But he lacks the biggest attribute a boxer MUST have heart and determination. He pretty much quit a few times after his team fell behind in a few of his championships. So in my opinion he's not the greatest basketball player much less athlete in history. And besides comparing a boxer to a basketball player is almost impossible. A team sport concept is completely different from a single person athletic sport. Does Lebron win a championship without good players around him? Does Jordan? Rice? Etc. And Lebron has clearly shown he's a front runner, but when the odds are against him he folds, than he blames. That type of mentality would be exposed quickly in boxing.
Have to agree with anybody that suggests that RJJ was a better pure athlete than SRR. Greatest performing athlete, I could see the argument but as a pure athlete RJJ may be the best combination of explosive speed, reflex and power there’s been. Mike Tyson would rank extremely highly here too.
Wilt Chamberlain 7-1 250-300lbs He was a track and field standout in high jumping. His strength the stuff of legend. He also played a mean game of basketball. After he retired from the NBA Chamberlain took up volleyball and was ok the world class level. He had 20,000 women Thread/
I don't know about better. Perhaps just as good. We don't have film of Robinson during his physical peak. That would be like having no video of Roy Jones at '60 and '68.
Better fighter yes. Undoubtedly. But p4p, RJJ likely moves faster, punches faster and hits harder. Add in his ability to play basketball to a decent level and I am quite happy to rank RJJ top of the tree - even with his supplements and vitamins advantages. SRR is right up there but I think RJJ and Mike Tyson rank higher p4p for me just based on explosive speed, power and reflex.
Lebron is an animal. I watched a HL Reel of the guy last night and it's scary to think someone that big can move the way he does. Phenomenal athlete.
No doubt … Given his size, weight, height … He definitely has a case .. Especially when he can move like a 6'2 guy
I couldnt say it unless I saw some prime footage of 147lb Robinson at his physical peak. He was explosive at 160 in his early 30s. I would guess he was off the charts.
This is the biggest shame. With prime SRR I have to take a leap of faith based on an extrapolation of what we can see post-prime, factored in with anywhere from a 10 - 20, maybe up to 30/40% improvement based on what respectable writers and fighters of his time tell us about his WW abilities. Similarly, we never saw a 1968 or 1969 Ali in the ring, but I can only extrapolate how sharp his right hand lead would have been during that period. I cannot, however, use this non-verifiable version of him when I play hypothetical H2H. With RJJ and Mike Tyson, we got to see it. It’s there on film and so I don’t have to imagine or extrapolate to bridge any gaps. Perhaps, if SRR’s WW footage were available in HD colour and multiple angles my rankings would be completely different.