Philadelphia is not only the birthplace of the United States but also the birthplace and childhood neighborhood for many great sportspeople. With four major sports teams in the city, the city of brotherly love has been called an underachiever with just two major championships in the last twenty years. Still the city has had much to offer with many great athletes and hall of famers growing up in Philadelphia. Let’s have a look at some of the legends.

Wilt Chamberlain

This Philadelphian is one the greatest athletes from Philadelphia and one of the best to play the game of Basketball. The 7-feet 1-inch-tall player was known for his long-standing rivalry with Bill Russell and still holds numerous NBA records. 

To this date he is still the only player to have scored 100 points in a single game. He is the only player in history to average more than 30 points and 20 rebounds per game and is second only to Michael Jordan in point per game average. He was a major part of the 1967 championship winning roster that took home the second NBA title to the city of Philadelphia and has earned him legendary status in the city. 

Joe Frazier 

Frazier was not born in Philadelphia but packed up his bags in 1959 at the age of 15 to travel to Philadelphia. The boxer soon became a big name in the amateur ranks and won three Golden Gloves championships in a row from 1962 through 1964 before taking home an Olympic gold medal at the 1964 Tokyo Games. 

Smokin’ Joe would go on to become a heavyweight world champion in 1970 and go up against Muhammad Ali in 1971 in what has been billed as the fight of the Century. The fight saw Frazier hand Muhammad Ali the first defeat of his career and create a legend about the hard hitter from South Carolina.

Kobe Bryant

A life that ended up with a tragedy was started in the neighborhoods of Philadelphia, where his father Joe Bryant played for Philadelphia 76ers. Growing up in Italy and Philadelphia Bryant grew his own talent and decided to skip college and enter the 1996 draft as a high school player. 

The Black Mamba was picked 13^th overall by the Los Angeles Lakers and would go on to be one of the most legendary players in franchise history. With him on the team the franchise won 5 NBA championships in 21 seasons with him being elected to 18 all-star games, second only to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. 

This year his former team the Lakers are one of the favorites for the NBA title with Lebron James leading the franchise. With many games still left this season you can find plenty of games to bet on. Read all about betting here.  

Mike Powell 

This track and field athlete still holds the world record for the longest long jump ever. His record of 8.95 meter has stood since 1991 and it does not look like it is going to be beaten any time soon. Unfortunately for Powell there was another amazing American long jumper at the time called Carl Lewis who would go on to win two Olympic gold medals right in front of him. At the World Championships in 1991 in Tokyo Mike Powell finally got the better of him to take home his first major championship medal. 

Greg Vaughn was one of the known sluggers of the 1990s, blasting 355 Home Runs over his career, 79 of which were as a San Diego Padre, the second team he played for.

In his contract year (1996), Vaughn was traded to the Padres from Milwaukee, and he resigned with the Padres as a Free Agent.  Vaughn missed many Games in 1997, but in 1998, he had his best power year, with 50 Home Runs, 119 RBIs, and a .272 Batting Average.  The Padres went to the World Series, with Vaughn as their feared slugger, but the Yankees proved too much For San Diego.

Vaughn was traded to the Reds in the off-season, and as a Padre, he had 78 Home Runs with 263 Hits.

Gaylord Perry was already an established superstar when the Texas Rangers traded him to San Diego before the 1978 season, and the 1972 American League Cy Young winner was poised to add more trophies to his mantle.

The spitball specialist led the NL in Wins in 1978 (21), and he made history as the first hurler to win the Cy Young in both leagues.  Perry turned 40 during his second year with San Diego but was still good, going to his fifth (and final) All-Star Game, while posting a 12-11 record with a 3.06 ERA.  He was traded back to Texas afterward, leaving San Diego with 33 Wins against 17 Losses and a 2.88 ERA.

While Perry’s sabermetrics hold him back on this list, and it could be argued that he should not have won the ’78 Cy Young, he DID win it, and it will never be taken from him.

Perry entered the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1991.

Clay Kirby, an original Padre, will always be best known for the no-hit attempt that he was denied to complete.

Kirby was taken from the Cardinals in the Expansion Draft, and had a rough rookie year, leading the NL in Losses (20), and had arguably a worse year in 1970, though in a game against the Mets, he had a no-hitter going into the ninth inning but was pulled for his at-bat.  It would take until Jos Musgrove in 2021 before the Padres ever recorded a no-hitter.

Kirby had a good year in 1971, winning a career-high 15 Games with a 2.83 ERA, and was tenth in the NL in bWAR.  After two average years, he was traded to Cincinnati, leaving the Padres with a record of 52-81.