Warriors Draft Wilt Chamberlain Four Years in Advance in NBA

researchlogo

November 28, 1955

Syracuse -- The Philadelphia Warriors of the National Basketball Association have been granted draft rights to schoolboys basketball sensation Wilt (The Stilt) Chamberlain four years in advance, it was disclosed today.

An apparently unprecedented vote by NBA officials on rights to Chamberlain was disclosed today by Joe Lapchick, coach of the New York Knickerbockers, and confirmed by Dan Biasone president of the Syracuse Nationals.

Lapchick called the seven-foot Chamberlain, "The greatest ball player in the game today." He added, "Everybody but my boss (Ned Irish) let him go to Gottlieb."

Ed Gottlieb is president of the Warriors. Lapchick said the Warriors "Already have one of the best groups of young players." He Continued:

"The league created a monster when it let Chamberlain go to Philadelphia. It was a grave error."

Lapchick said he feared that letting Chamberlain go to the Warriors would give the Philadelphia squad a huge advantage over other NBA teams and result in a loss of fan interest in the league.

Lapchick made the disclosure at a luncheon sponsored by the Syracuse Nationals for newspapers and radio men.

Chamberlain scored 2,252 points in three years of basketball for Overbrook High School in Philadelphia. He now is enrolled as a freshman at the University of Kansas, a Big Seven basketball power.

On Nov. 18, he played with the Kansas freshman against the varsity, getting 42 points on what he called an off night. He said, "I just couldn't hit." Besides 16 field goals, he dropped in 10 free throws and snatched 24 rebounds.

"The freshmen beat the Varsity, 81-71. Veteran Kansas coach, Forrest C. (Phog) Allen promptly called Chamberlain, "the greatest player in the world."

Lapchick asked Biasone why the officials had permitted the Warriors to draft Chamberlain in advance. Biasone replied:

"Chamberlain is a resident of Philadelphia, so Gottlieb had a territorial right to him regardless of where he went to college.

"And I think it might be as good for Gottlieb to have him go to Kansas than to be in Philadelphia competing against him at the gate on some college."

Neither Lapchick nor Biasone disclosed when league officials met on the matter. But NBA followers said they couldn't remember any time when a team was permitted to draft a player so far in advance and outside the normal draft regulations.

Source: Associated Press,

Add comment

Submit