NXT NWS Finals - The Greatest Athlete in History

[Big Sexy]

Let's be real here. There were no more teams that were legit competition during Jordan's time then there were during Chamberlain's time. During Michael Jordan's peak years the only legit threats on a consistent basis in the Eastern Conference were New York and Indiana. We're not going to make it out like every team was strict competition.

I've already showed you that there were a lot more contenders then you think. Just because it wasn't the same teams every year doesn't mean the same amount of teams weren't contenders. MJ played a shit ton more competition then Wilt did and to think otherwise shows a lack of knowledge on the subject.

I like it when you point out that Jordan's teammates never won anything without him when Jordan never won anything without his teammates, especially Scottie Pippen.

The team around Scottie Pippen in 93-94 was much better then the teams that Jordan had before Pippen arrived. Not to mention Scottie was in his prime when MJ left. When Jordan was alone it was for the first three years of his career.

Even though Magic Johnson hasn't been discussed, I will always take him over Jordan because of what he did on the court and how he helped revive basketball when it was nearly dead.

Magic and Bird helped revive it but Jordan was the one that made it a global phenomenon. I give and Magic and Bird all the credit in the world for what they did but Jordan did it better. Magic Johnson will be the first to tell you that Michael Jordan is the greatest player in NBA history. And he's not saying it because he's humble, he's saying it because it's the truth.

 

[Smooth Sexual Chocolate]

Let's be real here. There were no more teams that were legit competition during Jordan's time then there were during Chamberlain's time. During Michael Jordan's peak years the only legit threats on a consistent basis in the Eastern Conference were New York and Indiana. We're not going to make it out like every team was strict competition.

Every year in every sport there are only a select number of teams that have a realistic shot at competing for a championship. It doesn't change the fact that he had to familiarize himself with way more players on far more teams than Wilt did. It also doesn't change the fact that lesser teams still had talented individuals that Jordan went head to head with on a nightly basis.

I like it when you point out that Jordan's teammates never won anything without him when Jordan never won anything without his teammates, especially Scottie Pippen.

It's 1 player against 4-10 players in this situation, where the 1 player in Jordan holds more weight than the rest of the team combined. Now obviously Jordan didn't do everything by himself, but when it came down to one shot at the end of the game, that's all Jordan.

Even though Magic Johnson hasn't been discussed, I will always take him over Jordan because of what he did on the court and how he helped revive basketball when it was nearly dead.

While Magic did help revive basketball, Jordan took it to the next level and made it a worldwide force, and granted Jordan wouldn't have been able to take it to the world wide level that he did with out the groundwork that Magic laid for him. Jordan still did just as much, if not more than Magic did for the game of basketball. You also can't bring up Magic and talk about everything he did for the game without talking about Larry Bird, as they practically went hand in hand.

Unfortunately for Magic his career was cut short which takes away from his longevity, where as Jordan was able to stay great for a longer period of time.

 

[Rhonda Rousey's Sports Bra]

Ruth played the Gaavy Craveth lead Phillies, the amazing pitching staff of the Brooklyn Robins/Dodgers, the great pitching staff of the Cubs, 3 Series against John McGraw's high powered offense Giants, the Rogers Hornsby lead Cardinals, the Waner Brothers lead Pirates, and the Cubs again in 32 in the World Series. All teams that have a big place in baseball history, so it's not like Ruth was playing scrubs in his championship years either.

 

[Big Sexy]

Ruth played the Gaavy Craveth lead Phillies, the amazing pitching staff of the Brooklyn Robins/Dodgers, the great pitching staff of the Cubs, 3 Series against John McGraw's high powered offense Giants, the Rogers Hornsby lead Cardinals, the Waner Brothers lead Pirates, and the Cubs again in 32 in the World Series. All teams that have a big place in baseball history, so it's not like Ruth was playing scrubs in his championship years either.

Obviously the competition he faced in the World Series was going to be tough. I was referring more to the regular season. He played the same 7 teams each year and some of those teams often failed to even reach 60 wins in a given season.

 

[The People's Peep]

You should probably do your research again. A lot of Wilt's records are single game or single season records. The all time leading scorer in NBA history is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with MJ coming in third. The all time leading scorer when it comes to points per game is.... Michael Jordan. Wilt is number two in the points per game department. When you look at pure stats Michael Jordan is still the best player in NBA history. Not to mention Jordan did it against a lot more and better competition. Wilt was 7'1 and played at a time when the average size for centers was under 6'10. Throughout his career there were only 10-14 teams in the entire league and his best seasons came when there was only 10 teams. Inferior competition helped Wilt's stats a lot.

Single game or single season, records are records. They still add to his legacy and are a part of his case. You are right about the leading scorer being Kareem. I misread my source and thats my bad.

I'm not saying that MJ isnt the best player in NBA history. I think he is. What I was trying to point out was that he isnt the clear cut, landslide winner of the title of the NBA's greatest player like GD said he was. There are definitely others who have cases to a certain degree. Saying that MJ is better than Ruth because he is the obvious GOAT of his sport and Ruth isnt doesnt work for me.

 

[Megatron]

People that say that Jordan's competition in the NBA was tougher then Ruth's was is laughahble. They're equal. Ruth might not have had Blacks/Latino's but when you have 26-27 teams there's gonna be a lot of watered down teams that have guys who wouldn't be starting or playing if there was only 10-14 teams. More teams = weaker competition. Missing of other ethnicities except for whites = weaker competition. I just wanted to point that out.

 

[Big Sexy]

People that say that Jordan's competition in the NBA was tougher then Ruth's was is laughahble. They're equal. Ruth might not have had Blacks/Latino's but when you have 26-27 teams there's gonna be a lot of watered down teams that have guys who wouldn't be starting or playing if there was only 10-14 teams. More teams = weaker competition. Missing of other ethnicities except for whites = weaker competition. I just wanted to point that out.

Yea, except you're completely wrong. There are so many more athletes and so much more talent nowadays then there was back then. When Ruth played, professional sports weren't exactly a high paying thing for the most part and it wasn't something that was as widely done. Now everybody plays sports and only the best of the best make it into the pros. The training, work ethics, and just athletics on the whole are so much better now then back in the first few decades of the 1900's. There were shitty teams back when Ruth played as well as I already pointed out. MJ faced much stiffer competition and much better athletes in general on the whole then Ruth or anybody who played back then did. More teams and better athletes on the whole makes for much more and much better competition. You're not looking at the big picture.

 

[Megatron]

They're still scab teams even today in every sport. Take the NFL. The Lions, Bills, Raiders, Browns, Rams, Buccaneers, Chiefs, Bears, Cards, and Seahawks don't have a whole lot of 'great' players on their teams. In fact, I think it's safe to say that less then 50% of the players on those teams would start on any of the other teams. Just because there's more athlete's doesn't mean they're better. Sometimes you're gonna get guys who aren't that great playing simply because of need. When you have less teams, the best players aren't all spread out, which, in turn, means better teams.

 

[Big Sexy]

They're still scab teams even today in every sport. Take the NFL. The Lions, Bills, Raiders, Browns, Rams, Buccaneers, Chiefs, Bears, Cards, and Seahawks don't have a whole lot of 'great' players on their teams. In fact, I think it's safe to say that less then 50% of the players on those teams would start on any of the other teams. Just because there's more athlete's doesn't mean they're better. Sometimes you're gonna get guys who aren't that great playing simply because of need. When you have less teams, the best players aren't all spread out, which, in turn, means better teams.

Of course there's always going to be bad team but on the whole the teams and the players in general are better. Therefore there is better competition. And it's not like when Ruth played there were tons of amazing teams. As I've already pointed out numerous times there were a couple teams in the AL almost every season that failed to win 60 games back when Ruth played. Considering he only played 7 teams total during the regular season that is a lot of easy games. The talent pool back then has nothing on today. Btw two of those NFL teams you mentioned (Chiefs and Seahawks) defeated two teams that were almost unanimous choices to win their divisions. the Chiefs beat a Chargers team that some people had going to the Super Bowl.

 

[Megatron]

The Bucks, 76ers, Raptors, Nets, Bullets/Wizards, Pistons, Hornets, and Celtics all weren't that great of Franchises within the 90's. None really had more then a few sporadic appearances either early or at the end of the decade. No matter how many teams you have, there's always gonna be a bunch of cupcakes on the schedule.

And the Bills shut out the Patriots in week one of the 2003 season, then the Pats went on to win the Super Bowl that year, while the Bills went 6-10 that year. One win in week one doesn't change the fact that the teams are shit.

 

[The Brain]

I want to say I just discovered this thread today and I have not read it in full. I may repeat what someone else has already said or reply to something that the rest of you have moved on from.

Being from Chicago it’s hard for me to argue against Michael Jordan, but there are a couple things I would like to address. First of all, I do not consider MJ to be a two sport superstar. His time in baseball was a joke. He never made it to the majors and was terrible in the minors. The only reason he was there in the first place was to further cover up his “retirement” from the NBA.

Secondly, some have brought up Jordan’s global popularity, his marketability, and his exposure throughout the world. Those are all fine points, but keep in mind the times we live in. Nowadays people are famous for being famous. Any nobody can get some Jersey Shore buddies together and get their own reality show. I’m not saying MJ hasn’t earned his fame, but you just can’t use this as an argument against The Babe. Ruth died even before televisions were in people’s homes. I guarantee you if television was available during his time Babe would have had all kinds of companies knocking on his door for endorsement deals. Babe Ruth is every bit the pop culture icon, if not more so, than Michael Jordan.

Both MJ and Babe could be considered the greatest in the history of their respective sport. I think it’s more widely considered that Babe is the greatest baseball player than MJ is the greatest basketball player. One thing to consider is what each did for his sport. Babe Ruth made baseball popular. He is the reason the fans filled the seats. There’s a reason Hulk Hogan calls himself the Babe Ruth of the WWE. He’s not the Michael Jordan of the WWE. Babe laid the groundwork and put baseball on the map. Jordan’s contributions to the NBA are noteworthy but he was adding to the legacy that Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlin, and Kareem started. He also had a fine supporting cast during his prime with Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Charles Barkley, Patrick Ewing, Shaquille O’neal, and more. Without looking it up can you tell me how may points MJ has? I can’t, but I know Babe has 714 home runs as well as I know my phone number. I even had to look up Barry Bonds’ total and he’s the all time leader. When Bonds broke the record getting 715 was almost as big as the record breaking homer because 715 put him past the legendary Babe. None of us were alive during Babe’s life, but nearly 100 years after his debut he is still the most talked about player when discussing all time greats. I’m sure MJ will have a similar legacy, but people are already looking for the next Michael Jordan in Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. No one has ever looked for the next Babe Ruth because The Babe is one of a kind.

The last thing I want to do is bash MJ. I hope I’m not coming across that way. My childhood is filled with great MJ memories and he’ll always be a favorite of mine. This is really a coin flip for me. This time my coin happened to land on Babe so I just wanted to state a small case for him. There really is no wrong answer here.

 

[Big Sexy]

The Bucks, 76ers, Raptors, Nets, Bullets/Wizards, Pistons, Hornets, and Celtics all weren't that great of Franchises within the 90's. None really had more then a few sporadic appearances either early or at the end of the decade. No matter how many teams you have, there's always gonna be a bunch of cupcakes on the schedule.

The Raptors didn't even join the NBA until the mid 90's. The Nets had a few playoff appearances but you're right they were nothing special. Bucks, Wizards, and Celtics were in the same position as the Nets. The Pistons were still very competitive in the early 90's and the 76ers were as well until they traded Barkley. The Hornets also had some very solid teams led by Alonzo Mourning and Larry Johnson. It doesn't change the fact that competition in pro sports nowadays is leaps and bounds ahead of what it used to be and that is an undeniable fact.

And the Bills shut out the Patriots in week one of the 2003 season, then the Pats went on to win the Super Bowl that year, while the Bills went 6-10 that year. One win in week one doesn't change the fact that the teams are shit.

I never said they weren't shit. Just throwing out the "on any given Sunday" point that is always there.

 

[a0161613]

All this talk about competition interests me but it anything but discounts Muhammad Ali from this competition. In fact, looking at his biggest fights, it puts him over the top.

The simple fact is, to be the best, you have to beat the best.

Sure, the Bulls dominated their time. But MJ was part of a great team. So as good as Barkley and Magic were, they could not match the team in front of them.

The Yankees were similarly dominant. The point about desegregation has already been made and it is a more than fair comment. I simply do not know anything about who he competed against. I know more from the Simpsons about guys like Daryl Strawberry and Jose Canseco than I do about the guys who were around to play against Ruth’s Yankees. And there is Pete Rose, who I know more from WWE than anything he did in baseball.

I’ve repeatedly mentioned how Ali competed in the golden era of heavyweight boxing. Ali did something that Marciano, Louis and Robinson could never achieve - Worldwide exposure.

Where Ruth has had his records which stand today, Michael Jordan was carried around the world by the money that Nike was pumping into their goods and advertising, events like the “Fight of the Century”, the “Rumble in the Jungle” and the “Thriller in Manila” were showing and promoting Muhammad Ali as the dominant face of the heavyweight division.

“The Fight of the Century” aka Frazier – Ali 1, was a huge success. It offered a then-record purse to both fighters, provided a hugely intense build-up using both magazine and television coverage as well as an intriguing anti-war, pro-war conflict. This was Ali’s first loss, as Frazier powered through Ali’s fast start and outlasted him en route to a decision.

Frazier – Ali 3, “The Thriller in Manila” was remarkable for its build up as much of the fight itself. It was held in Manila to counteract social unrest, was timed to be shown on primetime television in the States and had a particularly venomous build-up from both camps.

By this point, Ali was a major public figure and it was this which distracted him from his training. Frazier mostly dominated again, each man struggled in the heat but it was a great performance from both. Ali remarked that Frazier quit just before he did and was very complimentary about him.

“The Rumble in the Jungle” was the only encounter between Ali and George Foreman. It is famous for the rope-a-dope, the strategy where Ali covered up and allowed Foreman to exhaust himself through constant attack. Having endured several rounds of this, Ali countered and eventually won the fight relatively easily.

These performances showed that despite all of his controversies, Ali was tactically very smart, defensively sound and highly adaptable. He had shown the world first-hand that he was a great boxer and his abilities as such were placed above his ability to run his mouth.

The world knew that Muhammad Ali could talk a good game, but he showed them that he could fight the best, put on a great show and beat them despite taking punches from guys who were much more powerful than he was. These fights showed that Ali had the all-around skills and that he was a great athlete. This is why he is absolutely more than deserving of this spot.

But he did what no boxer could before him and neither Jordan or Ruth were able to do with their wholly American sports. He took his sport around the world, pioneered worldwide sports broadcasting and created significant and memorable sporting moments because of it.

 

[Smooth Sexual Chocolate]

Michael Jordan, Mohammad Ali, and Babe Ruth; three names that for the most part are recognized worldwide, and three names that go hand in hand with the sport that they dominated. So what separates these three from each other, let’s take a look.

Jordan’s basketball accomplishments, I’ve listed plenty of statistics and awards from his championships to his MVP’s to his all time records; but what really stands out is his dominance on all levels of the game. Jordan dominated competition in college leading to a national championship as well as becoming a two-time all American. He went on to dominate the NBA setting numerous records, and he dominated the game of basketball on Olympic level as well, winning gold medals as an amateur and as a professional.

Jordan’s ability to dominate the game was like no other basketball player, but it’s not just his ability to dominate the game, but the longevity in which he dominated the game. Jordan was a force to be recon with right out of college. His dominance over the rest of the league pretty much ran from 84’-99’, that’s pretty much fifteen years of playing in his prime at the highest level of competition. He is widely considered by the greatest basketball minds and players to be the all time greatest basketball player, more so than both Ruth and Ali. Jordan also played against some of the all time greats of the game and they unanimously consider Jordan to be the best they ever played against.

Jordan is also considered to be the most exciting basketball player of all time, and when Jordan was on the court you just couldn’t help but keep your eyes glued on him. Jordan’s dunking ability was revolutionary, and his clutch performances are the stuff of NBA legend. He has some of the most famous buzzer beating shots of all time, when a last second shot needed to be taken everyone on the court knew who was getting the ball, and not even that could stop Jordan from hitting a game winning shot. His athletic abilities and his clutch shots are unmatched and the excitement he brought to the game of basketball helped to launch the game on a global level.

Jordan’s impact on the sport can still be seen today, just look t guys like Kobe Bryant, or Lebron James, both superstar athletes can’t help but credit Jordan for not only their success, but for the success he brought to the game of basketball, paving the way and providing the inspiration for the games best athletes today. His success on the worldwide stage as well as his name going hand in hand with two of the biggest athletic suppliers in Nike and Gatorade helped to launch basketball to the global level of success it’s at today.

His attempt at playing professional baseball may be considered a failure by most, but you still can’t ignore the athletic ability it takes to just start playing baseball at the professional level after not playing the sport for nearly 20 years. The game of basketball and baseball also require two completely different skill sets, so it takes a special kind of athlete to be able to even attempt playing baseball at the professional level, and to then go right back to the game of basketball and pick up right where he left off is quite remarkable.

The popularity of Basketball also far exceeds both Baseball and Boxing, meaning that there is going to be stronger competition because there are more worldwide professional athletes aspiring to be great at it; Michael Jordan being responsible for much of the youth around the world wanting to pick up the game of basketball and play it at the professional level. I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase “Be like Mike”.

Jordan also led an injury free career, which in part led to him being able to dominate for such a long period of time and put up the numbers that he did. Where Ali had his career shortened to injury as well as him missing years in his prime because of the political stance that he took, costing him precious time, and victories. Ruth also put up his big numbers at a time when Baseball was not a very popular sport and was putting up big numbers against watered down competition, and I’m not even talking about the lack of African American, and Latino players.

Basketball is also arguably one of the more difficult sports to play, and is a far more athletic sport than baseball. The cardio vascular endurance it takes to run up and down and one who has run any type of lines or wind sprints knows just how hard it is to do, and to have to be able to accurately shoot the ball and score takes great hand eye coordination. His dunking ability is just another added athletic feature that Jordan brought to the table, and his dunks from the free throw line are literally the stuff of legends.

Jordan was consistently great throughout his entire career, and was an intimidating presence on the basketball court. He was so good that his opponents knew he was going to get the ball at the end of a game, and they still couldn’t stop him. His presence on the Basketball court was almost as intimidating as the skill set he brought to the table, just knowing Jordan was going to be on the court was enough to intimidate the opponents. Jordan also had the ability to make everyone around him better. Sure you need to have a good supporting cast on a team sport if you want to win championships, but when your presence makes the team even better that’s when you know you’re a great athlete.

So as you can see, it’s not just Jordan’s statistics that make him great, and it’s not just the championships and the MVP’s either, it’s not even the fact that he dominated his sport like no other basketball player in the history has been able to do. It’s the fact that Jordan defines an Athlete in every sense of the word, from statistics and records to sheer talent and ability. He wasn’t just the best, but he made everyone around him better, and had every kid who watched him wanting to be him. It’s these reasons I believe Michael Jordan to be the Greatest Athlete of all Time.

 

[Big Sexy]

Sure, the Bulls dominated their time. But MJ was part of a great team. So as good as Barkley and Magic were, they could not match the team in front of them.

The Bulls had a solid team outside of Jordan but no way was his supporting cast "great." Outside of Pippen, a good power forward, and a couple decent role players, the team around Jordan was fairly bad throughout his championship seasons. You bring up guys like Barkley and Magic but Magic had much better teams around him then Jordan ever did. When Barkley was in Phoenix his supporting cast was certainly better then Jordan's, however, the Bulls won that series because Jordan was the best player on the court. There were plenty of star players around when Jordan was winning titles that had better supporting casts then MJ did. In the end though, Jordan was the one who was always coming out on top because HE was the best. I'll tell you right now that if you take any of the Bulls' finals opponents and switch their best player with Jordan then the Bulls would have won maybe 1 title.

 

[a0161613]

Throughout this thing, I have not mentioned the encounter between Antonio Inoki and Muhammad Ali.

[YOUTUBE]VrXzH4WOUdc[/YOUTUBE]

It was a hugely anticipated event and even though, the fight was a bit of a non event, it is remarkable for the fact that Ali had his legs repeatedly kicked by Inoki, which was the only significant offense of the fight. This fight had a long term detrimental effect on his mobility as he was cut, caught an infection and suffered two blood clots following the fight. A lesser fighter would not have lasted.

Just thought it was worth a mention given that I had posted about the boxing matches earlier. Regardless of the fight itself, this is remarkable just for how much attention it got at the time.

Conclusion will be up at some point tomorrow after I finish work.

 

[Rhonda Rousey's Sports Bra]

Well I'll make a closing post here, I'll try to keep it short. Best of luck to my boy Smooth Sexual Chocolate and Numbers who shot up my list of favorite posters because of this thing, it was fun.




Ruth is considered by many to be the greatest baseball player ever, which is believed by many athletes to be the hardest sport to play. Not only do you have to hit a round ball that is about 3 inches wide with a round bat of around the same size going 75-100 mph with movement, but you have to play more games in a season than any other pro sport. It's so hard that a player that is successful 30% of the time is good and 40% is nearly impossible. This is the sport that Ruth not only thrived in but dominated on both sides of the ball. Pitching his Red Sox to 3 World Seies wins in a row and hitting the Yankees to three in a row plus one and a few unsuccessful trips to the October Classic. No one's name is closer associated with his sport than Ruth's is to baseball, for many Ruth is baseball. He played nearly 100 years ago yet is still considered the best to ever put on the uniform. Men spent their entire careers chasing Ruth's records, some caught them but many failed. This man influenced baseball so much that the game's most storied franchise's stadium was known as the The House That Ruth Built, and their hated rivals the Red Sox blamed their failure to capture another World Series until 2004 on "The Curse of the Bambino". Babe Ruth is the greatest athlete in history without a doubt in my mind.

 

[a0161613]

Muhammad Ali is the name I think of when I think of great sports personalities. But what good is being a personality if you cannot fight worth a damn.

Well he knew he was good to begin with. His self-titled name of The Greatest was one of many ways he impacted the sports world. But I don’t need to tell anyone how good the guy could speak. He was every bit as entertaining as the best wrestlers are on the mic. He could talk for his country, putting down his opponents, predicting what round he would win and talking about his style. Every sentence was part of a poem; he never wasted a word. He would do that and then back it up in the ring. Repeatedly.

His change to Islam and his feelings against the Vietnam war are well publicised. Ultimately this is what cost him his nearly four years of his career. But it was not a break, the country (wrongly) refused him a license to compete. And when he came back, he was more explosive, more dynamic

The years he missed simply delayed his dominance of the sport. In his second fight back, he lost to Joe Frazier (in the Fight of the Century) by unanimous decision is only one of two losses that be considered to be in his prime.

He would go on to avenge both defeats in imperious manner. He would also get revenge for losing to Leon Spinks in 1978 at the end of his career.

He simply dominated heavyweight boxing around the world and did it on such a scale that very few athletes (in any sport) can boast. His ability to give punishment was beyond astonishing and when it comes to taking punches, there is no doubt that he compared to very few (ever) on the defensive. Ultimately, it is this which has cost him his quality of life today.

He never solely relied on his punching power or defensive abilities, as he would always enter a fight with a plan. It was this tactical nous, which contributed so massively to victories. He would stick to these plans even in the most difficult of environments (Foreman in Zaire or Frazier in the Phillipines) and they succeeded. At a time where the sport was featuring more and more power-based fighters, Ali’s “float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” approach was crucial to his success at the start of his career, just as was the more defensive plan later in his career.

Baseball and Basketball have never had the level of worldwide competition that boxing has had. The sports have simply not exported very well.

Babe Ruth was not an athlete by most standards. Of course, his records stand up today. That does not make him a great athlete, it makes him a great player.

SSC has based his argument on MJ’s dominance. Indeed his achievements are remarkable but to say he dominated his sport is generous. It is a team sport after all. He was the first great ball player with the athletic ability to dominate the sport but he will not be the last. Like I have stated before, any player who has won the MVP awards more than three times can be compared to MJ, no matter what the era.

And I have said at least twice already, the Bulls were not a one man team.

For Ali to be famous in a division where many of the sports’ most famous names have come, speaks volume for his ability. Of course he drew attention to himself and he became one of the first celebrity athletes by doing so, opening the door for every famous footballer, basketballer etc going today.

But I feel his ability to perform in the ring has been severely underrated. To take the punishment to the upper body and the head that he did required incredible staying power as well as the physical and mental wherewithal. He fought when many fights were fought for fifteen rounds. Ali came out the winner after many unanimous decisions. He backed himself physically and mentally to go the distance. He knew that he was the best athlete in the ring and this is why he was able to face and beat every top heavyweight of his time.

A few false points used against me in this debate yet none have refuted the fact that Ali had one of the great careers of any athlete. His achievements were remarkable for his time and his physical attributes, his athletic skills contributed massively to this.

*

Cheers guy. Awesome efforts.

 

[Big Sexy]

Baseball and Basketball have never had the level of worldwide competition that boxing has had. The sports have simply not exported very well.



SSC has based his argument on MJ’s dominance. Indeed his achievements are remarkable but to say he dominated his sport is generous. It is a team sport after all. He was the first great ball player with the athletic ability to dominate the sport but he will not be the last. Like I have stated before, any player who has won the MVP awards more than three times can be compared to MJ, no matter what the era.

And I have said at least twice already, the Bulls were not a one man team.

I know this is your closing statement but I'm not going to let false statements go without a response.

1. Baseball and Basketball actually have exported very well and are popular in many places outside the US. Now Ruth never had to deal with it because the era he played in was so long ago but baseball is big other places. Basketball is also huge around the world. After Soccer it's probably the most played and watched sport worldwide. MJ also did have to deal with the international competition as he won two gold medals. In 92 he did have the Dream Team but in 1984 when he won his first Gold Medal he led a team of all college kids and still won the gold. A David Robinson and Mitch Richmond led team of college kids in 1988 had to settle for bronze, showing the international competition was better then you think.

2. To say MJ dominated his sport is not generous at all, it is a fact. He was NOT the first ball player with the athletic ability to dominate as you said. There were plenty of great athletes before him. Jordan was simply the best. Offensively, defensively, mentally, and competitively no one in the history of the game can match Michael Jordan.

3. While basketball is a team sport, MJ was the one man on that team who won the Bulls those titles. Like I said before if you take any of the Bulls' finals opponents and switch their best player with Jordan for the series then the Bulls would have won maybe 1 title. There were plenty of supporting casts better then the Bulls but no player better then Jordan.

 

[Cmpunk is wwe]

I dont know if this would be ok but the greatest athlete to me has to be Jerry West. Because of everything he did in his career he is the all time leading laker scorer in the playoffs he is a 14 time all star a All-NBA 1st Team 10 times and NBA All-Defensive 1st Team 4 times and a 1 time Nba champion. I mean he is the NBA logo so in my opinion this makes him the greatest athlete in history.