Dear nash.....

[piccolodaimaoh]

Wilt was as arrogant a player as there has ever been. He was great but his ego would not let him believe anyone was better even if they where. Wilt wouldn't even be the in my top two players. Wilt was great no doubt but not the greatest. Jordan would have just thrown down on him like he did anyone else.

Head to head, one on one, that one will probably be debated forever. Since Wilt passed away in 1999 and Jordan is dealing with a messy divorce I guess we will never know if Jordan could dunk on Wilt as easily as he dunked on Mark Jackson.

I know they did not keep blocked shots as a stat when Wilt played, but Wilt was known to have triple-doubles that included blocked shots. He usually blocked 10 or more shots a game. Russell is widely reguarded as one of the best defenders of all-time. Wilt was better.

One thing they did have in common, both were the 3rd picks in the draft. Wilt in 1959 and Jordan in 1984.

I apologize to everyone if this becomes a Wilt vs Jordan thread, it isn't. Lets talk about something else, like Steve Nash vs Allen Iverson or should Kevin Garnett ask to be traded during the off-season.

 

[gideon]

I love the passion people have for their heroes. Thats really cool. Don't ever lose that.

Little story about Chamberlain. Back in the 70's there was a college player out of Iowa who had come from the big cities - his name was Connie Hawkins. He stood about 6-8 or 6-9 but had this gigantic wingspan that made him play like he was a seven footer. Think about him this way ... before Jordan there was Erving ... and before Erving there was the Hawk. He played above the rim at a time when almost everyone else played with both feet on the floor.

In Harlem every summer they had a gigantic hoops festival called the Ruckers tournament. They had divisions for Junior high, high schools, college and even pro players. They played a massive tournament outside on cement courts while thousands watched from fireescapes and windows and rooftops. Hawkins had been blacklisted by the NCAA and could not yet play in the NBA. He was a professional without a paycheck. He got together a team of outlaws and they entered a team into the professional division. In the finals the team led by Hawkins played the team led by Chamberlain. Wilt was then the king of the game - maybe the world.

With a minute to go before the opening tip it was estimated that over ten thousand people had jammed every single foot of space to see the epic confrontation of the two men for their very first meeting. The proven professional versus the street legend. But no Chamberlain was in uniform.
But then the crowd parted like Moses parting the red sea and a big Bentley rode right onto the court. A uniformed chauffer got out and opened the door and Wilt emerged in uniform ready to play. The crowd roared at his entrance.

Hawkins and Wilt shook hands and exchanged greetings and the game began. Wilt scored a bit and Hawk scored a bit. Wilts favorite move was a finger roll. He would drive across the lane and when about four feet from the basket extend his arm and the ball would float downwards into the bucket. It was a beautiful thing to see and always went over the arm of the tallest defender. He did it on Hawkins and the crowd roared.

Hawkins waited until he tried it again and went up catching it before it dropped and slammed the ball as hard as he could against the backboard. The ball shot out to midcourt where a flashy gaurd on Hawks team got the ball and went downcourt and dunked. Hawkins said the crowd response was louder than anything he had ever heard. Ten thousand people pointed at Wilt and jeered and laughed telling him a new king had just been crowned.

Connie Hawkins said the next hour was the longest hour of his life. An angry and hurt Chamberlain not only scored at will and got almost every rebound but beat up Hawkins without any mercy. The Hawk had so many of his own shots blocked by Wilt that the word SPALDING was nearly imprinted upon his forehead. Hawkins said he could barely walk off the court after his team took a serious whipping. The crowd loved it and nobody talked about anything but Wilt for the rest of the day.

If you go to Harlem today there are still old men who proudly will tell you they saw that game.

 

[The Josh]

or should Kevin Garnett ask to be traded during the off-season.

Please let him end up with the Bulls.

 

[gideon]

It is said that Garnett would love to play with the Detroit Pistons. Supposedly he has a good relationship with Flip Saunders. The Bulls would have to give up Ben Wallace to make room both on the floor and on the payroll to make that happen for them. The gave Wallace the key to the bank to sign him last summer and could not afford to have both men at the same time.

 

[piccolodaimaoh]

Damn the Bulls or the Pistons, we have a spot just perfect for him in Philadelphia!!!