I’m so glad you posted about this, because it’s absolutely insane. This injury can ruin a NBA career. Pretty much did ruin Victor Oladipo’s career. Dante Exum was never the same.
Yet this freaking dude RECOVERED IN 4 MONTHS AND 11 DAYS. And this was in 1969. He was an absolute freak.
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u/IntelligentAd5460
pretty confident wilt has either the greatest media propaganda arm in history or he was a xman
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u/OThePlacesYouWillGo
7’1 280+ pounds, playing the full game up and down the court in Converses? Wilt was insane
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u/actually-potato
Wilt once had to exit a game after taking a nasty shot to the nards while going up for a dunk. In the locker room, the team physician diagnosed him with severe testicular torsion and said they had to rule him out. Wilt didn't say anything when he heard the bad news. He just looked the doctor in the eyes and reached down to jiggle his ballsack until his left nut untwisted itself. He rejoined the game after halftime and proceeded to put up the NBA's first and only quintuple double, which unfortunately was lost to time as blocks weren't tracked in that era
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u/JustAHorseWithNoName
They say Wilt got shot 10 times point blank before a game, and still managed to score 50 points
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u/ejiggle
Assuming the injury was actually a fully ruptured patellar tendon lol. Basically everything I read about Wilt I'm reasonably confident is propaganda
68
u/CookingLikeChef
Of all the wilt stories this might genuinely be the craziest and most impressive, people are impressed with tatum coming back early from an achilles tear but that injury might be worse and dude came back in just a few months.... and was productive? Actually criminal how this isn't talked about more if this is real
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u/kirito6521
At this point I’ll even believe Wilt is DB Cooper. Just feed me the propaganda and conspiracy theories
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u/sssSnakebite
I believe in conspiracy theories
I don’t believe in Wilt existing. He probably did, but I don’t think he did.
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u/texasphotog
That MF is not real.
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u/One-Masterpiece9838
I’m surprised he hasn’t scored 200. Jesus Christ. This man was a demigod
22
u/donkeyinparadise
Wilt probably pissed that it took that long lol
12
u/bikedork5000
Wilt would be the most freaky athlete in the league if he was in it right now. 7'1", 250+, and ran a 10.9 400m in addition to all the strength, jumping etc. Dude had athleticism to spare.
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u/eugoogilizer
Coming back to average 22 pts and 4.5 ast on a hobbled leg is insane enough, but also 22 RPG? Holy crap man…
8
u/SoNoHeadQuestionMarx
First Shai now Moody is coming for a Wilt record?
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u/OyeCorazon
We are talking about HUMANS here. I refuse to believe Wilt was human, hes a beast
7
u/nugentismycenter
Wilt Was not as only the strongest NBA player of all time but Arnold Swartzenegger said he was the strongest person he has ever met. Is Wilt Chamberlain HUMAN!? ● Strength Stories You Won't Believe - YouTube https://share.google/y40eHcy7q83aRv9zN
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u/redmostofit
I mean yeah anyone can recover that quick after injuring their right patellar tendon. I’ve just ruptured my left and that’s way different…
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u/BigHomieReese
Wilt got superpowers, can bang 10,000 women and recover from life altering injuries
4
u/Smok3dSalmon
Pretty compelling argument that players back then weren’t as athletic. Perhaps the floor was lower, but the ceiling might be just as high as today’s.
This is up there with Adrian Peterson’s ACL recovery.
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u/Puppetmaster858
I mean to be fair yes wilt is an absolute freak but I doubt he was fully healthy, if he was around today I’m sure the team would’ve kept him out a good bit longer. Definitely absolutely insane regardless and he’s likely one of the greatest physical specimens in human history but I’m sure he rushed back from that and modern medicine/doctors would not have had him return that quickly
3
u/Chuckieeee0
Fucking insane
2
u/RealPrinceJay
This is an injury that has ruined the careers of young players today with all the modern tech and medical advancements
Wilt was 33 at a time when 33 was really old as dirt in pro sports, medicine was nowhere close to what it is today, physical therapy is nowhere close, general training is nowhere close, and he popped right back midseason and had some dominant showings…
People try to categorize, understand, and downplay the things Wilt did, but in reality there’s a reason why only Wilt did them
I’ve always said he’s the closest thing to Hercules in real life, and maybe our culture’s last folk hero. He’s almost a mythological figure, each story more insane than the next, and yet a good chunk of them are true
2
u/EmergencyLavishness1
Some people just heal a bit quicker than others.
Now, I’ll say right here. I’m no wilt chamberlain. I’m white, short and currently fat.
But a few years back, I broke my femur. A straight crack from the base, about 6 inches up. I’ve got 6 screws still in there holding it together.
I was told, I’d be walking unassisted in 3 months. And rehab would start then. I had no job an needed money. So I opened a kitchen after 2 months. Still had the leg brace on limiting me to a 45• angle, using one crutch to get about.
I was back doing 50-60 hours weeks on my feet after 2 months. After the first week, I went back to the docs and said I need the brace off, cos I can’t move right with it on. I need more mobility for work. They flat out told me they’ll take it off, but very strongly suggest I do not work. Not should I be on my feet for more than 30 mins at a time.
Anyone that’s worked in a kitchen knows that’s not possible. But without this, I’m homeless and broke as fuck.
So I got it done. It wasn’t perfect. Pretty far from it. But there’s seemingly no long lasting effects from my stupidity to get back and work.
So it is possible to just ignore doctors orders, go about your daily life at 75% while it takes even longer to heal. Because you’re not doing the rehab and rest correctly.
Sometimes it’s just about need. Sometimes it’s about want(like wilt wanting a championship), and sometimes it’s just straight up fucking STUPID like me in my case.
2
u/Countryb0i2m
Wilt was taking a huge risk. You can’t out-train a ruptured tendon. They don’t get much blood flow, so they heal slowly far longer than four months no matter how hard you work or how athletic you are.
So just being on the court was a huge risk, and that’s before even considering the physical limitations. It’s honestly amazing he ever played at all
2
u/superrealaccount2
Is there anything Wilt didn't do, in some way or another?
2
u/penguin_torpedo
47.3 minutes per game
Lol that's ridiculous
2
u/HOFredditor
this is the final nail in the coffin for all the Wilt doubters. Wilt would translate in any era. He was a freak more than Giannis or any other freaks we've seen.
2
u/Justinian1228
Are we sure Wilt wasn't two different people? These stories are just insane
1
u/rocket_beer
So in those 4 months, did he increase his productivity?
1
u/NittanyScout
Let's hope Moody has a similar recover window. Hope hes back and hooping soon, it sucks his good season ended on such a shitter
1
u/MR_M33P
interesting!
1
u/MelonElbows
Wilt really isn't human, is he?
1
u/bmoneygetsbucks
Absolutely insane to hear. I tore mine my senior year of high school and and got surgery that July, I didn’t even get an officially practice in college in until after redshirting my whole freshman year and needing a two extra months into the summer practices.
1
u/QNIKET8
half these stories about wilt have gotta be fake i’m sorry