PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Olin Chamberlain will have the Oklahoma City Thunder game on TV and his phone nearby, just he does any time one of his uncle’s NBA records is getting challenged.
The family group chat tends to blow up a bit each time Wilt Chamberlain – that’s “Uncle Dippy” to Olin and others close to the late Hall of Famer – might have another record toppled.
The latest instance comes Thursday night when reigning league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander attempts against Boston to make it 127 straight games with at least 20 points. Chamberlain holds the record of 126 games from 1961 to 1963 — he even scored at least 20 points every game of the 1961-62 season for the Philadelphia Warriors.
Rooting on Gilgeous-Alexander from his Philadelphia home, 50-year-old Olin — his father, Oliver was Wilt's brother — has taken an active interest in keeping Chamberlain's legacy alive, including through a memorial scholarship fund. If one record falls, no worries, Olin says. There are about five dozen more NBA records that belong to Chamberlain.
“He has so many that one won’t affect it,” Olin Chamberlain said with a laugh. “He left such a legacy.”
Turns out, today's NBA stars are doing just fine keeping Chamberlain's name in the headlines.
Chamberlain’s record of 100 points in a game has stood since 1962.
Miami's Bam Adebayo scored 83 points, setting league marks for free throws made and attempted in a game, Tuesday night against Washington. That again put Chamberlain — 53 years after he played his last season — and his achievements at the forefront of the NBA. Kobe Bryant is No. 3 on the list with 81.
“Wilt, me, then Kobe, which sounds crazy,” Adebayo said.
Chamberlain's family remained proud of all that Wilt achieved on and off the court.
Michelle Smith, one of Chamberlain’s nieces, noted that the former 76ers star enjoyed getting involved in the community and never turned down an autograph request. She also believed that — unlike some former greats who want to stay cemented in the record book forever — that her uncle would be rooting hard for Gilgeous-Alexander to set the 20-point record and for others to continue to challenge that 100-point milestone.
“His name is there already. It's a chance for somebody to come up and break a record and be known to break his records,” said Smith, whose 90-year-old mother Selena was Wilt’s sister. "They feel good about it, as well. They made him like a God in basketball, so when people break his records, they feel some kind of way. They feel great like, 'Oh yeah, I'm up next to Wilt now.'"
Most of Chamberlain's records are still insurmountable in the modern NBA.
Just a few scoring records that seem untouchable: most points per game in a season (50.4 in the 1961–62 season); most 50-point games in a season (45 in 1961–62); most career regular-season 60-point games (32); and most career regular-season 50-point games (118).
“When people begin to speak about Wilt, they just can't believe all that he accomplished,” said Chamberlain's friend and 76ers' executive advisor to the CEO, Sonny Hill. “He never gets his just due. It's almost like he just scored 100 points. Well, 100 points is not the greatest thing that he did. He had a season where he averaged 50.”
The 89-year-old Hill — who called his friend “Dip,” — met Chamberlain when they were 12 years old playing in the Philadelphia Baptist Church league. Hill compared Chamberlain to a Paul Bunyon-type, a mythical figure in sports in large part because there's little video of his playing heyday. Much like the moon landing, even Chamberlain's 100-point game has been doubted because of the era it happened — though there is a radio broadcast of that night in Hershey, Pennsylvania.
Hill said he was pleased that games like Adebayo had or streaks like Gilgeous-Alexander is on happen because it raises Chamberlain's profile to a younger generation.
“It's another way of saying, well there was a Wilt Chamberlain,” Hill said.
Yet, some of Chamberlain's records have hit the hardwood. Notably of late, Joel Embiid set the 76ers' scoring record with 70 points in January 2024. Chamberlain's record of 68 points had stood since Dec. 16, 1967.
“Wilt never did this?” Embiid said in astonishment after the game.
Up next, a record Gilgeous-Alexander has chased since he dropped 30 points in a Nov. 1, 2024, game against Portland.
“It keeps the Big Fella's legacy alive when people get close to a record or even break a record,” Olin Chamberlain said. “I'm not one of those people that says, hey, I don't want to see anything broken. Don't get me wrong, that 100-point game, that's a legacy record. But the game is changing, these guys want to see their peers in the record books.”
Smith will keep tabs on the family chat where she says with a laugh her cousins “bust it up and take it to another level.” It's one where they root on Adebayo and Gilgeous-Alexander and all the rest who chase Chamberlain's records and a treasure chest full of his unbelievable feats.
“We are so proud to have that legacy because everyone doesn't,” Smith said. “To continue to just have him not being forgotten is key. His legacy and who he was is and who he was is still out there. People are still talking about him and want to still talk about him and know about him. That's the key.”
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