Phil Jackson Compares Wilt Chamberlain and Shaquille O’Neal

NBA: Playoffs-Los Angeles Lakers at Dallas MavericksPhil Jackson compared Shaquille O’Neal to Wilt Chamberlain Wednesday night. Phil coached Shaq in his days in Los Angeles, leading the Lakers to three consecutive NBA championships. Phil also played against Chamberlain and sometimes drew the assignment of guarding him.

Phil made the comparison in Glendale  at the Alex Theatre at his ” Live Talks Los Angeles” event according to the Los Angeles Times.

“Shaquille didn’t have quite the same athleticism that Wilt had,” Jackson said. “He had the bounce and he had the speed, but he didn’t have the endurance.”

In his latest book “Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success,” Phil made a lot of comparisons of Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan, but he also made comments to O’Neal that Chamberlain’s greatest accomplishment came in the 1961-62 season when he averaged 48.5 minutes a game. Phil challenged Shaq in their first season together in 1999-2000 to get into better shape and improve his endurance.

Jackson had this to say about how to defend Chamberlain, “one of the things we were taught, just get in Wilt’s path. He doesn’t like the offensive foul. If you take his shoulder and you fake an offensive foul, he really would stop being aggressive. That was the one thing that was kind of a limitation in Wilt’s game.”

—- Commemorate Phil Jackson, the greatest coach of all-time with this wallpaper! —-

Phil also said that Shaq was faster down the court, especially getting to the block whereas Chamberlain took a much slower path.

They both had moves that the other did not, according to Phil.

“Shaq had a jump hook whereas Wilt didn’t have a jump hook, he had an array of shots, he had a hook, a finger roll and a turnaround jump shot,” Chamberlain led the league in assists one year.”

While Phil compared Shaq and Wilt, he did say that they both shared the same flaw in their respected games – free throw shooting.

“Even then, at that time, you fouled Wilt if he was underneath the lane.”

No one really knows why Phil keeps on making these comparisons between some of the all-time greats, but one thing is for sure – even if Gregg Popovich and the Spurs win this season’s NBA Finals, there will not be a comparison of who is the greatest head coach in NBA history is.

—————————————————————————————————————–

Did you see our video about Dwight & Chris Paul wanting to team up? If not, check out our video below and don’t forget to click here to subscribe to our YouTube Channel!

You May Also Like

Lakers Rumors & News Recap: Too Much Money, Not Enough Talent

In the off-season, it’s been a general consensus for many fans and…

Anthony Davis: Lakers Found Their ‘Swag’ In Second Half After Warriors ‘Poked The Bear’

In a game that certainly lived up to the hype, the Los Angeles Lakers ultimately pulled out a win against the Golden State Warriors…

Lakers vs. Kings Preview: Lakers Look To Improve To .500

The Lakers took advantage of a Golden State team without Stephen Curry to…

Lakers Nation Roundtable: Which Acquisition Will Make The Biggest Impact?

The Los Angeles Lakers introduced their three big off-season acquisitions this week…