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OT: Greatest athlete ever?

Also for the Wilt comments- his numbers when he posted them were insane for a man his size. To be 7 ft tall and still run, jump etc with guys a foot or more and 100lbs less...crazy


5'3" point guard Muggsy Bogues = "Hold my beer"

Spud Webb too

 
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Go watch the two best tennis players in your town play for the “town championship”
You’d be like damn, these guys are good.
Then think about them playing against one of the best 50 players in the world.

There’s not a human being on the planet who didn’t play baseball at an elite level that can even fathom or understand how hard Dave Winfield or Aaron Judge hit the ball...it’s unexplainable.
Zap you played with Winfield, right? I heard he could have easily played in the NBA or NFL. Is that true?
 
So funny.
90% of the names being said are baseball and football players from 125 years ago.

Some have had movies made about them so they are automatically overrated in cases.

I don't think its possible to name anyone "greatest" since there are a lot of variables. Some had ability but little skill. Some had lopsided skills with less ability than others. Certainly Bo Jackson and LeBron demonstrated ability and skill. Another guy who had both but gets overlooked was Elway. He was a fast and skilled runner with one of the strongest (but accurate) arms. He didn't chuck long balls - they were passes. Baseball people said baseball might have been his best sport.



Steinbrenner remembered the first time he saw Elway in a Yankees uniform, the spring of '82 at Boggs Field in Hollywood, Fla. Elway stepped into the batting cage and was asked to lay down a bunt toward third base.

Perfect bunt. Now hit to the opposite field.

Again, perfect. Hit behind the runner. Perfect.

Then, as a joke, he was asked to hit a home run. Sure enough, that's what he did, a 370-foot shot over the right-field wall.

"Right then," Steinbrenner said, "I knew."
 
I know a guy, fairly small(5’7 or so) that could easily shut down P5 WR’s in flag football and so skilled at playground hoops that locals called him names.,
I would be remiss if U didn’t nominate him. Also heard he is quite a marksman as well.
 
Go watch the two best tennis players in your town play for the “town championship”
You’d be like damn, these guys are good.
Then think about them playing against one of the best 50 players in the world.

Speaking of professional tennis, even though I haven't been a big fan of his over the course of his career, as far as being a top athlete in the world I think Rafael Nadal is in the conversation. Even Federer wouldn't be far behind. Similar to Lebron, they've maintained top athletic form even as they've aged into their 30s.
 
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Go watch the two best tennis players in your town play for the “town championship”
You’d be like damn, these guys are good.
Then think about them playing against one of the best 50 players in the world.

There’s not a human being on the planet who didn’t play baseball at an elite level that can even fathom or understand how hard Dave Winfield or Aaron Judge hit the ball...it’s unexplainable.
When we went up against teams full of former Triple A & Big Leaguers that ball came at you much harder than those that came at you in college. Would eat you up if you really couldn't field.
 
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Stop trying to bring NBA knowledge into this.
It's like NBA athletes don't exist to most here.
Someone called Jim Brown "Tall". All 6'2" of him.
That is a small PG.

"Tall" baseball and football players would be run off the court of an NBA practice - let alone an actual game.

Everyone talks about hitting a baseball as the pinnacle of hand-eye coordination.
And it is incredibly difficult.

But, nobody ever mentions trying to sprint down a court, dribbling a basketball with 3-4 other guys trying to get it from you without looking down at the ball.
Or trying to catch and shoot a basketball from 25ft with a defender on you and jumping to block you.
Ha! Sprinting? No! And many times loafing back. 3-4 players trying to get it?? That would require playing team defense. No such thing in the NBA.
 
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, after a trade to the NHL New York Americans, he was also added to the Rutgers football staff as a backfield coach for the 1927 spring practice. The September 16, 1929 New York Times reported, “For two years Lionel Conacher, newly appointed manager of the New York Americans hockey team, taught Rutgers players how to throw laterals. Conacher, hailing from Canada, where lateral passing and rugby football are inseparable, gave the local team a thorough schooling in this phase of the game. Conacher is no longer on the coaching staff but the seed he implanted is sure to bloom this season.”
For a time, it seems, Conacher's coaching had a positive effect
1926 3-6
1927 4-4 *year he coached at Rutgers
1928 6-3
1929 5-4
1930 4-5
 
When we went up against teams full of former Triple A & Big Leaguers that ball came at you much harder than those that came at you in college. Would eat you up if you really couldn't field.
So true.
Their were always guys like you though who everyone who played against you knew you could have played at a elite level.
While everyone else was obviously out of their league, you could hang, it was obvious to all.
Dad, you were the guy playing on a bad team that every guy on the good team said....that guy can play for us!
 
So true.
Their were always guys like you though who everyone who played against you knew you could have played at a elite level.
While everyone else was obviously out of their league, you could hang, it was obvious to all.
Dad, you were the guy playing on a bad team that every guy on the good team said....that guy can play for us!
Thanks Zap. High praise coming from you.
 
Big Will, you & I appear to be contemporaries given our past exchanges re: Manlius & Cortland St football. Enjoyed your stories about playing at both UNC & Syracuse. Thought I might share some of mine from Cortland.

Didn't play organized football in HS until senior yr. only sandlot tackle. Went out & started at RB & LB from day 1. Threw the option pass & caught the ball out of the backfield. Also ran back kickoffs & long snapped. At Cortland started at RB & LB on the JV. As you probably remember freshmen couldn't play varsity ball at the time. Stopped playing after that for various reasons.

At that time Cortland was a National power in soccer. No Divisions. In 1960 my freshman yr we had 2 first team All Americans & were in the National Tournament losing to UConn 4-3. Had an opportunity to see some games that year & thought it was a great game. Had never seen a soccer game or touched a soccer ball. Sophomore yr went out for the JV team & started at rt halfback[middie] for the entire yr. Next yr had to choose spring or fall for student teaching. As baseball was my main sport, chose fall.

Baseball--Sophomore Yr was All Conference short stop. Junior Yr All Conference 2nd base. Senior yr was hitting .478 when I fractured an ankle & tore ligaments. And we played everybody: Fordham, NYU, LIU Post, Cornell, Colgate, the Army Team at Fort Bragg, etc.
At that time Phys Ed was the big major for men at Cortland & there was no tuition at State schools so you had a ton of fine athletes who chose to go there.

I am on an Official visit to Colgate in Hamilton NY and Marv Hubbard is my guide.

We hang out Fri night at Colgate Inn for some brews. Saturday afternoon we go to the gym and play pickup hoops. After the hoops the Varsity HC for Hoops offers me a schollie, along with football. Sat night it's snowing, of course, and we're in a Frat on frat row.

Marv hustles me outside and tells me to stand right here on the corner and don't move.
A line of busses comes down the road and a bus stops exactly where I'm standing. Door opens and Marv says "Grab One !". Girls start coming down the bus steps and I grab one. That was my ''date'' for the night. Went to a concert in the gym, some band I had never heard of "The Doors" and a lead singer who was wasted. "Marv, what's that funny smell ?"

All the buses were girls from Cortland State. The Colgate frats would pay for the busses and the girls would just hop on for the night.
 
I am on an Official visit to Colgate in Hamilton NY and Marv Hubbard is my guide.

We hang out Fri night at Colgate Inn for some brews. Saturday afternoon we go to the gym and play pickup hoops. After the hoops the Varsity HC for Hoops offers me a schollie, along with football. Sat night it's snowing, of course, and we're in a Frat on frat row.

Marv hustles me outside and tells me to stand right here on the corner and don't move.
A line of busses comes down the road and a bus stops exactly where I'm standing. Door opens and Marv says "Grab One !". Girls start coming down the bus steps and I grab one. That was my ''date'' for the night. Went to a concert in the gym, some band I had never heard of "The Doors" and a lead singer who was wasted. "Marv, what's that funny smell ?"

All the buses were girls from Cortland State. The Colgate frats would pay for the busses and the girls would just hop on for the night.
Oh yeah. Big elementary ed. school. We had girls galore. Married to one. The Cornell guys would come over to pick them up & bring them back to their frat parties. We didn't like those guys. Our phys ed frat guys in particular. Many of the Big Red guys ended up in a mud puddle. Oh dear!.
 
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Oh yeah. Big elementary ed. school. We had girls galore. Married one of them. The Cornell guys would come over to pick them up & bring them back to their frat parties. We didn't like those guys. Our phys ed frat guys in particular. Many of the Big Red guys ended up in a mud puddle. Oh dear!.

Ever visit Ithaca College ?

Two high rise dorms with the student union in between. One tower was boys, one tower was girls. The boys tower had many telescopes and all the girls had blinds on their windows.

The student union served beer, so that was a good spot to visit. Plus the drinking age in NY was 18.

Cornell baseball field was 454 to dead center.
 
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Ever visit Ithaca College ?

Two high rise dorms with the student union in between. One tower was boys, one tower was girls. The boys tower had many telescopes and all the girls had blinds on their windows.

The student union served beer, so that was a good spot to visit. Plus the drinking age in NY was 18.

Cornell baseball field was 454 to dead center.
Played at Cornell many times. Their center fielder was Gary Wood. Was also their QB. Option guy. Played a few yrs with the Giants.
Jim Konstanty's son played for Cornell. Konstanty was from Oneonta NY & was the NL Fireman of the Year with the 1950 Phils when they won the Pennant.
Played baseball & soccer at Ithaca. They had a very good scholarship baseball program.
And oh yeah. We had one dorm for girls & one for boys. We weren't aloud beyond the first floor lounge. Girls had a 10 pm weekday curfew. I think 12 on Saturdays. If they were late they got campused. Lots of last minute smooching in the shadows & guys hoisting girls through the windows. And yeah drinking age was 18. Beer was $.10 a glass. For a buck you could get a pretty good buzz on.
 
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That's why I joined the Manasquan Elks Club with another Trooper.

.10 cent drafts. Go in throw a 5 dollar bill down and cry out 'Buy the bar a round of drafts."

We were big shots....
 
That's why I joined the Manasquan Elks Club with another Trooper.

.10 cent drafts. Go in throw a 5 dollar bill down and cry out 'Buy the bar a round of drafts."

We were big shots....
Used to Love those .10 cent drafts at Giblins Tavern in West Orange.
Then down to Dodd’s Crest for a little Kinderhook Creek
 
Used to Love those .10 cent drafts at Giblins Tavern in West Orange.
Then down to Dodd’s Crest for a little Kinderhook Creek
[/QUOTE
Oh if only I was 10 years older...

on that note..much more subdued wine and dinner with the wives soon...
 
1A - Jim Thorpe
1B - Jim Brown

IMO, Jim Thorpe gets the nod because he accomplished all that he did while wearing mismatched or handmade shoes. Dude was essentially barefoot and was head-and-shoulders the best to ever take the field. The man has a town named after him...where's Michael Jordan, PA?

Jim Brown owned every sport he decided to play. Cuse guy but nothing but respect.
 
1A - Jim Thorpe
1B - Jim Brown

IMO, Jim Thorpe gets the nod because he accomplished all that he did while wearing mismatched or handmade shoes. Dude was essentially barefoot and was head-and-shoulders the best to ever take the field. The man has a town named after him...where's Michael Jordan, PA?

Jim Brown owned every sport he decided to play. Cuse guy but nothing but respect.

But, could either of them run a mile and a half in 2:24 while carrying 126 pounds? Didn't think so! :-)
 
But, could either of them run a mile and a half in 2:24 while carrying 126 pounds? Didn't think so! :-)
Who did that? Because the world record for a single mile is 3:43
Must be a funny reference I'm missing.
 
Gotta be Bo Jackson because of his combination of world class speed and tremendous strength. Great football player and Major League Baseball player. He didn’t lift weights and didn’t take steroids.
 
I lived in New Brunswick, and went to Dodd’s, in the early 60’s, on Saturday nights.
 
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Gotta be Bo Jackson because of his combination of world class speed and tremendous strength. Great football player and Major League Baseball player. He didn’t lift weights and didn’t take steroids.

Herschel

Never lifted a weight, trained dragging a used tire on a rope around his waist.

Did pushups with his girlfriend sitting on his back.

Saw him run track at the USA 18 year old meet. Man child.

He was worth an entire NFL Draft.
 
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Jack Protz and I bounced at Art Stock's Play Pen Lounge and Colonel's Garter in South Amboy.
I’m friends with a retired trooper, who has a badge in the 1700s, I believe, and spent a lot of time, on the Turnpike.
 
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Fighting 88th Class. 54 graduated from 155 entered.

2800's are Jack and mine Badge numbers.

Jack was All State LB at Woodbridge HS and also went to UNC and then transferred to Syracuse.
He left UNC first was surprised to see me blocking him one day at practice. He was the MLB.
Became roommates, best man at each others wedding, both East West Shrine Game, Both drafted by San Diego. Rode together on midnights at Holmdel.

I was at New Bruns on Turnpike after 5 years on GSP, got bored.
 
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Fighting 88th Class. 54 graduated from 155 entered.

2800's are Jack and mine Badge numbers.

Jack was All State LB at Woodbridge HS and also went to UNC and then transferred to Syracuse.
He left UNC first was surprised to see me blocking him one day at practice. He was the MLB.
Became roommates, best man at each others wedding, both East West Shrine Game, Both drafted by San Diego. Rode together on midnights at Holmdel.

I was at New Bruns on Turnpike after 5 years on GSP, got bored.
My friend was a sergeant at New Brunswick,in the 70’s and 80’s, and spent time as a trooper patroling the pike before that.
 
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