NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal is without a doubt one of the strongest players ever. He was a freak of nature who was 7-foot-1 and weighed over 305 pounds. He was known for his brute strength, which he used to smash rims. But he could only bench 450 pounds, as an NBA Legend who trained with Arnold Schwarzenegger could do more than him.

Before Shaq came into the picture, the NBA has seen something similar in the past. And that is another freak of nature. It was none other than Wilt Chamberlain. He was arguably the first superstar in the NBA and some of his records are unbeaten to this day. He was a phenomenal player who was tall and insanely strong at the same time. On top of that, he was really quick as well.

And he played in the same position as Shaquille O’Neal.

Wilt Chamberlain could bench more than Shaquille O’Neal when he was 59 years old

Chamberlain was a dominant player in the early part of the NBA and he formed a legendary rivalry with Boston Celtics legend Bill Russell. Back in the day, there was no answer for Chamberlain. Teams would double and even triple-team him, but they often couldn’t stop him. Funny enough, he was a poor free-throw shooter just like his fellow Los Angeles Lakers great.

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Chamberlain used to train with Arnold Schwarzenegger, the renowned bodybuilder, and famous actor. And Schwarzenegger used to say that Chamberlain used to bench press 500 pounds. The astonishing part about this was that Chamberlain used to bench 465 pounds when he was 59. While Shaq’s best was around 450 pounds when he was at the peak of his powers.

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Chamberlain famously once said that if Shaq played in his era, he would not be that dominant. In fact, he said that he would not dare to come inside the paint. While there was no answer for Shaq when he was in his prime, there was no answer for Chamberlain as well.

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We will never know what would have happened if they had faced off against each other, but one thing is for sure, Wilt Chamberlain could definitely bench more than Shaquille O’Neal.