Top 25 rookie seasons in NBA history: No. 1 Wilt Chamberlain

The greatest rookie seasons in NBA history share a number of qualities, starting with individual statistical dominance. However, you can't overlook the context beyond the box score; initial expectations, team success, and overall legacy all matter.

While we wait for the 2019-20 season to resume, theScore's NBA editors have dusted off the record books to determine the top 25 rookie seasons in league history.

No. 1 in our series is Philadelphia Warriors phenom Wilt Chamberlain. Catch up on previous posts in the series here.

Before the Association

Chamberlain was a physical anomaly. "The Big Dipper" began his time at Kansas measuring in at a gargantuan 7-foot-1 and 250 pounds - he would bulk up to around 300 pounds during his NBA career - yet he possessed immense grace and body control.

Between his sophomore and junior seasons (freshmen were not allowed to play varsity ball in those days), Chamberlain averaged 29.9 points and 18.3 rebounds per contest. He was a consensus first-team All-American in both years.

His peak with the Jayhawks came in 1957 when he led the team to the national championship game. North Carolina emerged victorious in triple overtime, but Wilt was named the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player.

Kansas fell short of the Big Eight championship in his junior year, meaning there would be no opportunity for a repeat NCAA Tournament run. Disillusioned, Chamberlain skipped his senior year and spent the 1958-59 season touring with the Harlem Globetrotters due to eligibility requirements.

Draft day

The then-Philadelphia Warriors weren't leaving anything up to chance. Although Chamberlain played collegiately in Kansas, Warriors owner Eddie Gottlieb argued years prior to the 1959 draft that his popularity as a high school player in Philadelphia entitled the team to his professional rights via the territorial pick provision, which was designed to keep homegrown stars near their college markets. The league agreed, allowing Philadelphia to select Chamberlain before the draft even started.

There were a handful of longtime NBA players selected in 1959 - including second overall pick Bailey Howell, a Hall of Famer in his own right - but none compared to Chamberlain.

Individual success

Let's get right down to it. The reason theScore's basketball news editors unanimously voted Chamberlain's 1959-60 season as the greatest rookie campaign in NBA history is that the man put up 37.6 points and 27 rebounds per game. Both were NBA records at the time.

Chamberlain surpassed Bob Pettit's and Bill Russell's records of 29.2 points per game and 23 rebounds per contest, respectively, both of which were set in 1958-59. Even in an age where the caliber of interior play was prehistoric compared to modern standards, Wilt basically lapped the entire league, exceeding the combined statistical profile of the NBA's best offensive- and defensive-minded superstars.

Unsurprisingly, Chamberlain swept the major individual awards that year, including All-Star MVP, Rookie of the Year, All-NBA first team, and league MVP. No rookie had ever won the NBA's top honor before, and only the late Baltimore Bullets star Wes Unseld has accomplished the feat since.

Team success

The Warriors already had a number of future Hall of Famers in their midst in guards Tom Gola and Guy Rodgers and forward Paul Arizin. However, that trio was only able to stake Philadelphia to a 32-40 record in 1958-59.

With Chamberlain, the team improved to 49-26 (.653) and advanced to the East Division finals. Philadelphia lost in six games to Russell's Celtics, though its star rookie averaged 30.5 points and 27.5 rebounds while going toe-to-toe with one of the league's all-time great interior defenders.

Enduring legacy

That was just the first of many head-to-head showcases between Chamberlain and Russell. While the Celtics legend's team-oriented style mostly got the better of his flashier counterpart, Chamberlain had no shortage of both individual and team accolades before exiting the league after the 1972-73 season.

"Wilt the Stilt" finished his career with four MVP trophies, a pair of championships (the first with the Philadelphia 76ers in 1967; the second with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1972), 13 All-Star selections, seven scoring titles, and 11 rebounding titles. He was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame in 1979.

In 1999, Chamberlain died of congestive heart failure in Bel-Air, California. He was only 63.

Thanks for following theScore's "Top 25 rookie seasons in NBA history" series. Remember, you can catch up on previous posts in the series here.