On the afternoon of March 2, 1962 Wilt Chamberlin arrived in Hersey Pennsylvania with the rest of the Warriors. They arrived at the arena about 5 hours before tip off and decided to go to the penny arcade located in one of the lobbies. Wilt says he remembered picking up a pellet rifle to play a target game, and after shooting for a few minutes he realized he couldn’t miss…
On January 22, 2006 Kobe Bryant had arranged to have his grandmother come see her grandson play live, for the first time in a Lakers uniform. Also, with it being the anniversary of his grandfather’s birthday he new it had to be a special night…
100 vs. 81
Wilt Chamberlin’s 100 point game can easily be categorized as one of the greatest moments in sports history. Just the act alone of scoring 100 points seems like a feet that will never be challenged, or at least it did seem that way. Kobe Bryant dropping 81 on a Raptors team, that wasn’t as bad as the Knicks team that Wilt had his way with, should be right up there if not above Wilt’s performance. After looking at the stats of both events it is clear to ME that Kobe had the greatest single scoring game in NBA history (sorry Wilt).
Basketball played in the early 60’s was a bit different from the game that we see today. The speed was alot faster and scoring was dominated by big men or should I say the BIG MAN, because Wilt really had no competition. Also, there were only nine teams in the entire league, can you imagine the amount of stars each team would have if we only had nine teams in the league today? Of course back then the talent pool wasn’t as full as it was today, but still each team did have a couple star players. With these factors in play scoring was higher back then compared to today. Wilt Chamberlin was an extremely difficult match up as well, at 7’2 and 285 pounds he was much larger when compared to his average competition at 6’7 235.
When the Knicks played the Warriors that rainy friday night they had no idea what they were in for. Because no video of this game exists, all we have to go off of is a fuzzy radio broadcast, a few photos, and some personal accounts. Wilt was off and running as soon as the ball was tipped off, after just mere minutes the score was 19-3 and Wilt had dropped 13. By the end of the first quarter he had 23 points, and by the end of the first half 41. Looking back on the first two quarters it looks as though Wilt and Kobe could be on par with each other.
It was the second half however when things started to be focused on giving the ball strictly to Chamberlin and seeing how many he could get. By the description of witnesses that were in attendance, the Warriors would foul the Knicks immediately after the inbound pass, stopping the clock, and sending New York to the line. The clock would not start up again until the Warriors had inbounded the ball which would inevitably wined up in the hands of Chamberlin, and then shortly after, through the hoop. By following this process the Warriors were able to stretch the clock out considerably. After the crowd saw that Wilt was scoring at will, a fan remembered that everyone was chanting to give the ball to Wilt. Most, if not all of Wilt’s points came just feet from the basket while he played all 48 minutes of the game.
The truly amazing stat with Wilt came at the free throw. He was never know for being a stellar shooter from the line (if you want to see his form its in the clip below and its disgusting), but that night he went 28-32. In the long run the fact remains that Wilt Chamberlin scored 100 points in a professional game, and that act demands respect.
As a Laker fan and someone who watched ever second of that game on the night of January 22 (and at least ten times since) I have to admit that I do feel that Kobe’s night was better. Simply because of the way he did it and how successful he was while doing it. Kobe shot 28-46 from the field that night which included 7 three pointers and a large amount of mid range jumpers. When totaled up these stats show that Kobe shot an AMAZING 60 percent from the field. He was also 18-20 from the free throw line. Oh, and Kobe did this all in 42 minutes. Yes I know there came a point when Kobe was also seeing just how many points he could score but the difference was that the Lakers were not blowing the Raptors out. It was more like the Raptors vs. Kobe Bryant at the end of the day.
I understand that Kobe’s game is much easier to criticize because it can be re-watched at any given moment via youtube (as you can see in the clip below). Wilt’s game however can’t, and is up there with the home run that Babe Ruth hit after calling his shot by pointing to the wall. It’s almost more legend then it is factual, and it is with those moments that sports fans (and Kobe haters) don’t want to see these records or events challenged. With that in mind we came up with the 81 Tribute design.
We took the famous picture of Wilt while in the locker room after his historic night and swapped him for the Mamba. We thought this would represent the comparable accomplishment of these players on a single night, and help remind people that NO sports record is untouchable as long as there are hard working and dedicated athletes working to pursue them.
Like many of you I will always remember where I was the night Kobe dropped 81 and will never forget how I felt watching every basket. Knowing that after Kobe retires from this game I will ALWAYS use his game as a measuring tool to classify players and single game performances. Will somebody break this modern accomplishment set by Kobe? Sure they will, I just hope I am watching when someone does.
We hope you like the design and enjoy representing it. To buy the 81 Tribute Shirt please click the link at the top of the screen directing you to the online store.