The big guy is practically glowing as he enjoys the limelight, having been asked to provide his thoughts on the current condition of the game as well as his great playing career.
During All-Star Weekend in Cleveland in February 1997, the NBA was commemorating its 50 best players, and 60-year-old veteran Wilt Chamberlain was one of the stars of the show.
“Since we’re in Cleveland, would you mind if I asked you a few questions about the time you almost became a Cavalier?” I asked Wilt during our talk.
“You remember that, huh?” exclaimed the 7-foot-1 Chamberlain after pausing to let out a loud laugh.
Wilt said the team did want him to come out of retirement and play for them in November 1979, but he was unwilling to discuss specifics.
He remarked, “The Cavs weren’t the only ones who wanted me to come back to the NBA.” “They weren’t the first team to approach me about returning to the game, nor were they the last.”
“The teams that tried to get me in the last ten years are the Bulls, Cavaliers, Nets, Knicks twice, Sixers twice, Mavericks, Suns, and Clippers,” Chamberlain remarked before to earning the 1991 Living Legend Award from the Philadelphia Sports Writers Association.
In transition: Since the Cavaliers’ 1971 NBA debut, Nick Mileti has been their owner. Cleveland struggled in 1979, finishing 30-52, after making the playoffs three years in a row (1976–1978). As a result, Bill Fitch, the team’s first head coach and general manager, resigned on May 23, 1979.
Stan Albeck was brought on by Mileti as the team’s second head coach two months later.
That is the connection to Chamberlain.
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