Bill Walton told the story of Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain debating about who was the greatest basketball player of all time.
Bill Walton once described a difficult confrontation between Michael Jordan and Wilt Chamberlain. At the NBA’s 50th Anniversary Team Meeting in 1996, Michael and Wilt sat in the corner of a room and debated who was the greatest player of all time. Walton recalled that everyone else was having a nice time, joking with one other, but Wilt and Michael sat at a table and debated. (Original transcript of Bill Walton; video CC is inaccurate.)
(Original transcript of Bill Walton; video CC is inaccurate.) “We’re in this one room, with only 50 guys. Wilt and Michael Jordan stand in the corner. And they’re sitting around a table, talking about who the greatest player of all time was. They are going back and forth, and it is as intense as it can be. And we’re simply having a fantastic time. Bill Russell and Kareem are smiling, signing autographs, and taking photographs, demonstrating how fantastic this experience was. So now David Stern enters the room (and says, ‘Okay gentlemen, it’s time to leave.'”
“Everybody starts coming and lining up. And Michael and Wilt are still arguing at this table over here. So David finally says, ‘Come on, Wilt, Michael, we’ve got to get going’. So they stand up, and the talk ends. And Wilt, who always has the final say in everything, looked down to Michael and said, “Michael, just remember – when you played, they changed all the rules to make it easier for you to dominate.” When I played, they modified the rules to make it more difficult for me. There was no response or comeback. Wilt Chamberlain, oh my goodness.
