When I went to Kansas, they had a 12-foot basket in the gym, because Dr. “My sergeant was higher than Michael Jordan’s. “What’s unfortunate is that most people regard the great leapers as being only the short guys who could dunk,” said the 7′ 1 & 1/8″ Wilt Chamberlain. Wilt himself confirmed that he was able to dunk on a 12 foot rim, saying: In fact, during the early days of the NBA it was seriously considered as a means of leveling the playing field between the big men and the rest of the league. The 12 foot rim used to be more than just something that got brought out during slam dunk contests. While playing at Kansas, Wilt was exposed to the 12 foot basketball hoop. He did this on back-to-back attempts in his mid thirties, while weighing around 300 lbs. To prepare you for just how athletic this man was, check out this clip of Wilt Chamberlain blocking the impossible to guard sky-hook by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. So the cards are somewhat stacked against us here but I have done a good amount of research and feel like I can definitely determine how high Wilt Chamberlain could jump. All we really have left is grainy videos shot from camera angles that leave a lot to be desired. The footage quality is also a big issue in determining the validity of that claim. The testing protocols and training methods to increase performance were in their infancy and because of that we don’t have anywhere near the data that we have now. Sports performance training as we know it was non-existent, making it difficult to understand just how great of an athlete he was. He played in an era that simply didn’t value or have access to the things we have today. Wilt Chamberlain’s vertical jump height has been claimed to be an astounding 48 inches, but the exact details of this incredible leaping ability is very unclear. If all of these Wilt Chamberlain vertical jump stories are true then this man was an all time level athlete. In his era he dominated and is widely regarded as one of the best players to ever play the game. The physical attributes here are just off the charts, Wilt Chamberlain possessed a coveted combination of size and athleticism by today’s NBA standards. That means he was nearly able to touch the rim from a flat footed position off of the ground. His standing reach was also measured while playing at KU and it came out to 9’6″. In fact, he was measured at 8’4″ while playing for the University of Kansas in 1957. I would say it’s a safe bet to assume that Wilt had a much greater wingspan than that. However, it is important to note that Muhammad Ali was also measured at the time and his wingspan came out to be 2″ shorter than his regularly measured length. His wingspan was confirmed on film as 7’8″ during a television appearance. Wilt Chamberlain stood 7’1″ tall and weighed 250 lbs as a rookie, before eventually bulking up to 276 lbs. Now before I can analyze the 48 inch vertical, it is important to understand his physical attributes so that we can better put his jumping ability into context. This is why I have set out to analyze the infamous Wilt Chamberlain vertical jump to determine if in fact he was able to leap 48 inches through the air. Impressive stuff, but because of the era that he played in there simply isn’t much information out there on his athletic abilities. In fact, he once claimed in an interview that in his prime his vertical was easily 46 to 48 inches.Įasily! At his stature that would mean that he was able to reach a higher max height than any other human in history. Wilt Chamberlain is said to have had a 48 inch vertical jump. But is that really true? What was Wilt Chamberlain’s vertical jump? The most popular of which is that in his prime Wilt had an amazing ability to jump high, like all time, best in the NBA high. There are many claims and stories surrounding his athletic prowess. With a nickname like “The Stilt” in the world of basketball, where athletes are commonly a foot taller than the average man, it is no wonder why this guy was something special. His physical stature as well as his accolades are still talked about to this day.
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