Tip-Off Timer: Wilt Snags 55 Rebounds

Tip-Off Timer counts down the days until the first game of the 2009-10 season. On Wednesday, there are 55 days remaining.

There are no cheap records in the NBA. But one of the most eye-popping records Wilt Chamberlain holds, all things considered, is his mark for most rebounds in a game: 55, captured against Bill Russell's Celtics early in the 1960-61 season. The final score of that game (on November 24, 1960) was 132-129.

Interestingly enough, it was Russell's record that Wilt broke. (Russell had 51 rebounds against the Syracuse Nationals late in the 1959-60 season.) But as was so often the case in the Wilt/Russell rivalry, while Wilt got the record, Russell got the win.

Only two players not named Russell or Chamberlain appear on the NBA's list of players who have tallied at least 40 rebounds in one game: Nate Thurmond (42 in 1965) and Jerry Lucas (40 in 1964). While players have made assaults on Wilt's single-game points and consecutive made field goal records, no one can touch the rebounds mark. Part of that is due to the nature of the game -- the pace has slowed way down and teams shoot a lot better; heck, NBA teams only averaged 41 rebounds per game last season. Today's league and Wilt's league are oranges and tangerines.

That doesn't make it any less impressive, of course, just as "100" isn't cheapened by the circumstances of Wilt's league.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

9-02-2009 @ 8:22PM

Giles said...

And they widened the 3 second area gain after that, so the nba is fibbing when it claims teams had a center, two forwards, two guards. They have two posts, sharing rebounding, two wings, a point. Like if Wilt were to have started ahead of 6`2 Sharman, at 7`1, with Russ, 6`9 1/2, Heinie, 6`7, Jungle Jim, 6`5, and Cous, 6 foot. And the added big guy is also the main reason FG% is up, big guys tend to shoot 50%, 60%, little gusy 40%, 45%. It isn`t really that athletes got more talented when they were offered more money, though more of the talented tall guys, who felt awkward, stammered, and didn`t want folks staring at them like they were freaks when one of their own, Wilt, proved they could compete, and dominate.

9-03-2009 @ 3:34PM

Just like when Wilt played, no one wants to hear how great he was. He lettered in track and field before playing varsity basketball, name a more recent nba star athletic enough they lettered in T&F, there has been none. And yes, many of the centers Wilt competed against were the size of modern quick forwards. But Wilt didn`t just out muscle them, he OUT QUICKED them, too. Some folks these days don`t realize how great a team the Celtics
were. Russell is #1 in Championship rebounds, #1 in championship
games played, #3 in championships assists. Cousy is #2 in
championship assists. Sam Jones is #2 in championship games played.
Tom Heinsohn is #5 in championship rebounds and #5 in championship
games played. They were the greatest small ball team in nba history.
The nba should add official championship mvps in `56 to `68. One for
Petit, the year he won, one for Chamberlain, the years he won, then
split the other 9 about equally between Russell, Cousy, and Heinsohn, or give a share to Havlicek
and Jones. Give the Celtics their just due. Chamberlain won the mvp
in `59 - `60 as a rookie, the had BETTER stats the next three years,
and lost. Why? Compare stats. Russ won with 23.9 rebounds, 2nd to
Chamberlain at 27.2, 16.9 pts., 18th, Chamberlain 38.4, 1st,
Chamberlain also led the association in FG%, Russ wasn`t in the top
ten. Next year, Russ won with 23.6 rebounds, 2n to Chamberlain, 25.7
rebounds, Russ scored 18.9 pts., 17th, Chamberlain 50.4, 1st. second
in FG%, with 50.6, to Walt Ballamy, rookie, with51.9, Bells was also
2nd in scoring, third in rebounds. Next year, Russ won with 23.0
rebounds, 2nd to Wilt, with 24.3, Russ scored 16.8, 19th, while Wilt
scored 44.8, Wilt led the nba in FG% again, 52.8. He wasn`t shooting
enough! In `68-`69, Russ` last year in the nba, Wes Unseld became
the
only other rookie to win mvp than Wilt. Wes was 2nd in the nba in
rebounds, 18.2, to Wilt, 21.1, not among the stat leaders in any
other category. Hayes was 4th in rebounds, 17.1, 1st in scoring.
Clearly, Hayes was the real rookie of the year, not Unseld. Wilt had
dropped all the way to 19th in scoring, 20.5 having joined a new
team,
the Lakers. First in FG% with 58.3. Not scoring nearly enough.
Clearly, Wilt was the real mvp in `60 - `62, not Russ. The all pro
team in `68 - `69 was officially Unseld, Baylor, Cunningham,
Robertson, Monroe. It ought to be corrected to Chamberlain, Hayes,
Cunningham, Robertson, Monroe. Oscar was the all star game mvp that
year, he should probably be corrected to have been the season MVP as
well, The false nba
record OUGHT to be corrected. Then folks today will have a better
real
understanding of how great the Celtics really were. And Jordan, the only things he was clearly better in than Wilt were popularity and free throw shooting. He was a better perimeter defender than Wilt, but Wilt was a better interior defender than Jordan. Their scoring average became equal because management insisted Wilt was scoring too much late in his career. But Wilt is the only center to ever lead the Nba in assists, Mike, though a guard, never led in assists. Or FG% like Wilt, or rebounds. He could only do part of what Wilt did. Wilt did the whole job. Even compared to Earvin Johnson, the third guy ever, behind Wilt and Oscar, to have over 800 assists and 800 points in the same season. Mike`s 30.1 pts. and 5.3 assists, compared with Earvin`s 19.5 pts. and 11.2 assists, comes out, at over 2 pts. an assist, to favor Magic, not Air, slightly, in overall team offense contributions, though Jordan was the better perimeter defender than Magic, despite the Lakers also playing excellent team defense.