Sports Daily: LeBron's Declaration

[ojandpizza]

Btw, I don't know how Islam or Vietnam, or boxing have any relation to this topic at all.. But Ali is widely considered the GOAT.. Hell his nickname is "The Greatest".

[ehh]

Quote: Originally Posted by ojandpizza

Karl Malone's game revolved around him being quicker than most other power forwards, he either beat everyone up the court or rolled to the basket quick enough to get open. Was never a slow or unathletic player.

Yeah, despite the fact that he looked like Tarzan he was definitely a bit of a finesse player, same goes with David Robinson. Both were quick too.

[tarek]

Quote: Originally Posted by ojandpizza

Btw, I don't know how Islam or Vietnam, or boxing have any relation to this topic at all.. But Ali is widely considered the GOAT.. Hell his nickname is "The Greatest".

Every single sport (hell even ever scientific field and academic field) has it's argument of who is the 'greatest', most successful, most influential, etc. So it can be very relevant to this topic, since they all follow a similar process. Or I should say, we as people follow a similar process.
This topic always brings out confirmation bias. I have my own, you have your own. There is no clear cut outcome. I can say that Kobe is better than MJ, I can say MJ is better than Magic, I can say Magic is better than Lebron, etc etc.
That's the thing when it comes to opinion, everyone values something different.

[RedSceptile]

LeBron isn't the 1st of his kind. People act like he's some beyond unique specimen. What about a guy like Michael Phelps whose body is pretty much tailored to swimming, it was always stated how creepy his body was almost engineered for swimming. Or Robert Nkemdiche who is freaking 300 lbs with a solid six pack, a freak specimen. Please let's not act like there aren't other guys who are freak athletes.

[Go Miami]

Quote: Originally Posted by Vni

Queen James likes the attention. I don't know, it's almost like he's forcing himself to say stuff like this. I think it's just fine if he means it. You should always aim to be the best as a competitor nothing wrong with that.

Like princess Mamba and Lady Mike didn't right?

Yes, that is how lame your post sounds.

[Vni]

[ojandpizza]

Tonight my brother and his friends were talking about Kobe's comments on this topic, and one of them said it's "hard to make a Mount Rushmore of just 4 players, it should be 4 at each position." So we all kind of gave our input on the subject and I thought I would just share the list I came up with and if anyone wants to post theirs or comment on mine jump in.

My voting was a combination of both how good the player was, and also the impact they had on the league. I'll list some credentials out by some of the players, which will all just be based on my opinion.

Point Guard:
* Bob Cousy (first great true PG, pioneered "flashy" and showmanship)
* Oscar Robertson (mr. Triple double, first guard to dominate all areas of the game.)
* Magic Johnson (best all around PG of all time, one of a kind talent, showtime, Bird-Magic rivalry)
* John Stockton (best pure PG of all time, assist and steals leader)

Shooting Guard:
* Jerry West (one of the first combo guards, NBA logo, Mr. Clutch)
* George Gervin (one of the first great pure scoring wing men, first guard with 3 straight scoring titles, finger roll, NBA icon)
* Michael Jordan (greatest SG of all time, one of a kind talent)
* Kobe Bryant (one of the best SGs of all time, best guard in this era)

Small Forward:
*John Havlicek (the original 6th man, great all around player)
* Dr. J (biggest impact on the above the rim play, NBA icon)
* Larry Bird (one of the best shooters ever, Magic-Bird rivalry, top 10 player ever)
* LeBron James (best all around SF of all time, one of a kind talent)

Power Forward:
*Kevin McHale (one of the best PFs ever, excellent post moves)
*Karl Malone (excellent long career, great scorer, excelled in pick-and-roll play)
*Tim Duncan (best PF of all time, best player of his decade)
* Dirk Nowitzki (best international player of all time, best outside shooting big man)

Center:
*George Mikan (leagues first superstar and first dominant big man)
*Bill Russell (greatest winner, defender, and leader of all time)
* Kareem (best all around center of all time, NBA icon, sky-hook)
* Shaq (dominant athlete, biggest force on an NBA court, one of a kind talent)

Players who just missed the cut:
* Wilt - it was tough to leave off Wilt. Even though he was just as dominant, if not more, than Shaq I just feel that Shaq changed the way teams guarded him and refs called games more-so than any other big men... Also with all the great big men in league history I really didn't want to take two guys from the same era, Russell basically beat him out off a spot for me.

Rick Barry - great all around player, awesome free throw form, one of the first point forwards, and one of the first forwards to league the league in scoring by his outside play.

Elgin Baylor - one of the best all around players ever, statistical monster.

Scottie Pippen - possibly the best sidekick ever, played robin to everyone's favorite basketball duo, incredible defender.

Allen Iverson - best scoring little man I've ever saw play, helped pioneer the modern NBA with the headbands, arm sleeves, and tattoos, one of the best SGs to ever play.

[ojandpizza]

Wanted to comment on leaving off Hakeem from my list.. I just felt that with all the great big men you had plenty of guys who were deserving talent wise, but I don't feel Hakeem had an impact on the league the way the 4 guys I listed + Wilt did.. Hakeem is a great talent and one of the best big men of all time but he didn't really leave a lasting mark on the leagues history in my personal opinion... I thought that would be the first guy people would question since he didn't even make my missed the cut list, so I figured I would explain beforehand.