Jones didn't move better than Conn. And Jones didn't fight the quality of opposition that Conn did. Jones was, in every weight class, a feared puncher; he didn't have to move. Conn turned pro at 18 with zero amateur fights and started fighting very good opponents very early. He had to learn how to move.
He moved enough to get out the firing line and was strong enough to clinch Joe. Roy was always fast and accurate enough to not rely on constant movement. He was better than Billy Conn. A level above Conn honestly. The heavyweight version of Roy played with Ruiz and has the power and speed to hurt Louis
There is no universe where Roy Jones is going to win a shootout with Joe Louis. I think that, if he tried to clinch with Louis, Jones would be surprised at how strong Joe Louis was, and Louis would rip him up in close. If you are taking what you saw Jones do with Ruiz and equating that in any way with what would happen with Joe Louis...I don't understand how anybody could make that leap. I think that if Jones and Conn fought at 175 the outcome would surprise a lot of people. Maybe it would be me, but Jones is retired and Conn has been dead for years so there is no way to ever know for sure.
Roy of the Ruiz fight was actually 1 of the least elusive performances of his vintage years - he stood much more flatfooted compared to lower weight fights & loaded up on 1 punch @ a time. Just 2 fights later, he got 1 shot starched b/c he couldn't pull back fast enough vs. a lighter, quicker handed opponent than Ruiz.
Joe Louis doesn't have quick feet. Roy was drained cutting back down to light heavyweight, 35 when he took his first KO loss and beat Tarver the first time. We can use the Roy who fought McCallum, he was moving around quite a bit I don't think Joe Louis would dominate Tarver. That's a hard hitting southpaw with world class counter punching abilities and about the same size as Ezzard Charles
