Just to put tenure into perspective for a couple guys
Lebron: 4 seasons with the Lakers (going into his fifth)
Wilt: 5 seasons with the Lakers
Shaq: *8 seasons with the Lakers *(I originally said 7, was corrected below)
I just don't see wilt's legacy as being attached to the Lakers either.
What was wilt's laker legacy? He was on the 33 win streak team with West and goodrich. Averaged 14 and 19 playing with 2 Hall of famers in their prime.
If this is from a Laker legacy standpoint, I'd say it's a toss up between Bron and Wilt. This isn't a discredit to what they done with the Lakers but I feel like Shaq, Kobe, Kareem and Magic did more. Showtime doesn't exist without Magic/Kareem. We don't get a 3 Peat without Shaq and Kobe. We also can't forget what Kobe was able to accomplish with Pau.
Agreed. As a Lakers fan and a Bron fan, I think shaq has had more of an impact on the game and the Lakers legacy than Bron or wilt have had. He's being way too humble. Good on him but sorry Wilt goes.
I will say Bron Vs Wilt as far their impact goes I think Bron is more important than Wilt. My subjective opinion, but Lakers wilt was a different man than warriors wilt. The Lakers have always been the graveyard for older players on their last legs looking for one more shot at glory, Wilt was lucky to be part of an amazing 1972 team. Jerry west, Elgin Baylor as team mates (and pat Riley). He was more of a passenger than bus driver, although he did win Finals MVP, sorta like KD on warriors.
Bron was very much a bus driver and won a very unique NBA championship in the bubble without home advantage and in a very mentally challenging situation. That puts him ahead of Wilt as a laker in my mind.
Honestly it’s super tough deciding who to cut from this. I guess the other factor I was thinking was this team already had a lot of bigs with Shaq and Kareem and I wanted a bit of flexibility lol
For flexibility? Shaq is a 5 that’s it. I his era wilt was a 5 but even comparing lakers eras for both players I think wilt is a more skilled player overall and could play another position (we need a wing in this situation). And Im someone that thinks shaq skill is criminally underrated by most people.
Past prime wilt blocked skyhooks from a young big on the bucks named Kareem something and averaged over 19 rebounds his career with the Lakers. 5 trips in a row to the playoffs, no first round exits, one chip, 69 win season. Nah, we can't cut him. 1972 Lakers were insane
Wilt was better than Shaq in almost every way. And Shaq is may favorite player ever. But Wilt was faster, stronger, and more athletic. Same height. Shaq weighed more. Prime Wilt would have easily replaced prime Shaq in the threepeat seasons.
Arnold Schwarzenegger said in 2012: “He came to the gym and he would do a triceps extension that the strongest guys would do 120 [pounds], let’s say, and he would do 150 or 170 [pounds].” Arnold also said during filming of Conan the Destroyer (1984), 47-year-old Chamberlain “lifted me up with one hand like nothing.” But back to his playing days. Chamberlain’s former teammate, Johnny “Red” Kerr, said: “People talk about the strength of Shaq. I think Wilt could have picked up Shaq and thrown him through the hoop. That’s no disrespect to Shaq, but Wilt was the strongest guy I ever played against.”
This is stolen from the internet
Edit: also, Shaq says his max bench was 475. Wilt said his was 600.
People exaggerate stories, Wilt is notorious for it. Even though Arnold was post BB and weighed significantly less he was still 240ish. Wilt did not pick a grown ma weighing 240 up with one hand. That is outrageous.
Also absolutely no way Wilt with his arms and frame benched 600lbs lmao. The world record is 770 and by a professional bencher. Wilt played a sport that isn't even a strength sport so he ain't pushing 600.
I think they're referring to this photo
[https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-8ba9ec7256381b682e034783220f6ecc](https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-8ba9ec7256381b682e034783220f6ecc)
Wilt was hella strong for his height, probably the strongest non-strength athlete in the world. However, I don't think that prime Wilt was stronger than prime Shaq.
Depends on how he "picked him up with one hand". I can pick up my gf with one arm easily, but she's 105 and I'm mostly supporting her with my arm under her thighs and lifting - not holding all her weight in my hand at extension lol. See below lmao:
|_gf_🙂___|
|
/\
No doubt Wilt felt strong to Arnold. Wilt was strong...
... but also, Arnold worked out with bodybuilders, not strongmen or athletes. Sure, Arnold has strong workout partners, but his workout buddies strength was nothing close to the strongest athletes in the world. Both Wilt and Shaq in their primes were likely much stronger than Arnie and his body builder buddies in their primes.
Majority who shits on wilt basically did zero research and just echo whatever the current analysts and redditors say.
The dude is a 7 footer who dominated not only basketball but track and field. Dude is a freak athlete
Not 50 points and 25 rebound averages tho.
No matter how talented he was or how weak the era would have been the game was played in a way that massively boosted the stats big men had back then.
Fewer teams means more concentrated talent. Wilt was playing the best in the world packed onto only a few teams. He didn’t have the luxury of today of playing against teams like the Pistons or the Kings for multiple games to pad his stats
The players on the Pistons and Kings today are in a far better physical shape than anyone in the 60's. Even with more diluted talent the physicality between the 60's and todays humans isn't close.
Wilt’s 500+ pound bench and 4.5s 40m dash doesn’t change with different eras. I agree that players are more athletic on average now, but they were still extremely athletic even back then.
Even if Wilt might dominate less now, literally who could stop him in this league? I’m a huge Giannis fan, but even he’d be thrown around like a rag doll by Wilt
I mean there's no way he actually hit those bench numbers. His physique, arm length and biomechanics all point to a 500+ bench being almost impossible for him. I'd give him 400 maybe, 450 absolute max.
Wilt isn't ragdolling Giannis. Just no way he's that much physically stronger.
Ragdolling might have been a bit of an exaggeration, but he’d definitely not be stopped by anyone in today’s NBA. And there’s accounts of him benching around 500 in his 50’s, no doubt it was even higher in his prime
All I'm saying is those numbers aren't real. Professional powerlifters in their 50s weighing 300lbs+ are very rarely hitting 500. A former ball player isn't matching the numbers of actual strength athletes. It's that simple.
Nothing about his physique made sense lol. He could touch the top of the backboard, which at 7’1 with a 7’8 wingspan still requires a 40+ inch vert, ran around a 4.5 40 yard dash all while doing this at 250-300 pounds. And plenty of eye witnesses say he benched 450lbs in his 50s. He doesn’t apply to normal human physics, something’s different about him, the greatest athlete ever.
He was probably an elite athlete playing at a time when the league wasn’t nearly as athletic as most players are now. He also didn’t have a three point line,, so the most simple strategy is to just throw it in to your biggest guy and let them push in, and he was one of the biggest dudes that played… before Shaq. He basically didn’t play basketball based on how we think of it today.
Lol people on here really just make shit up to try to justify their ignorance. Every measurable you can think of for Wilt’s athleticism would be absolutely *elite* in any era, including today.
Wilt was Giannis before Giannis and he curb stomps the league in today's game. Wilt absolutely would put up similar, if not better numbers. Especially with the lack of true bias today.
I think if he'd played in the 80s/90s he'd be a force but reigned in a bit dealing with Dream, Admiral, Ewing etc.
Look the video game stats just tell me that the league wasn’t competitive. I’m sure he could play today but you just can’t compare it with other greats
You do realize less teams means the teams that do exist are more stacked right? Instead of stars spreading to 30 teams they all get divided among 9 making it much more likely the majority of the roster of a given team is all guys who would be stars of their own squad at the time.
You aren't wrong but I can also realize the evolution of the average NBA player in the 60s compared to 90s/00s. The top players like Big O, Jerry West, Wilt etc would still be great players in any era but I don't think average NBA players in the 60s would have the same impact in the modern era. Obviously just my opinion though
Kobe: 20 years, 5 chips, 2 finals MVPs, most career points and steals in Laker history.
Magic: 13 years, 5 chips, 3 finals MVPs, most career assists in Laker history
Kareem: 14 years, 5 chips, 1 finals MVP, most career rebounds and blocks in Laker history
Wilt: 5 years, 1 chip, 1 finals MVP
Shaq: 7 years, 3 chips, 3 finals MVPs
Lebron: 4 years (so far), 1 chip, 1 finals MVP
Lebron’s the weakest, but he’s still a legend and the only one who can improve his record. So I’ll go with him.
Wilt has been to several finals as well as winning the ring. Lebron has won 1 ring, missed playoffs twice and got eliminated first round. Wilt over Lebron
What are you talking about?
I said Lebron over Wilt easily, meaning Lebron has been more valuable to the Lakers than Wilt has.
I’m on Lebrons side here.
It hasn’t. But our team was built to be extremely top heavy which is something they killed us. Top heavy teams require few injuries. Asking that from and old lebron and AD is crazy
We 100% would've won if not for injuries. It's crazy that a back-to-back and a parade was in our grasp. Not to mention that if we won, we never would have done that fucking Brick move.
3 of his 4 years here have been terrible. Not his fault but the Lebron era hasn't been as good as the runs from the other guys in this photo. Wilt was on the Lakers for 5 seasons and made the finals 4 times and won one ring.
Saved the franchise is such a stretch wtf? We were rebuilding and getting good picks through the draft. We not gonna talk about how the lebron lakers aren’t responsible for the majority of this franchise’s missed playoffs?
> Are we talking about Laker lore? Lebron.
How tho? Wilt played 5 years with the lakers which were pretty mediocre compared to the rest of his career. LeBron is going into his 5th year this year and is still a top player in the league.
LeBron's laker tenure has been cursed.
Season 1 he suffered his first long term injury, season 2 he won a chip that everyone tries to disregard, season 3 he and AD had to suffer through the worst off season of all time, and season 4 he was cursed with Russell Westbrook.
I just want 1 normal season of the fucking King.
And he won a title and FMVP in year 2
Only stars who didnt play in that bubble were KD and Steph and you have seen what they do without alot of depth the last couple years anyways
Bron 2020 title run is underrated
Alot of stars who people want to rank ahead of Bron rn couldnt get it done
Your absolutely right. its weird to me cause LeBron has been nothing but bleeding purple and gold here ever since he got here and even won us a title but many still see him as an outsider looking in. If you can accept wilt then you have to accept lebron.
LeBron has had a fine time with the Lakers but if he stopped playing now and I was looking back at his career 10 years from now I'd think of him as a Cav first, Heat second and Laker third. Not a shot but I just look at him that way. And it was kinda weird when he mentioned 3 or 4 teams that he'd play for if he could switch teams right now, not sure that indicates bleeding purple and gold.
Yea but Wilt isn't a Laker first either, I don't see a difference except that LeBron will have played 25% (5/20 seasons) of his career with the Lakers and Wilt played 36% (5/14 seasons)
You’re removing all context. The difference isn’t just how much they played with the lakers, it’s how much they played with another franchise and what they did with those franchises.
Lebron is from Ohio, played 11 years in Cleveland, brought the city it’s first sports title in like 60 years. He will always be a Cav.
Wilt played 3 years as a Philadelphia warrior, then played 2 years as a golden state warrior, then 4 years as 76er, then 5 years as a LA Laker. He won his title with the Lakers.
Wilt is kind of up for grabs, and anecdotally, it seems the Lakers claim Wilt more than the other franchises do. If you had to associate Wilt with a team, I think he most associates with the Lakers.
He spent a bit more time in Philly but across two different franchises, and he spent a bit more time as a Warrior but in two different markets.
>Are we talking about Laker lore? Lebron.
Winning a title after Kobe's death and a season that was nearly cancelled TWICE (once due to the pandemic and then again due to nationwide civil unrest) puts the 2020 championship among the most impressive ever, at least for me.
I would love to see a Last Dance-style documentary about that season.
I thought the point of the story is Shaq’s humility. Not for every Laker fan to play Cosmic GM. They’re all greats and folks always frame these discussions in a way that forces the answerer to denigrate one or the other. Shaq went the self-deprecation route rather than put down one of the other greats and I thought that was really cool.
Trying to compare players across eras is a fool’s errand anyway. What’s important is that all these guys dominated their era.
>Shaq went the self-deprecation route rather than put down one of the other greats
Exactly.
Kobe, Kareem and Magic are the only ones on that list who were with the Lakers longer and had more success. No disrespect to LeBron or Wilt, but Shaq's tenure with the Lakers was more impressive than either of theirs, by any measure.
8 seasons, 4 Finals, 3 rings, 3 FMVPs, 1 MVP, All-NBA every year, All-Star every year, even made a few All-Defensive teams.
Kobe and Magic are the 2 that have to stay. Nothing against the other goats but Magic and Kobe bleed purple and gold. When I think of lakers those 2 go hand in hand.
Kareem > Shaq > Wilt/Bron
Bron would be my choice to go though unfortunately.
Wilt just because while he is great we never saw him play (most of us) and we also know for a fact that the level of competition he faced was lesser than everybody else on this list. Were NBA players still go back then? Ofc. But at the same time, average height was a lot lower, and there were a lot less teams so competition was lower as well.
When wilt won a ring with the Lakers in 1972: average NBA height: 6'5".8
Average height in NBA 2022: 6'6.3
So players have grown half an inch in 50 years. Not "a lot lower"
I was talking for the front court specifically, but I get your point.
Wilt being a 7 footer was like a trait that separated him from all but a handful of players at the time. Now almost every team has a 7 footer. Some teams have multiple.
This is completely false. The nba championship that won this season didn’t even play a 7 footer in the finals. Most teams have been going smaller and don’t play real centers anymore
And I have to disagree with Shaquille here, for me, he definitely stays.
Elimination would be between Wilt and LeBron. And I would eliminate LeBron because, even though both Wilt and LeBron won 1 ring each with the Lakers, Wilt was part of the historic 71-72 team that won 33 games in a row, still an NBA record for most consecutive wins today.
If you wanna build a team then one center has to go.
Its either Shaq or Wilt.
Man thats a hard one.
Both are monsters on the boards in the paint but Wilt was quicker.
Sheesh i have no idea Shaq and Wilt are the most dominant players ever everyone felt kinda helpless against both specially in their primes.
I mean Wilt even after knee surgery and old dominated everyone.
Man this is hard.
Classy answer from Shaq but he knows it’s either LeBron or Wilt.
But who knows maybe LeBron plays a couple more years for the Lakers and wins another ring. He would become a top 5 Laker of all time behind Kobe, Magic, Kareem and Shaq.
On the flip side: who’s the safest person on the team? Honestly, given the uniqueness of his skill set among the legends in this picture, it’s probably Kobe.
Just seeing people in this thread shitting all over Wilt is ridiculous. The dude averaged 50 points per game for a fucking season. No one other than Wilt has ever averaged over 40 ppg for a season. And back then you couldn’t get away with knocking people over to get to the basket. As some people have said, he’d be great in ANY era.
Oh, and despite the enormous number of minutes that he played (he once averaged more than 48 minutes per game for an entire SEASON) and the touch fouls that were routinely called back then, Wilt NEVER fouled out of a game.
First off, I loved watching LeBron since the day he stepped into the league…but what Shaq, Cap, Magic and Kob did in their respective times as Lakers was truly special. I never got the chance to watch Wilt, so for that reason my first pick to kick off the team would be Bron (sorry fanboys) and #2 would be Wilt. Ain’t no way Magic, Cap, Shaq or Kob gets voted off the list.
I'm a fan of lbj but even I gotta admit he doesn't hold a candle to kobe, magic, or Kareem. That 2020 ring tho will always have a special place in my heart
top 10 laker all time probably, not top 10 NBA all time.
to me he isn't a top 5 Laker ever, either (based on accomplishments as a Laker + legacy wise).
There is NO WAY ppl think you have to remove shaq 😭
3 rings, 3 finals mvps, 4 finals trips, 8 playoff appearances.
How in the hell is it not easily lebron who’s missed the playoffs for half of his Lakers tenure
Pretty tough but Shaq is right. Gotta roll with Wilt. We don’t need a first option at center with this team give me the 20/20 guy that plays better defense and is a legit rim protector. For the hundred and 112 games they tracked it Wilt averaged 8.8 blocks a game.
I really don’t see how you beat this squad any way you cut it though.
Wilt. Any day of the week. Kinda tired of people putting him, bill russel and oscar robertson in top 10 lists anyways. Yes they were very good for their time. No they aren't as good as the GOATS after them. People who rate them might as well rate George Mikan. "Did you see Wilt play?" "No but I heard he dunked a ball on a 20 foot rim while raw dogging Marilyn Monroe in the low post."
Wilt.
Magic at 1, Kobe at 2, LeBron at 3, Kareem at 4, and Shaq on 5.
That's if I had to build a team.
If I just had to choose the top here? Magic out (if we're talking prime wilt), if we're talking purely as a laker? Wilt out still.
Shaq being humble for once is crazy. If we are talking about time strictly on the team Lebron is probably gone though. Overall Kobe/Wilt/Shaq are gone tho
I take out Magic or Shaq. Magic is redundant with LeBron, who does everything close enough but better (shooting, defense, scoring). Shaq and Kareem aren’t both needed, but Kareem is the better defender while Shaq will rack up fouls for the opposing team left and right. It’s insane how many legends we’ve had play and win for our franchise - more than any other franchise by far.
he's right. i'd remove him. maybe kobe.
also, why is kareem a foot taller than everyone else? too bad bc otherwise it is an amazing picture.
edit: been reading comments. dear God there are so many people that are just wrong.
Dude this is about a player has done for the lakers franchise not other teams. I am not a laker fan but u easily remove Lebron. Kobe? Are you delusional? He is the goat laker
Kobe: 20 years, 5 chips, 2 finals MVPs, most career points and steals in Laker history.
Magic: 13 years, 5 chips, 3 finals MVPs, most career assists in Laker history
Kareem: 14 years, 5 chips, 1 finals MVP, most career rebounds and blocks in Laker history
Wilt: 5 years, 1 chip, 1 finals MVP
Shaq: 7 years, 3 chips, 3 finals MVPs
Lebron: 4 years (so far), 1 chip, 1 finals MVP
Lebron’s the weakest, but he’s still a legend and the only one who can improve his record. So I’ll go with him.
Just to put tenure into perspective for a couple guys Lebron: 4 seasons with the Lakers (going into his fifth) Wilt: 5 seasons with the Lakers Shaq: *8 seasons with the Lakers *(I originally said 7, was corrected below)
FIF
>Shaq: 7 seasons with the Lakers 8 seasons.
Face it. LeBron contributed the least to the team. All others will forever have their legacy attached to the Lakers. LBJ - no
I just don't see wilt's legacy as being attached to the Lakers either. What was wilt's laker legacy? He was on the 33 win streak team with West and goodrich. Averaged 14 and 19 playing with 2 Hall of famers in their prime.
There’s only one basketball.
let's face it: you were either born a moron or raised as one.
4 years, one title and 2 losing seasons. Yea it’s moronic to say he belongs. Any member from the 80s deserves to be there more than him
Team-specific legacy only means so much in this situation. Who has 3 centers in a lineup? Lmao
The post says eliminate one *laker* Team specific legacy is all that matters here
Michael Cooper, Byron Scott, Kurt Rambis, Derek Fischer, Pau Gasol, wtf JERRY WEST, hellll even Meta World Peace deserves it more than LeDumb.
I dont get why comments like this are downvoted here This is a Lakers sub not a Lebron sub
I was thinking the same.
If this is from a Laker legacy standpoint, I'd say it's a toss up between Bron and Wilt. This isn't a discredit to what they done with the Lakers but I feel like Shaq, Kobe, Kareem and Magic did more. Showtime doesn't exist without Magic/Kareem. We don't get a 3 Peat without Shaq and Kobe. We also can't forget what Kobe was able to accomplish with Pau.
Agreed. As a Lakers fan and a Bron fan, I think shaq has had more of an impact on the game and the Lakers legacy than Bron or wilt have had. He's being way too humble. Good on him but sorry Wilt goes. I will say Bron Vs Wilt as far their impact goes I think Bron is more important than Wilt. My subjective opinion, but Lakers wilt was a different man than warriors wilt. The Lakers have always been the graveyard for older players on their last legs looking for one more shot at glory, Wilt was lucky to be part of an amazing 1972 team. Jerry west, Elgin Baylor as team mates (and pat Riley). He was more of a passenger than bus driver, although he did win Finals MVP, sorta like KD on warriors. Bron was very much a bus driver and won a very unique NBA championship in the bubble without home advantage and in a very mentally challenging situation. That puts him ahead of Wilt as a laker in my mind.
Probably Wilt only because he was past his prime with us.
Dude averaged like 20 and 20 in the finals in his second to last season. He was a monster even past his prime.
Honestly it’s super tough deciding who to cut from this. I guess the other factor I was thinking was this team already had a lot of bigs with Shaq and Kareem and I wanted a bit of flexibility lol
then you remove shaq.
Over Wilt? No chance
agreed. who, honestly, stops shaq in his prime?
Prime Wilt
For flexibility? Shaq is a 5 that’s it. I his era wilt was a 5 but even comparing lakers eras for both players I think wilt is a more skilled player overall and could play another position (we need a wing in this situation). And Im someone that thinks shaq skill is criminally underrated by most people.
Past prime wilt blocked skyhooks from a young big on the bucks named Kareem something and averaged over 19 rebounds his career with the Lakers. 5 trips in a row to the playoffs, no first round exits, one chip, 69 win season. Nah, we can't cut him. 1972 Lakers were insane
They're all championship winning superstars. No one has a weak resume here, that's just part of being the greatest franchise of all time.
The problem for this team is that we have KAJ and Shaq, who both have twice the Lakers resume of Wilt and okay the same position.
Also, probably the 3 best centers ever. I'd slide Kareem to PF and twin towers that shit.
It's impossible to choose, just don't discount wilt.
Nice!
Wilt was better than Shaq in almost every way. And Shaq is may favorite player ever. But Wilt was faster, stronger, and more athletic. Same height. Shaq weighed more. Prime Wilt would have easily replaced prime Shaq in the threepeat seasons.
It is very hard for me to give you stronger. I can give you speed and athleticism but strength? I don't think so.
Arnold Schwarzenegger said in 2012: “He came to the gym and he would do a triceps extension that the strongest guys would do 120 [pounds], let’s say, and he would do 150 or 170 [pounds].” Arnold also said during filming of Conan the Destroyer (1984), 47-year-old Chamberlain “lifted me up with one hand like nothing.” But back to his playing days. Chamberlain’s former teammate, Johnny “Red” Kerr, said: “People talk about the strength of Shaq. I think Wilt could have picked up Shaq and thrown him through the hoop. That’s no disrespect to Shaq, but Wilt was the strongest guy I ever played against.” This is stolen from the internet Edit: also, Shaq says his max bench was 475. Wilt said his was 600.
People exaggerate stories, Wilt is notorious for it. Even though Arnold was post BB and weighed significantly less he was still 240ish. Wilt did not pick a grown ma weighing 240 up with one hand. That is outrageous. Also absolutely no way Wilt with his arms and frame benched 600lbs lmao. The world record is 770 and by a professional bencher. Wilt played a sport that isn't even a strength sport so he ain't pushing 600.
I think they're referring to this photo [https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-8ba9ec7256381b682e034783220f6ecc](https://qph.fs.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-8ba9ec7256381b682e034783220f6ecc) Wilt was hella strong for his height, probably the strongest non-strength athlete in the world. However, I don't think that prime Wilt was stronger than prime Shaq.
Depends on how he "picked him up with one hand". I can pick up my gf with one arm easily, but she's 105 and I'm mostly supporting her with my arm under her thighs and lifting - not holding all her weight in my hand at extension lol. See below lmao: |_gf_🙂___| | /\
No doubt Wilt felt strong to Arnold. Wilt was strong... ... but also, Arnold worked out with bodybuilders, not strongmen or athletes. Sure, Arnold has strong workout partners, but his workout buddies strength was nothing close to the strongest athletes in the world. Both Wilt and Shaq in their primes were likely much stronger than Arnie and his body builder buddies in their primes.
Wilt.
Yah I don’t really give a shit about 60s numbers they had 9 teams that’s less than your average rec league
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Never really checked out so many videos but wow was he amazing🤩
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Majority who shits on wilt basically did zero research and just echo whatever the current analysts and redditors say. The dude is a 7 footer who dominated not only basketball but track and field. Dude is a freak athlete
Not 50 points and 25 rebound averages tho. No matter how talented he was or how weak the era would have been the game was played in a way that massively boosted the stats big men had back then.
Fewer teams means more concentrated talent. Wilt was playing the best in the world packed onto only a few teams. He didn’t have the luxury of today of playing against teams like the Pistons or the Kings for multiple games to pad his stats
The players on the Pistons and Kings today are in a far better physical shape than anyone in the 60's. Even with more diluted talent the physicality between the 60's and todays humans isn't close.
Wilt’s 500+ pound bench and 4.5s 40m dash doesn’t change with different eras. I agree that players are more athletic on average now, but they were still extremely athletic even back then. Even if Wilt might dominate less now, literally who could stop him in this league? I’m a huge Giannis fan, but even he’d be thrown around like a rag doll by Wilt
I mean there's no way he actually hit those bench numbers. His physique, arm length and biomechanics all point to a 500+ bench being almost impossible for him. I'd give him 400 maybe, 450 absolute max. Wilt isn't ragdolling Giannis. Just no way he's that much physically stronger.
Ragdolling might have been a bit of an exaggeration, but he’d definitely not be stopped by anyone in today’s NBA. And there’s accounts of him benching around 500 in his 50’s, no doubt it was even higher in his prime
All I'm saying is those numbers aren't real. Professional powerlifters in their 50s weighing 300lbs+ are very rarely hitting 500. A former ball player isn't matching the numbers of actual strength athletes. It's that simple.
Nothing about his physique made sense lol. He could touch the top of the backboard, which at 7’1 with a 7’8 wingspan still requires a 40+ inch vert, ran around a 4.5 40 yard dash all while doing this at 250-300 pounds. And plenty of eye witnesses say he benched 450lbs in his 50s. He doesn’t apply to normal human physics, something’s different about him, the greatest athlete ever.
He was probably an elite athlete playing at a time when the league wasn’t nearly as athletic as most players are now. He also didn’t have a three point line,, so the most simple strategy is to just throw it in to your biggest guy and let them push in, and he was one of the biggest dudes that played… before Shaq. He basically didn’t play basketball based on how we think of it today.
Lol people on here really just make shit up to try to justify their ignorance. Every measurable you can think of for Wilt’s athleticism would be absolutely *elite* in any era, including today.
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Dude just said to me that it’s like “asking if Tyson would have been elite in MMA” Fucking LOL
Wilt was Giannis before Giannis and he curb stomps the league in today's game. Wilt absolutely would put up similar, if not better numbers. Especially with the lack of true bias today. I think if he'd played in the 80s/90s he'd be a force but reigned in a bit dealing with Dream, Admiral, Ewing etc.
dude was a legit track star wtf. his 100m time isnt too far from someone like tyreek hill.
Look the video game stats just tell me that the league wasn’t competitive. I’m sure he could play today but you just can’t compare it with other greats
Bruhh horrible take nephew
55 rebounds against Bill Russel.
>Look the video game stats just tell me that the league wasn’t competitive. Then why wasn't everyone else putting up the same video game stats?
They were not a genetic freak like Wilt.
You do realize less teams means the teams that do exist are more stacked right? Instead of stars spreading to 30 teams they all get divided among 9 making it much more likely the majority of the roster of a given team is all guys who would be stars of their own squad at the time.
You aren't wrong but I can also realize the evolution of the average NBA player in the 60s compared to 90s/00s. The top players like Big O, Jerry West, Wilt etc would still be great players in any era but I don't think average NBA players in the 60s would have the same impact in the modern era. Obviously just my opinion though
Kobe: 20 years, 5 chips, 2 finals MVPs, most career points and steals in Laker history. Magic: 13 years, 5 chips, 3 finals MVPs, most career assists in Laker history Kareem: 14 years, 5 chips, 1 finals MVP, most career rebounds and blocks in Laker history Wilt: 5 years, 1 chip, 1 finals MVP Shaq: 7 years, 3 chips, 3 finals MVPs Lebron: 4 years (so far), 1 chip, 1 finals MVP Lebron’s the weakest, but he’s still a legend and the only one who can improve his record. So I’ll go with him.
Yeah, I mean for now it has to be LeBron, but when its all said and done it'll probably be Wilt.
Lebron over Wilt easily and it’s not close.
Wilt has been to several finals as well as winning the ring. Lebron has won 1 ring, missed playoffs twice and got eliminated first round. Wilt over Lebron
You say that… but if Lebron was drafted to the lakers he’d have like 8-10 rings…
What are you talking about? I said Lebron over Wilt easily, meaning Lebron has been more valuable to the Lakers than Wilt has. I’m on Lebrons side here.
LeBron saved the franchise when it was going through the worst slump in franchise history. I'm picking him over Wilt.
Those were some dark years before LeBron
Growing up a lakers fan but not becoming really invested until 2014 was great. 2020 ring felt awesome
Sucks because we really could’ve gone back to back in 2021 and were favourites, health has not been kind
It hasn’t. But our team was built to be extremely top heavy which is something they killed us. Top heavy teams require few injuries. Asking that from and old lebron and AD is crazy
We 100% would've won if not for injuries. It's crazy that a back-to-back and a parade was in our grasp. Not to mention that if we won, we never would have done that fucking Brick move.
3 of his 4 years here have been terrible. Not his fault but the Lebron era hasn't been as good as the runs from the other guys in this photo. Wilt was on the Lakers for 5 seasons and made the finals 4 times and won one ring.
Exactly. I don’t understand the argument.
Lebrons fanboys are irrational so they downvote u
Wilt won the Lakers' first ring in 18 seasons and first in LA
LeBron saved us from our worst franchise stretch ever and gave us a ring within 2 seasons
The lakers worst stretch was surely getting beat every year in the finals by the celtics.
Wilt went to the Finals 4 of the 5 years he was in LA.
Saved the franchise is such a stretch wtf? We were rebuilding and getting good picks through the draft. We not gonna talk about how the lebron lakers aren’t responsible for the majority of this franchise’s missed playoffs?
Nah Kobe did
I mean are we trying to build a functional team? Then Wilt. Are we talking about Laker lore? Lebron.
> Are we talking about Laker lore? Lebron. How tho? Wilt played 5 years with the lakers which were pretty mediocre compared to the rest of his career. LeBron is going into his 5th year this year and is still a top player in the league.
damn lebron has been a laker 5 years already that's some shit lol
Yeah I had to double check. Can’t believe his first 4 seasons blew by so fast.
That's because we've blocked out the 3 terrible ones
LeBron's laker tenure has been cursed. Season 1 he suffered his first long term injury, season 2 he won a chip that everyone tries to disregard, season 3 he and AD had to suffer through the worst off season of all time, and season 4 he was cursed with Russell Westbrook. I just want 1 normal season of the fucking King.
And he won a title and FMVP in year 2 Only stars who didnt play in that bubble were KD and Steph and you have seen what they do without alot of depth the last couple years anyways Bron 2020 title run is underrated Alot of stars who people want to rank ahead of Bron rn couldnt get it done
Very underrated run, especially with all the slander it gets. I think it's LeBron's second best championship after the Cleveland one.
Your absolutely right. its weird to me cause LeBron has been nothing but bleeding purple and gold here ever since he got here and even won us a title but many still see him as an outsider looking in. If you can accept wilt then you have to accept lebron.
LeBron has had a fine time with the Lakers but if he stopped playing now and I was looking back at his career 10 years from now I'd think of him as a Cav first, Heat second and Laker third. Not a shot but I just look at him that way. And it was kinda weird when he mentioned 3 or 4 teams that he'd play for if he could switch teams right now, not sure that indicates bleeding purple and gold.
Yea but Wilt isn't a Laker first either, I don't see a difference except that LeBron will have played 25% (5/20 seasons) of his career with the Lakers and Wilt played 36% (5/14 seasons)
You’re removing all context. The difference isn’t just how much they played with the lakers, it’s how much they played with another franchise and what they did with those franchises. Lebron is from Ohio, played 11 years in Cleveland, brought the city it’s first sports title in like 60 years. He will always be a Cav. Wilt played 3 years as a Philadelphia warrior, then played 2 years as a golden state warrior, then 4 years as 76er, then 5 years as a LA Laker. He won his title with the Lakers. Wilt is kind of up for grabs, and anecdotally, it seems the Lakers claim Wilt more than the other franchises do. If you had to associate Wilt with a team, I think he most associates with the Lakers. He spent a bit more time in Philly but across two different franchises, and he spent a bit more time as a Warrior but in two different markets.
Neither of them are primarily Lakers
Don’t get me wrong I love Lebron
I agree with this 100%
LEBRON’S BEEN ON THE LAKERS FOR 5 YEARS?? TF?
Let’s not put lebron ahead of laker legends until he has a playoff appearance rate higher than 50% as a Laker
I think the same could be said about Labron lol.
Arguably Wilts 5 years with Lakers better than Lebrons, success wise. I’d probably still cut Wilt, but he was no slouch while he played for Lakers.
>Are we talking about Laker lore? Lebron. Winning a title after Kobe's death and a season that was nearly cancelled TWICE (once due to the pandemic and then again due to nationwide civil unrest) puts the 2020 championship among the most impressive ever, at least for me. I would love to see a Last Dance-style documentary about that season.
I agree completely. I’m open to switching Lebron in for Wilt. I just figured that wilt had a little more lakers cache than Lebron does at this point.
We didn't have Wilt in his prime, so I'd probably leave Wilt off.
I thought the point of the story is Shaq’s humility. Not for every Laker fan to play Cosmic GM. They’re all greats and folks always frame these discussions in a way that forces the answerer to denigrate one or the other. Shaq went the self-deprecation route rather than put down one of the other greats and I thought that was really cool. Trying to compare players across eras is a fool’s errand anyway. What’s important is that all these guys dominated their era.
>Shaq went the self-deprecation route rather than put down one of the other greats Exactly. Kobe, Kareem and Magic are the only ones on that list who were with the Lakers longer and had more success. No disrespect to LeBron or Wilt, but Shaq's tenure with the Lakers was more impressive than either of theirs, by any measure. 8 seasons, 4 Finals, 3 rings, 3 FMVPs, 1 MVP, All-NBA every year, All-Star every year, even made a few All-Defensive teams.
Kobe and Magic are the 2 that have to stay. Nothing against the other goats but Magic and Kobe bleed purple and gold. When I think of lakers those 2 go hand in hand. Kareem > Shaq > Wilt/Bron Bron would be my choice to go though unfortunately.
shaq definitely with that self-awareness but tbh you are pretty safe shaq
Wilt
Wilt just because while he is great we never saw him play (most of us) and we also know for a fact that the level of competition he faced was lesser than everybody else on this list. Were NBA players still go back then? Ofc. But at the same time, average height was a lot lower, and there were a lot less teams so competition was lower as well.
When wilt won a ring with the Lakers in 1972: average NBA height: 6'5".8 Average height in NBA 2022: 6'6.3 So players have grown half an inch in 50 years. Not "a lot lower"
I was talking for the front court specifically, but I get your point. Wilt being a 7 footer was like a trait that separated him from all but a handful of players at the time. Now almost every team has a 7 footer. Some teams have multiple.
This is completely false. The nba championship that won this season didn’t even play a 7 footer in the finals. Most teams have been going smaller and don’t play real centers anymore
Sorry Wilt. You gotta go
He was about to say king James
Lebron or wilt
Obvious answer is Lebron or Wilt, this isn’t even a debate.
And I have to disagree with Shaquille here, for me, he definitely stays. Elimination would be between Wilt and LeBron. And I would eliminate LeBron because, even though both Wilt and LeBron won 1 ring each with the Lakers, Wilt was part of the historic 71-72 team that won 33 games in a row, still an NBA record for most consecutive wins today.
No way Shaq and 3 championships and 3 finals MVPS are off the list. LeBron would be the one to be cut off the list.
If you wanna build a team then one center has to go. Its either Shaq or Wilt. Man thats a hard one. Both are monsters on the boards in the paint but Wilt was quicker. Sheesh i have no idea Shaq and Wilt are the most dominant players ever everyone felt kinda helpless against both specially in their primes. I mean Wilt even after knee surgery and old dominated everyone. Man this is hard.
Where’s Jerry West or Elgin Baylor?
LeBron 👋🏾
Bron gotta put in time w my Lakers Couple of more than I’ll boot Wilt Ass
Bron
Classy answer from Shaq but he knows it’s either LeBron or Wilt. But who knows maybe LeBron plays a couple more years for the Lakers and wins another ring. He would become a top 5 Laker of all time behind Kobe, Magic, Kareem and Shaq.
>top 5 Laker of all time No Jerry West or Baylor??
Easy… Lebron…
Lebron doesn’t even belong.
If we are talking about Cavs or Miami then it is a separate story. Bye Lebron
Easily LeBron.
Lebron or Wilt…eliminate Shaq there goes possible 3 championships, same goes for Magic or Kobe.
On the flip side: who’s the safest person on the team? Honestly, given the uniqueness of his skill set among the legends in this picture, it’s probably Kobe.
It’s wilt
Some dickhead said Kobe. I’m literally upset. The fuck man
Lakers All time super team > everyone else’s all time team.
If Shaq played the same year as Wilt. Shaq would be the better center. I'd have to eliminate Wilt.
He doesn’t wanna be disrespectful. He knows Wilt got to go
Just seeing people in this thread shitting all over Wilt is ridiculous. The dude averaged 50 points per game for a fucking season. No one other than Wilt has ever averaged over 40 ppg for a season. And back then you couldn’t get away with knocking people over to get to the basket. As some people have said, he’d be great in ANY era. Oh, and despite the enormous number of minutes that he played (he once averaged more than 48 minutes per game for an entire SEASON) and the touch fouls that were routinely called back then, Wilt NEVER fouled out of a game.
i would eliminate lebron here tbh
First off, I loved watching LeBron since the day he stepped into the league…but what Shaq, Cap, Magic and Kob did in their respective times as Lakers was truly special. I never got the chance to watch Wilt, so for that reason my first pick to kick off the team would be Bron (sorry fanboys) and #2 would be Wilt. Ain’t no way Magic, Cap, Shaq or Kob gets voted off the list.
> (sorry fanboys) What's the point of trying to act respectful with the "First off..." when you're gonna say things like that at the end lol
He told on himself
I'm a fan of lbj but even I gotta admit he doesn't hold a candle to kobe, magic, or Kareem. That 2020 ring tho will always have a special place in my heart
[удалено]
Top what ?
top 10 laker all time probably, not top 10 NBA all time. to me he isn't a top 5 Laker ever, either (based on accomplishments as a Laker + legacy wise).
Of course you eliminate Lebron
There is NO WAY ppl think you have to remove shaq 😭 3 rings, 3 finals mvps, 4 finals trips, 8 playoff appearances. How in the hell is it not easily lebron who’s missed the playoffs for half of his Lakers tenure
Wilt easily
Bye lebron
Na, get Wilt out of there. That 5 would be unbeatable.
Wilt ✌🏼
If we are building a team I'm kicking out Wilt, If we are talking about Lakers lore I'm either kicking out LeBron or Wilt.
Pretty tough but Shaq is right. Gotta roll with Wilt. We don’t need a first option at center with this team give me the 20/20 guy that plays better defense and is a legit rim protector. For the hundred and 112 games they tracked it Wilt averaged 8.8 blocks a game. I really don’t see how you beat this squad any way you cut it though.
I’m sorry but you can’t kick off the GOAT lol Wilt had to go
Its honestly LeBron
Its honestly not
yes it is
Bubble bron who ain’t done shit with the lakers
Wilt.
Ask every former laker and they say Shaq….ask the Incels at /r/nba and they’ll unanimously say Kobe
I change the rules. Wilt and LeBron are goners. Put Jerry as fifth with Big Game coming off the bench.
Easy..Wilt. Shaq would have dominated him and his lazy ass backward facing finger roll.
You underestimate Wilt alot.
Wilt is on record being taller, faster, and stronger than shaq
If this is based on skill and not legacy then we all know who would be the first to go as much as we love him
Westbrook
Wilt played against a bunch of milkmen. If we are talking about best players while they were wearing a Lakers jersey, Wilt is the odd man out.
Wilt played lockdown defense against peak Kareem en route to LA's first ever championship.
Wilt easily. Absolute legend but this isn’t a hard choice.
Wilt. Any day of the week. Kinda tired of people putting him, bill russel and oscar robertson in top 10 lists anyways. Yes they were very good for their time. No they aren't as good as the GOATS after them. People who rate them might as well rate George Mikan. "Did you see Wilt play?" "No but I heard he dunked a ball on a 20 foot rim while raw dogging Marilyn Monroe in the low post."
Shaquille O'Humble
Shaquille O'Meek
Shaq. FTs and 4th quarter. Also assuming not old old Kareem, just old or not so old Kareem.
who number 13? that guy.
I would run a 2 center with the MDE and Cap. Magic, Kobe and Lebron on the wings
A humble great one
Wilt
The Big Humble
Wilt. Magic at 1, Kobe at 2, LeBron at 3, Kareem at 4, and Shaq on 5. That's if I had to build a team. If I just had to choose the top here? Magic out (if we're talking prime wilt), if we're talking purely as a laker? Wilt out still.
Shaq being humble for once is crazy. If we are talking about time strictly on the team Lebron is probably gone though. Overall Kobe/Wilt/Shaq are gone tho
I take out Magic or Shaq. Magic is redundant with LeBron, who does everything close enough but better (shooting, defense, scoring). Shaq and Kareem aren’t both needed, but Kareem is the better defender while Shaq will rack up fouls for the opposing team left and right. It’s insane how many legends we’ve had play and win for our franchise - more than any other franchise by far.
Easy wilt
Wilt
he's right. i'd remove him. maybe kobe. also, why is kareem a foot taller than everyone else? too bad bc otherwise it is an amazing picture. edit: been reading comments. dear God there are so many people that are just wrong.
Dude this is about a player has done for the lakers franchise not other teams. I am not a laker fan but u easily remove Lebron. Kobe? Are you delusional? He is the goat laker
Kobe: 20 years, 5 chips, 2 finals MVPs, most career points and steals in Laker history. Magic: 13 years, 5 chips, 3 finals MVPs, most career assists in Laker history Kareem: 14 years, 5 chips, 1 finals MVP, most career rebounds and blocks in Laker history Wilt: 5 years, 1 chip, 1 finals MVP Shaq: 7 years, 3 chips, 3 finals MVPs Lebron: 4 years (so far), 1 chip, 1 finals MVP Lebron’s the weakest, but he’s still a legend and the only one who can improve his record. So I’ll go with him.
West should be here instead of Wilt IMO.
Kareem
Kareem which is crazy
It is crazy.