollywood actors from the ’30s, starring in the iconic ‘Gone With The Wind’. Wilt attempted an acting career after his NBA days were over, starring in movies like ‘Conan The Destroyer’. His analogy comparing meant to convert that what Wilt was in acting compared to Gable, Shaq was in terms of basketball to Wilt.
That is quite a disrespectful comparison considering everything Shaq would go on to achieve. Wilt never got to see Shaq become a 4-time champion and have some of the most dominant seasons in NBA history. Both men are Lakers legends, and this comparison has been proven wildly untrue over time.
