The best way to approach Louis is to do so with the mindset that less is more. Naturally, when a modern fan stumbles on Louis they wonder where those connecting movements are and mistake it for poor (wooden) technique, but when you internalise the function of his economy, then things change.
Schedule an afternoon or evening sometime and watch some of his highlights or even a few of his bouts in their entirety.. Pay particular attention to his fighting stance and the way he stalked his prey and landed combinations. If after watching that, you still don't think he was something great, then you'll have to turn me on to whatever fighter you feel makes that cut.
Ali would beat him, Tyson would beat him, and the giants e.g. Lewis and the Klits would beat him That being said, saying that he's nothing special would be like saying Floyd Mayweather is nothing special... It's the sheer domination of his era that makes him special... And unlike Floyd, it's pretty safe to say Louis fought EVERYONE... Tsyu, Casamayor, Williams, and Margarito missed that Floyd pay day... Say what you will about why those fights didn't happen, say what you will about how those fights would have went if they happened, fact is, they didn't happen
He was more well rounded and crisper with his punches than Ali. Ali was kind of a slapper. And Ali never went to the body
He WAS better than Ali technically. Ali did loads of things wrong technically (ask ANY boxing trainer) but he got away with due to his amazing natural physical attributes. There's a reason people who try to emulate Ali get ****ed up badly - a) cos they're not doing things properly. And b) They ain't ****ing Ali.
I've never understood how anyone could watch Joe Louis and be unimpressed. I don't understand the criticisms. He boxes beautifully and knocks people flying. Excellent punching technique, ultra-violence. What's not to like ?
Weather or not this thread was set up to troll for reactions, I don't know. But if its a sincere thread, then there's nothing wrong with asking the question posted. I confess that years ago when I first started looking at Joe Louis's record I was skeptical. The records of a lot of his opponents were less than flattering on the surface and he struggled with a few of them. It took time, discussions, watching film, etc to appreciate his resume.