The Night Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points, there was exactly one reporter in attendance.
And he wasn't even a reporter.Harvey Pollack, publicity man supreme for the Philadelphia Warriors, was on the "road" in Hershey PA, for the Warriors-New York game of March 2, 1962. But back then the papers didn't send their writers on the road. So Pollack took care of his usual publicity and scoring duties, and on the side worked as a stringer for UPI, AP and the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Oh, and that famous picture of Wilt holding up a paper that said "100 points"? Right. Pollack handled that, too.
"I'm the one that released the news to the world," says Pollack. "Fifty-five years in the NBA and that was the busiest day I ever had."
To top matters off, upon learning from his running Western Union dispatches that Chamberlain was about to make history, the Inquirer asked Pollack to detail every field goal the Big Dipper made.
Afterward, he totaled up the box score, raced to the dressing room and started looking around "for something visual" for the photographers. He grabbed a sheet of paper, scribbled the historic number 100 on it, and handed it to Wilt for the photo seen 'round the world. He dictated the news to the Associated Press and handed a file to his son for dictation to UPI. Then it was back to the press table, where he did a completely new story for the Inquirer that ended up on the front page, not sports.
Ironically, he didn't even earn a byline. The story began with "Special to the Inquirer."
And Wilt thought HE never got credit for his accomplishments.
You've probably never heard of Pollack, but you've seen his work. As the Sixers' Director of Statistical Information, he is the only person still working in an NBA-related job that was there at the inception. He saw the '69 Celtics, the '98 Bulls and even the '46 Toronto Huskies.
Through it all, Pollack, has had one passion (statistical trivia) and one overriding gift (curiosity). Maybe nobody else cared about who has played with more teams than any other (Moses Malone, 11), but Harvey did.
Want to know who leads the league in having their shots blocked each year? Who commits the most offensive fouls? Three-second violations?
Harvey has your answer.
The best part about Pollack, though, is that he didn't just store the stuff in his head, or his attic. He shared it. For years he included the random data in the back of the Sixers media guide. But in 1994-95, the first edition of The Harvey Pollack NBA Statistical Guide was born. It's a trivia buff's fantasy, a know-it-all's resource guide, a time capsule.
Need to know who recorded the most triple-doubles in a career? Harvey did, and he came up with one name: Magic Johnson, who logged 137 of them--78 more than No. 2 on the list, Larry Bird. How about the most four-point plays? That would be Denver's Michael Adams. He nailed 10.
Ever want to nuke the guys on talk radio? Just mail $13 to Harvey Pollack, c/o Philadelphia 76ers, First Union Center, Broad Street and Pattison Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19148, and you're in business.
You'll have the sports radio guys begging for mercy.
Pollack began his preoccupation with statistics while managing the Temple University basketball team. He was already doing scoring duties, but it wasn't challenging enough. He requested permission to do something no other college or pro team was doing--keep track of assists, rebounds, shot attempts, etc.
Statistical trivia would never be the same.
After a stint in the armed service, he returned to several media-related jobs. He was a sports writer, a college publicist, and eventually the publicist with the Warriors.
It was fateful that Chamberlain was playing for the Warriors (later the Sixers) while Pollack was their publicist. The Stilt was a record-setter, and Pollack was a record-collector. Not only did he notice that Chamberlain scored 100 points in a game, but also that he tied for the fewest points in a game. He got zero one night after being injured early in the contest.
Wilt didn't consult a doctor, but some people think Harvey should have.
When Julius Erving breezed into town, Pollack started recording a new statistical category: dunks. He once approached Shaquille O'Neal with figures proving the highest percentage of his baskets came on dunks.
Shaq's response: "Man, you need to get a life."
Problem is, stats ARE his life. At 78, Pollack is still looking stuff up. To him, there's no such thing as uninteresting trivia. For instance, did you know an NBA game was once played with 12-foot baskets? That there was a doubleheader between the same teams?
Are you dying to know which state produces the most NBA players?
If so, you'll want to do one of two things: order Harvey's book or take Shaq's advice.