So, the other day, I got into it again with some younger guys about basketball. You know how it goes, talking about the GOATs and all that. And someone just casually drops that players from way back, specifically mentioning the big man Wilt, wouldn’t cut it today. Said something like, ‘Yeah, stats look crazy, but it was a different game, easier time’.
Now, I usually just let these things slide, everyone’s got an opinion. But this time, I don’t know, it just kind of rubbed me the wrong way. It’s not just about defending a player, it’s about folks dismissing history without really getting it. So, I decided, okay, let’s actually talk about this.
My Process Here
First thing, I had to lay down the raw numbers because sometimes people just don’t grasp the scale. We’re talking:
- The 100-point game. Not a typo. One hundred points. In one game.
- A season averaging 50 points. Fifty. For the whole season.
- Pulling down 25, even 27 rebounds a game for entire seasons.
- Leading the league in assists one year, just ’cause he felt like it.
I made sure to emphasize these weren’t just flashes in the pan, this was sustained stuff over years. Then, I had to tackle the ‘weak era’ thing head-on. Okay, the game was different. Faster pace sometimes, different defensive rules for sure. But I pointed out, you gotta look at the context. They didn’t have three seconds in the lane for offense initially because of guys like him dominating down low. They widened the lane because of him!
Here’s what I really dug into:
I talked about his sheer athleticism. This wasn’t just some giant standing there. The guy was a track star in college. High jump, long jump, shot put. Ran sprints. Stories about his strength are legendary. He wasn’t just scoring on smaller guys; he was physically overwhelming whoever guarded him, including other legends like Bill Russell.
Then I brought up the adjustments. He faced constant double and triple teams. Defenses were schemed entirely around stopping him. Rules were literally changed mid-career to try and lessen his impact. Think about that. The league altering its fundamental rules because one guy is just too dominant.
It wasn’t about yelling, just laying out facts and context. Took a bit of effort to recall specific examples and make the connections clear. Had to explain that ‘different’ doesn’t automatically mean ‘easier’. Dominance is dominance, no matter the era. Adapting to rule changes designed to stop you shows incredible skill and basketball IQ, not weakness.
End Result?
Did I change everyone’s mind? Probably not entirely. You get those shrugs, the ‘yeah, but still…’ responses. But I think I made them pause a bit. Made them realize you can’t just look at grainy footage or a stat line on its own and think you know the whole story. You gotta dig a bit, understand the world these guys played in.
It just gets tiring, you know? This constant need to tear down the past to prop up the present. History’s there. The accomplishments happened. You don’t have to personally think he’s the GOAT, but dismissing his level of play like that? Nah, requires a bit more homework first. You gotta respect the craft and the sheer force of will it took to do what he did.
