Basketball fans rejoice! Footage of Wilt Chamberlain’s historic 100-point game might actually exist. according to the head basketball coach of the University of Memphis.
If true, this would be a remarkable find indeed. For years, basketball fans, myself included, have been wondering if we would ever be able to see the way Wilt dominated on this historic night in Hershey.
Josh Pastner, the University of Memphis’ head basketball coached teased that his father helped to video Chamberlain’s single-game scoring record effort for the Philadelphia Warriors against the New York Knicks on March 2, 1962.
The Warriors eventually won the encounter 169-147, in a game that also broke the record for the most combined points total in a match too.
CSNPhilly.com’s Nick Menta has revealed that Pastner’s father was the ball boy for the 76ers, and he made the startling claim after the Memphis Tigers’ 79-69 win over Temple on Saturday.
Pastner stated, “My father and [Chamberlain’s] father taped the game reel-to-reel in the second quarter when it was in Hershey, Pennsylvania in the 100-point game. They started when he had like 30-something; they thought it was going to be a special night. They gave it to Wilt, the 100-point game, and Wilt gave it back to my dad and my dad’s dad. He gave it back to them, they boxed it up, and he’s still trying to find it.”
But that’s not the only priceless Chamberlain memorabilia that the Pastner family has possessed. “He’s got all kinds of boxes, and he doesn’t know if he lost it. He’s trying to find the sucker…. I mean he’s got jerseys of Wilt, pictures,” he revealed.
Pastner also discussed how close his father was with Chamberlain, and he also explained that the basketball legend believed that someone was trying to kill him.
“My father was the ball boy for the 76ers for many, many years, and he and Wilt Chamberlain were very close…. And Wilt Chamberlain always felt somebody was trying to get him on timeouts with assassination through drinking. And he drank 7-Up or Sprite, one of the two. And my dad always had to taste it before Wilt,” he noted.
“He made my father drink it before [he] would taste it to make sure my dad didn’t conk out,” Pastner continued. “But Wilt took care of my father. They always went around. Like my dad said, he never had a front seat; Wilt sat in the back when he was driving because his legs were so long.”
Chamberlain is widely regarded as one of the best basketball players of all time. During his illustrious career he made 13 All-Star appearances, won four MVP awards, and was on the All-NBA First Team seven times. He also collected two NBA championships with the Philadelphia 76ers and Los Angeles Lakers in 1967 and 1972 respectively.
