Famous Basketball Heroes Take a journey through American Basketball history as we look at 5 Basketball legends who influenced the game for generations. Wilt Chamberlain Wilt Chamberlain was one of the greatest basketball stars of all time. His professional career spanned 1959-74, including stints at Philadelphia Warriors, Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Lakers and San Diego Conquistadors. Standing 7’ 1’’ tall, he was known as ‘The Big Dipper’ and ‘Wilt the Stilt’ and collected some extraordinary NBA statistical records throughout his playing career as a basketball league star. Chamberlain still holds many NBA individual single-game or season records. These records include most points scored in a game — 100. Chamberlain also remains the only basketball legend to total over 4,000 points in a season. Chamberlain also once notched up 55 rebounds in a single game. This game was during a season in which he averaged 27 rebounds every game, thereby also setting the all-time record for rebounds in one season — another record still standing today. For more on Wilt Chamberlain, visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wilt_Chamberlain Kareem Abdul Jabbar Basketball legend Kareem Abdul Jabbar enjoyed an incredible career, playing for Milwaukee Bucks from 1969–75 and the LA Lakers from 1975–89, and accumulating 38,387 career points. This is the highest total recorded in the NBA. Jabbar’s basketball league star status is reinforced by his winning an all-time record six NBA Most Valuable Player Awards, and playing on six NBA championship teams. He was especially renowned for his ‘Skyhook’ shot, which opposing defenders consistently found impossible to block. As he was leaving college, Jabbar was offered $1m to play for the Harlem Globetrotters, but he rejected them, and as first pick in the 1969 NBA Draft, was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks, in their second ever season. From then, his professional career grew consistently in success and stature. For more on Kareem Abdul Jabbar, visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kareem_Abdul-Jabbar Bill Russell Basketball legend Bill Russell is commonly referred to as the greatest defensive center to play the game. He is remembered for his role in the Boston Celtics squad that took 11 NBA championships in 13 seasons from 1956—69. Russell became the first basketball game star in NBA history to enjoy an average of over 20 rebounds per game throughout a season. He repeated this achievement 10 times in his 13 seasons at Boston Celtics. Indeed, Russell ranks a second only to Wilt Chamberlain in rankings for both regular season total points (21,620) and for average (22.5) rebounds per game. Russell’s 51 rebounds recorded in a single game is also the second best performance ever in the NBA (again second to Chamberlain's top score of 55). Russell is however the all-time leader in total (4,104) and average (24.9) rebounds per game in the playoffs. He even took 40 rebounds in three separate playoff games, and he never averaged less than 20 rebounds per game in any of his 13 playoff sessions. During his career, Russell also won five regular season MVP awards, and was named MVP in the NBA All-Star Game in 1963. For more on Bill Russell, visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Russell_(basketball) Oscar Robertson Oscar Robertson is considered by many in the game to have been one of the greatest basketball legends in history. Wilt Chamberlain once said ‘If you don't know the answer to an NBA trivia question, just say “Oscar Robertson” —you'll probably be right.’ His 14-year NBA career as point guard for the Cincinnati Royals and Milwaukee Bucks saw him much decorated. These awards included Rookie of the Year honors in 1961, three All-Star Game MVP awards in 1961, 1964, 1969, and the 1964 overall NBA MVP Award. Robertson holds the third best all-time average for points per game as a rookie, scoring 30.5 points per game. Statistically, Robertson's most successful season was 1961—62, during which he averaged a triple-double for the entire season: 30.8 points, 11.4 assists and 12.5 rebounds per game, an achievement that has never been duplicated. A true basketball league star, Robertson also averaged over 30 points per game in six out of his first seven seasons with the Cincinnati Royals. The only players in NBA history with more 30+ point per game seasons are Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain. For more on Oscar Robertson, visit: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_Robertson Michael Jordan Michael Jordan is a true basketball league star. His career of 15 NBA seasons has spanned three separate periods, from 1984–1993, 1995–98 and 2001-03, and two teams: Chicago Bulls (1984–98) and Washington Wizards (2001-03). Jordan ended playing with his regular-season scoring average standing at 30.12 per game, the all-time highest in league history (and slightly higher than Wilt Chamberlain’s career average of 30.06). Jordan won six NBA championships during his time with the Chicago Bulls, during which time he won all six NBA Finals MVP awards. He also won a total of 10 scoring titles, and was named league MVP five times.