Shaquille O'Neal vs. Wilt Chamberlain: both are the premier centers of their eras, but when they face off against each other, it's no contest

Rick Barry

I'M TAKING ADVANTAGE OF THE offseason to put together a "fantasy" matchup between two centers who never had the opportunity to face off against one another. Writ Chamberlain and Shaquille O'Neal. Both are outstanding centers of their generations, but to imply in any way that O'Neal is the equal of Chamberlain is blasphemous.

Some media members and fans have actually had the audacity to label Shaq as "the greatest center of all time." O'Neal is an excellent player and he's been fortunate to play in a large media market, for a successful team, during an era when NBA coverage is at an all-time high, but the greatest center of all time? He's not even close.

The obvious problem with comparing players of different eras is that they never had the chance to go mano-a-mano. Further, unless you have seen both play, you would not be able to make a fair analysis. You could also argue that the game has changed over the years. There have been rules changes, an increase in recorded statistics, the training techniques and nutritional regimens are better, and, of course, there were no chartered or private team airplanes hack in the old days.

So, even after taking all of these extenuating factors into consideration, I still have no problem saying that Shaq couldn't hold a candle to Writ in terms of an overall game.

There is no question that Shaq has the bulk. He is by far the most dominating physical presence the game has ever seen. But sheer size does not a great player make. I'll take Wilt over Shaq any day for athleticism, strength, finesse, and overall effectiveness as a center.

OK, you modern-day fans must think I am crazy. Please bear with me and I'll break it down for you category by category.

INSIDE OFFENSE

(Wilt 30, Shaq 9)

Can anyone tell me what O'Neal's go-to move is? The only answer here is the dunk Anything outside of five feet from the rim becomes an adventure for the big fella. Chamberlain could dunk elbow-to-elbow with anyone, but he also developed a nice touch in the paint particularly with his "big dipper" finger roll.

Although Chamberlain was a better overall offensive player than Shaq is, both have unstoppable inside games. Shaq is somewhat limited, because he doesn't have a go-to shot beyond a dunk. He's just so much bigger and stronger than everyone else that teams rarely can push him away from where he wants to be.

Perhaps a different way to illustrate the differences between these two is to say that Shaq could never score I00 points in a game. He just doesn't have the all-around skills to pull that off, as Wilt did.

OUTSIDE OFFENSE

(Wilt 7, Shaq 5)

As we step farther away from the rim--an area where a traditional center shouldn't spend much time in the first place--Wilt's advantage over O'Neal grows. Chamberlain's repertoire included a deadly fadeaway bank shot, which he consistently used to amass his incredible scoring output. It is difficult to even give Shaq a rating in this category without a smile on my face. His shooting form is atrocious; half the time it's pure luck when the ball actually goes in the basket.

FREE THROW SHOOTING

(Wilt 2, Shaq 2)

Oh Lord, give me strength when discussing these two abominable brick masons ... er ... free throw shooters. I can't decide which strategy would be more effective in defending these guys: Hack-a-Shaq or Whack-a-Wilt.

Neither player is known for his free throw shooting prowess. Shaq is shooting .537 for his career, with a career best of .622. Writ shot .511 for his career, with a peak season of .613. In the postseason, both centers suffered more: Shaq is shooting .518 and Writ shot an unimaginably bad .465.

Wilt even switched to underhanded for a while, although he never did it properly. If Shaq would switch to my underhanded style, I could have him shooting 70% or better in no time. This is the one category where there should be no disagreement from anyone. They both stink, and get what they deserve in the point totals.

TEAM DEFENSE

(Wilt 14, Shaq 12)

Chamberlain had outstanding mobility for a big man, and he was fast. Al Attles told me that Writ used to beat him down the floor in the sprints their team had to run during training camp. Because of his speed, Wilt's help defense was extremely good. Additionally, Shaquille is simply not as laterally mobile as Wilt, and that really makes a difference when it comes to weak-side defense and defending the pick-and-roll.

The intimidation factor must also come into play for any center. As a player, rd be more concerned driving into the lane against Wilt than Shaq. Wilt's shot-blocking ability made it extremely difficult to score on him when he was roaming the paint. There are numerous instances when a smart, aggressive player can simply beat O'Neal to the basket, or outmaneuver him. I'm being generous here by having She's total trail Wilt's by only two points.

INDIVIDUAL DEFENSE

(Wilt 14, Shaq 12)

O'Neal has made it apparent over the course of his career that he doesn't want to work consistently hard on defense. Sure, Wilt had his shortcomings, as do most offensive-minded big men when it comes to defense. However, against Writ, you knew that you had to be prepared to work hard to be successful offensively. He didn't just mail it in on some nights, like Shaq does.

Another thing that's worth mentioning here is that Chamberlain never fouled out of a single NBA game. That is truly unbelievable. You might think it was favoritism on the part of referees, but that's not the case. Writ received few gifts from referees in his career; he was simply smart enough to adjust his defensive game when he got into foul trouble. O'Neal does that to some extent, but "playing smart" and "Shaquille O'Neal" are two things you don't often hear uttered in the same sentence.

It's unfortunate that they didn't record blocked shots back in Chamberlain's day. His totals would have dwarfed O'Neal's meager total of 2.6 bpg. I also must point out that many of Wilt's blocks came against the man he was guarding, not just when helping out his teammates.

BALL-HANDLING/PASSING

(Wilt 9, Shaq 8)

Although the category includes ball-handling, I am going to limit my evaluation to passing. Both players are elite passers as big men. For crying out loud, Writ led the NBA in assists with 8.6 per game during the 1967-68 season. O'Neal is not the passer Wilt was, but he excelled in Phil Jackson's Triangle Offense, which relies heavily on passing ability out of the post. Both men demand attention when they get the ball inside and have proven to be capable of finding the open shooter on the perimeter.

DEFENSIVE REBOUNDING

(Wilt 10, Shaq 8)

This area is a no-brainer. Just look at the numbers registered by Wilt and compare them to Shaq. Wilt averaged 22.9 rpg for his career, with a season best of 27.2. Shaq's career average is 12.1. with a season best of 12.9. Then throw in the Dipper's 24.5 rpg for his 160 career playoff games and the Diesel's 12.9 average for his 158 and you should see the picture quite clearly. There is no way that Shaq comes close to being the force on the boards that Wilt was for his careen You can attempt to justify the huge discrepancy in the totals, but 10-plus rpg just can't be explained.

OFFENSIVE REBOUNDING

(Wilt 10, Shaq 9)

Since offensive rebounds weren't kept back in Wilt's days on the court, you'll just have to take my word for it that there is no doubt Chamberlain averaged more than the 3.9 offensive boards accumulated per game by O'Neal. Or, if you don't believe me, ask Hall-of-Famer Nate Thurmond, who played both with and against The Stilt during his career. With an average of almost 23 boards per game, Wilt would certainly have gotten at least five or more of those on the offensive end, especially since he was such a dominant scorer and was usually around the basket. Because I don't have an accurate total, to be fair, I'll have to give Shaq only one point less than Writ in this category.

INTANGIBLES

(Wilt 10, Shaq 9)

In terms of durability--an important aspect of playing the center position effectively--Chamberlain was an iron man. In his ungodly season of 1961-62 (50.4 ppg, 25.7 rpg), Wilt averaged 48.5 mpg (for those of you keeping score at home, that's actually more than a full game, per game). This was no one-season fluke either, because Chamberlain led the league in minutes played in seven seasons. O'Neal's durability, as well as his dedication to training, are subject to some serious questions.

I watched O'Neal in Game 4 of this year's NBA Finals. He was awesome. He played with energy, enthusiasm, power and a give-me-the-ball-I'll-carry-this-team mentality. Why doesn't he play that way every night? He is certainly capable of dominating any other center in the league. Why, then, has a Yao Miug or even an Eddie Curry been able to neutralize him on occasion? Chamberlain would never let himself be dominated by a lesser player, not for one minute.

Chamberlain was also knocked for lacking killer instinct and the fact that he wasn't a winner. Baloney. This assessment had little to do with his attitude, and more to do with the fact that his career was measured against Bill Russell's. Eleven rifles vs. two is one argument Wilt could never win, but he never had the personnel surrounding him that Russell enjoyed. Remember, it is Wills 1966-67 Philadelphia 76ers who are most often cited as the greatest team in NBA history. Had Writ been surrounded with Russell's level of personnel throughout his career, the marks fortifies would be rewritten.

I was probably one of Shaq's most outspoken critics when his name was placed on the list of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players. At the time, he had only been in the league a few years and I didn't feel as though he had proven himself worthy of a spot among the game's greatest. Since then, I am pleased to say that there is no doubt that Shaq deserves to be included in that prestigious group. He has shown that he is a dominant inside force who can win championships, and if I were playing today I would definitely want him as a teammate. Now if he would just work on his free throw shooting!

Rick's Scorecard

O'NEAL                        CATEGORY                    CHAMBERLAIN

9                        Inside Offense (10)                       10
      Both are among the most unstoppable forces ever to play.
5                       Outside Offense (10)                        7
            Wilt's extended range gives him an advantage.
2                     Free-Throw Shooting (10)                      2
        When they launch it up from the line, look out below.
12                        Team Defense (15)                        14
      Chamberlain's mobility makes him a better help defender.
12                     Individual Defense (15)                     14
         Desire is the main difference between players here.
8                    Ball-Handling/Passing (10)                     9
             Two of the best ball-handling big men ever.
8                     Defensive rebounding (10)                    10
      Wilt was one of the best rebounders ever to play the game.
9                     Offensive Rebounding (10)                    10
              You'd better box both of these guys out.
9                         Intangibles (10)                         10
        Wilt accomplish much more--against better opponents.
74                              TOTAL                              86

O'Neal and Chamberlain are rated relative to other NBA players,
with the maximum score in parenthesis.

Hall-of-Farmer Rick Barry is only player to lead the NCAA, NBA, and ABA in scoring. He won First Team All-NBA and All-ABA honors nine times, was the MVP in the biggest NBA Finals upset of all time in 1975, and was named one of the NBA's 50 Greatest players in 1996. He writes a weekly column for The San Francisco Examiner and hosts a daily talk show on KNBR in San Francisco.

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