NBA History: Most Rebounds in a Game? How Far Was Anthony Davis Behind Wilt’s Record?

Imagine a single player snatching a mind-boggling 55 rebounds in a single game. That’s not a fever dream, but a reality achieved by Wilt Chamberlain. But where do other NBA greats stand in the rebounding department, and where does Anthony Davis stand in front of all these legends as his recent performance has brought as a contender among these legends?   

The LA Lakers star in his previous game achieved one of a kind record for himself. While playing against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Anthony scored 27 points, along with ‌‌25 rebounds, making him the first NBA player to achieve 25+ points, 25+ rebounds, 5 assists, and steals in just one game. Though this was a unique achievement in itself, it still isn’t even close to most of the records Wilt has achieved.

A comparison between Anthony Davis and Wilt

It might come as a shock that despite creating history last night, this isn’t AD’s highest number of rebounds in one game. His highest cam in a game against Brooklyn Nets in 2019, where he got 26 rebounds. But the number isn’t close to Wilt’s powerful 55 rebounds in one game.

Talking about the highest points, Wilt again takes the lead here. While Davis scored 59 points in a game against the Detroit Pistons in 2016, the veteran Chamberlain scored 100 points in a game against the Knicks in 1962, back when he was playing for the Philadelphia 76ers.

The difference is even stark in total rebounds in career history. Even though Davis is still an active player, he will need more than a miracle to reach Wilt’s 23,924-lifetime rebounds. AD currently has 7638 rebounds in his 722 games so far. Notably, AD currently does not even stand in the list of the top 10 highest rebound scorers of all time.

Then again, Wilt Chamberlain also shocked the world on November 24, 1960, while playing for the Philadelphia Warriors, hauling in 55 rebounds against the Celtics. But he isn’t the only one on the list. There are other legends, too.

Following Chamberlain in the rebounding pantheon is Bill Russell, the defensive mastermind who secured 21,620 rebounds throughout his career. Russell was the only one who came close to Wilt’s 55 rebound record, not once, but twice. He scored 51 rebounds in a single game in 1960 and 49 rebounds in a game in 1965.  The third player on the list is the unstoppable skyhook maestro, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Despite being known more for his scoring prowess, he amassed 17,440 rebounds throughout his career.

Elvin Hayes is yet another remarkable rebounder, with 16,279 rebounds in his lifetime, and following him closely is Moses Malone, who grabbed 16,212 rebounds in his career span. These stats show that even though no one can take away what AD has achieved recently, he still has a lot to achieve to come close to players like Wilt Chamberlain. Let us know your opinion on this in the comments.

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