True Lakers Fans

Too difficult. What should the criteria be?

This is a tough list here to only list 5, I'll get back to this later tonight. Phelps belongs in the Top 5 though that much I do know. His Gold Medals speak for themselves and you have to be an awesome athlete to dominate a sport like swimming.

KobeMVP888 wrote:Too difficult. What should the criteria be?

Not sure what this criteria should be? Because this is a debate that could easily have thousands of opinions depending on what sport a person values more. I just put Phelps in it because nobody has more Gold Medals than he does and Swimming is a tough sport, you use every muscle in your body when you swim. I would probably put Ali in their as well because Boxers kill their bodies in training by running and sparring, maintaining their weight, and take a lot of head trauma in the Ring! The other 3 are really tough to call. I was always partial to Bo Jackson because he played 2 sports (Football and Baseball) and was Very Good in both, he was a Great RB so I guess he would be my 3rd choice. After that who knows? Maybe Michael Jordan for a 4th choice because he is widely known as the greatest Basketball ever and was a phenomenal athlete that won 6 Championships = 6 for 6. A good 5th choice would probably be Wayne Gretzky because Hockey can be a brutal sport with fights/losing teeth, etc. and it is tough on your ankles and feet, ice skating can be a bitch!! He also is widely known as easily the greatest Hockey player ever and he won a lot of Championships like Jordan. I personally don't think Jim Brown is the greatest Football ever so that is why I don't have him in my Top 5. To me Joe Montana is and he wasn't real athletic, much like Larry Bird he was just smarter than everyone, had a hi sports IQ, and just played the game perfectly. I would take Peyton Manning over Jim Brown in an all-time Draft. QB's are just that important.

So in order after really thinking about it, I would probably go:
1. Ali
2. Michael Phelps
3. MIchael Jordan
4. Wayne Gretzky
5. Bo Jackson - I put him 5th because unfortunately he had a short career due to a hip injury. He didn't have the career's Jordan or Gretzky had.

Jim Thorpe
Michael Jordan
Deion Sanders
Babe Didrickson
Jackie Joyner-Kersee

Michael Phelps might be in there somewhere.

lakerevolution wrote:Jim Thorpe
Michael Jordan
Deion Sanders
Babe Didrickson
Jackie Joyner-Kersee

Michael Phelps might be in there somewhere.

I almost put Jim Thorpe in My Top 5 it was real close but I went ahead and put Bo in there instead. Like I said earlier it was unfortunate he injured his hip otherwise he may have went down as the best athlete ever had he played Pro Football and Baseball for 10 years or so.

This list isn't in specific order-

Jim Thorpe
Wayne Gretzky
Muhammad Ali
Pele
Roger Federer

Wow. .. Don't get me wrong there are many Great athletes, in 5 years we'll see 5 other athletes picture in a "Debate." Heck, even in 100-years from now.

Interesting that guys like Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders aren't mentioned. Using the criteria of setting one's self apart heads and shoulders in their sport, here's my flawed list in no particular order.

1) Babe Ruth. Why? Measuring other all-time greats, they say he's "the Babe Ruth of" ____________.
2) Wilt Chamberlain. Why? He was the Babe Ruth of basketball.
3) Michael Phelps. When was the last time an athlete broke a 2,200 year old record?
4) Tiger Woods. Why? He was the Babe Ruth of golf. Transformed the sport. Inspired millions. Shorter career, but more dominant than any.
5) Muhammad Ali. Because he was the undisputed GOAT! Style wise, none like him before and there will never be another like him again.

Too many honorable mentions to list. Serena Williams must be considered though. LeBron James is an off the charts "athlete." And then there's Jim Brown.

Jim Thorpe and Wilt are a must! Both multi-sport excellence.

NuggetsCountry wrote:Jim Thorpe and Wilt are a must!

Phelps just won another Gold tonight, I think he and Ali have to be a must as well. I put Bo in my Top 5 but Jim Thorpe probably does belong. If any Basketball player belongs it has to be Jordan, JMO. I hated him and the Bulls but he was the GOAT IMO. 6 for 6 in Finals, 6 Finals MVP's, 5 League MVP's. Those are the 3 best accomplishments categories in Pro Basketball. Even when Bill Russell played they didn't have Finals MVP's until 1969 and even Jerry West won that in a loss to he and the Celtics. I get the Wilt love but I have no reason to think Shaq couldn't have done similar things playing in the 50's, 60's, 70's as big as he was. He may have never have scored 100 in a game but I would bet there would be a few seasons where Shaq could average 40 a game playing in Wilt's era.

I will still roll with:
1. Ali
2. Michael Phelps
3. Michael Jordan
4. Wayne Gretzky - no debate at all that he is the greatest Hockey player ever. Hockey is a rough athletic sport too! Gretzky was very athletic.
5a would be Bo Jackson, 5b Jim Thorpe

My all-time top 5 favorite athlete's list would look like this:
1. Magic Johnson
2. Peyton Manning
3. Kobe Bryant
4. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
5. Sugar Ray Leonard - when he beat Hagler by sticking and moving at an older age, that was priceless. When he made Duran look an idiot in their 2nd fight by goofing/dancing around jabbing him with an 8th Round TKO that was great stuff! He made Duran quit
-those guys are my favorites as a fan. All are in the GOAT debate as well in their respective sports.

Where do we put Usain Bolt on the list?

Lakers4Life wrote:Where do we put Usain Bolt on the list?

I don't know, but he definitely runs faster than any of them!

Bolt is definitely top 10 and it is very arguable he belongs in the Top 5 as well. This is one of the toughest list's to do. A lot of the media people say Jim Thorpe is #1.

@Nuggs, Wilt was a freak of nature, especially for his time so I do get your point. I wasn't trying to dis him with my initial Post just to clarify that if you thought maybe I was. Shaq was about the closest thing to him as far as brute strength and girth. I still would rank Jabbar the best all-around Center ever but I never seen Wilt live so who I am to compare Wilt to anyone.

3Peatkb24 wrote:Bolt is definitely top 10 and it is very arguable he belongs in the Top 5 as well. This is one of the toughest list's to do. A lot of the media people say Jim Thorpe is #1.

What about Jesse Owens? Carl Lewis? Dave DeBusschere? (kidding!)

Yes, Jim Thorpe was without question a great all around athlete, but he lived in a different time. Sure, you can say the same about Babe Ruth, but he was as dominant a pitcher as he was a hitter and nobody even came close to his career stats when he was finished. The Babe would have excelled in any era because of his natural talent and hand eye coordination. You are right that this is virtually an impossible "list" to create because the criteria is too vague. If you want to look at it from the perspective of who distances themselves from the rest of the pack in their respective sports statistically and adjust it for era, I suppose it becomes a little easier, but even then it's tough.

NuggetsCountry wrote:Jim Thorpe and Wilt are a must! Both multi-sport excellence.

That was my criteria. Jordan obviously had a little baseball talent, and of course his golfing. But basketball is the most demanding professional sport from a technical and athletic standpoint, in my opinion, so there's the advantage.