Whose record did Kareem Abdul-Jabbar break to become NBA's all-time leading points scorer?
Before Kareem Abdul-Jabbar sat on the throne as the NBA’s all-time scoring champ, the title was held by Wilt Chamberlain. “Wilt the Stilt” was the league’s most dominating and imposing force back in the day and perhaps in its entire history.
Before Chamberlain took the record, Bob Pettit was on top of the totem pole on the all-time scoring ladder. Pettit finished his career with 20,880 points.
Today in Sports - Feb 14, 1966 - Wilt Chamberlain breaks the #NBACareerScoringRecord at 20,884 points. https://t.co/lDMkQI8pYa
It didn’t take long for Wilt Chamberlain, though, to surpass the St. Louis Hawks legend. Chamberlain entered the league in 1960 and reset the points leaderboard just six years later.
On February 14, 1966, the “Big Dipper” dropped a casual 41 points against the Detroit Pistons to eclipse Pettit’s mark.
In Wilt Chamberlain's first seven seasons in the NBA, he was the scoring champ in each of those years. Michael Jordan tied that streak of consecutive scoring titles 20 years later when "His Airness" was the scoring leader for seven straight seasons.
During Wilt Chamberlain's stretch as the NBA's most prolific and unstoppable scorer, he averaged 39.6 points, 24.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists. He amassed 21,486 points from 1960-66 in 543 games.
"The Big Dipper's" scoring output started to decrease after the 1965-66 season. From that season until he retired in 1974, he averaged 19.8 points and still had 20.8 rebounds per game.
Wilt Chamberlain hang up his jersey in '74, scoring 31,419 points in 1,045 games. He was the NBA's all-time leading scorer for 18 years before Kareem Abdul-Jabbar dethroned him on April 5, 19894.
Here’s the shot by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to break Wilt Chamberlain’s record 39 years ago in 1984.
https://t.co/o6yidgrQAr
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar were nowhere near some of Wilt Chamberlain's records
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar may have annexed the all-time scoring crown before LeBron James dethroned him, but Wilt Chamberlain remains a staple in the league’s history books. His 100 points in a single game on March 2, 1962, will likely stand the test of time.
The closest to having come to that mark was Kobe Bryant when he exploded for 81 points against the Toronto Raptors on January 22, 2006.
In addition to the 100-point game, Wilt Chamberlain also averaged a mind-boggling 50.4 points and 27.2 rebounds per game in different seasons. He owns the NBA’s top three scoring and rebounding averages in a single season.
Chamberlain had 50.4 PPG in 1961-62, 44.8 PPG in 1962-93 and 38.4 in 1960-61. "The Big Dipper" also had 27.2 RPG in 1960-61, 26.96 RPG in 1959-60 and 25.65 RPG in 1961-62.
LEBRON RECREATES ICONIC MOMENT
LOOK: LeBron James celebrates his historic feat of breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's all-time scoring record of 38,387 points by recreating Wilt Chamberlain's iconic NBA photo when he immortalized his 100-point performance 60 years ago. | 📸 AFP https://t.co/fG2E2RgWDo
The four-time MVP was such a fearsome and intimidating scorer that he still has his name scattered all over the NBA's scoring record. He retired nearly 50 years ago and yet the name Chamberlain is almost indelible.
The LA Lakers legend still has the most 50 point games(118), 60 point games (32) and 70 point games (6). Wilt Chamberlain's 118 games with at least 50 points is unimaginable.
Michael Jordan came in second with 31 and Kobe Bryant third with 25. LeBron James has 14 while Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has 10.
"Wilt the Stilt" is at the top of the leaderboard in 60-point games at 32. Kobe Bryant is second with six, while Michael Jordan has four. LeBron James had one such game when he had 61 points against the Charlotte Bobcats in 2014.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's single-game career-high in points was 55 in 1971.