On This Date: Philadelphia Warriors' Wilt Chamberlain Accomplished A Nearly-Impossible Feat
Chamberlain recorded a career-high and NBA record 55 rebounds against the Boston Celtics
When NBA pundits discuss the greats, they often fail to mention Wilt Chamberlain.
Throughout his 14-year career, Chamberlain was a force to be reckoned with, especially when it came to scoring. But he was dominant in other areas, as well.
During just his second year in the league with the Philadelphia Warriors, he did what most people thought was impossible.
On Nov. 24, 1960, he grabbed a career-high 55 rebounds during a 132-129 loss to the Boston Celtics. Not only was it a career mark for Chamberlain but it also set the record for most rebounds by a single player in a NBA game, which has yet to be surpassed.
His rebounding performance was special in so many games. Not only did he play a full 48 minutes but he also logged in 34 points and four assists to go along with it. He also put it all together while matching up against Bill Russell, who is arguably one of the greatest defenders and rebounders of all-time.
Years later, a clip went viral of Chamberlain reflecting on his huge night.
“I got 55 rebounds against the Boston Celtics in one particular game,” he said. “The thing that I remember the most about the 55 rebounds was, when the game was over, I was probably more tired than I’ve ever been in my entire life. I was also probably as happy as I’ve ever been because not only did it help us to win a game (editor’s note; it seems Wilt’s memory is off here), but it was against the best rebounder I ever knew of, and against the best team to ever play the game of basketball. I knew that this is what I was supposed to do if I wanted to dominate the game, was to rebound.”
Even though it seems like records are being broken consistently in the NBA, this one might take longer to top.
Cory Nelson is a contributor to Fansided’s “Wiz of Awes”. He attended Northern Virginia Community College. He can be reached at corymckenzienelson@hotmail.com or follow him on Twitter @CKenzyNelson and Instagram @ckenzynelson