BASKETBALL
Why Dominique Wilkins Always Flies Under the Radar
Andrae Hawes | October 5, 2024
Noah Cottrell / Pinterest
When you think of the greatest players in NBA history, a few come to mind. Jordan, LeBron, Kareem, and many others. But I can almost guarantee that you won’t think of Dominique Wilkins. That can be for many reasons. The main two being he was in a small market at the peak of his career, and that he failed to win a ring. But I truly believe that if these two problems never existed, he would be considered a top 15-20 player ever.
Don’t believe me? That’s fine. I’ll list three reasons to prove my point and at the end you decide if my take is true or not.
1. His Scoring Ability
Let’s start off with some of his stats. What made ‘Nique so special was his ability to score the ball. He scored 26,668 points throughout his career while averaging 24.8 PPG. Not to mention he has a scoring title to his name as well (which came in his fourth season in the league!!). The late great Jerry West called ‘Nique “the greatest dunker” he’d ever seen. That means a lot coming from the NBA logo himself.
2. 3x Slam Dunk Contest Champion (or he should be)
He definitely got robbed in the 1988 Slam Dunk Contest. With a win there, he would have three, tying the record. Although he didn’t win in ‘88, he still has two wins!
3. NBA Records
Here’s a list of records he broke during his career:
Free throws made in a game with no misses
Points scored in a Game 7 (broken by Kevin Durant)
Field goal attempts in a 4-game series (broken by Hakeem Olajuwon)
Field goals made in a 4-game series
Source: Wikipedia
In conclusion, I believe that if Dominique Wilkins was on a respected team and had at least one championship ring, he would’ve been a household name. What do you think? Thank you for reading.