Pretty impressive work here
We’ve looked at Wilt Chamberlain’s startling athleticism a lot here. As you may remember, he set an astounding number of NBA records, including career scoring (since surpassed by LeBron James, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and four other players), single game scoring at 100 points, a career rebounding record of 22.9 per game, season scoring average at 50.4 ppg and on and on. He still owns 72 NBA career records and 68 by himself.
One record which he may own but is impossible to know for sure is the record for vertical leap.
Typically Michael Jordan is recognized for having the highest at a 48” vertical but Darrell Griffith matched that. Muggsy Bogues had a 44.3 inch leap.
Chamberlain at least matched Jordan and claimed that he had a 50-52” vertical. It seems impossible but in this video, former teammate Jerry West and Boston Celtic great Satch Sanders said that Chamberlain could touch the top of the backboard, which, with a 9-6 standing reach, would put him at about 48”.
This video features a photo that ingeniously was measured by pixels and gave Chamberlain a pretty verifiable 48.05” vertical. However, there’s no way to tell if he’s going up or going down or, possibly at his apex.
The article goes on to point out that he wore Chuck Taylors, which were basically trash for your feet. JJ Redick has been mocked for his plumber and firemen comment about older players, but the point stands when it comes to equipment. How well would Redick have played in Chuck Taylors?
The video further goes on to wonder what the Big Dipper might have done with modern day training and dietary knowledge. It’s possible that a Chamberlain today might have had, say, a 55” vertical.
As we’ve seen too, people who jump that high develop other issues like stress fractures. There is a limit to what the human body can withstand.
Then again, Chamberlain had a body like no other. There’s no telling what he might have done if he had been born in this century.
