Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar are widely regarded as two of the most dominant centers in NBA history. Unfortunately, Wilt and Kareem never really bonded well. The fact that fans were always comparing their greatness didn’t really help their rocky relationship. Considered a cocky individual, Chamberlain once refused to accept that Abdul-Jabbar was a better player than him in any department of the game. Rhetorically asking whether KAJ could score, rebound, run, and pass better than him, Wilt the Stilt openly stated that he was the stronger of the two.
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Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain weren’t always on bad terms. During Abdul-Jabbar’s teenage days, he was a hyped prospect. Chamberlain, at the time, assumed the role of a mentor, taking a young Kareem under his wings. While learning from one of the game’s greatest scorers, Kareem revealed being in awe of Wilt’s ability to woo women.
Wilt Chamberlain didn’t believe that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was a better player than him
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar continued to dominate the NBA hardwood years after Chamberlain’s retirement. Despite Kareem being a far more successful player than him, “The Big Dipper” once claimed that he was the stronger player. Years after being away from the game, the Warriors legend admitted that the six-time NBA champion’s hook shot was the only thing that took the prize. Chamberlain said during an interview back in the day:
“In the facets of the game. Did he score better than I did? Did he rebound better than I did? Did he pass better than I did? Did he run better than I did? Hard for me to figure out. He shot a hook shot better than I did. Kareem was also a different type of basketball player than I was. I would have also loved to have a chance to play against Kareem, when I was scoring 50 points a game.”
Chamberlain also spoke about a hypothetical one-on-one clash with both players in their prime. Claiming to be stronger, the seven-time scoring champ implied that he’d be the winner in any such contest. Take a look at the video posted by TPGC Highlights.
“I’m too strong for Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar] and if you’re gonna go one-on-one, you take it to the basket,” the two-time NBA Champion added.
Kareem and Wilt led their respective teams to the Western Conference Finals in 1971, as well as 1972. During their 1971 WCF battle, despite Wilt’s 22 PPG and 18.8 RPG, Kareem was able to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 4-1 series win. The very next campaign, averaging 10.8 PPG and 19.3 RPG, Chamberlain would end up leading his team to a series win.
Wilt tried to maintain a cordial relationship with Kareem
The two big men were pretty close until Kareem made an impact at the NBA level. However, Wilt wasn’t always hating on the 7-foot-2 megastar. Long before things went south between the two, Chamberlain actually tried maintaining an amicable relationship with the up-and-coming star.
After their first meeting in the NBA, Wilt dished out some strange praises towards Kareem – complimenting the rookie’s “good legs”. Unfortunately, that was about the only time Wilt appreciated any factor of the eventual six-time champ’s game.
