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all time great athletes in their sport

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  1. The Alchemist The Alchemist is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 7:59pm)

    Basketball - Micheal Jordan
    Football - Walter Payton
    Baseball - Willie Mayes
    Wrestling - Cael Sanderson
    Hockey - Wayne Gretzky
    Boxing - Muhamed Ali
    Fighting - Bob Sapp
    Lacross- Jim Brown
    Soccer - Pele
    2 sport - Bo Jackson or Jim Brown

    i anticipate the discussion will mostly be in football baseball 2sport and soccer
  2. timthegem timthegem is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 8:01pm) in reply to The Alchemist

    Golf = DORF
  3. BigGunX BigGunX is offline Mr OT Party

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 8:07pm) in reply to The Alchemist

    Walter Payton, no way in hell. Great player, but not the greatest ever.

    The most dominant football player ever was Jerry Rice. Hands down. Also, Dan Gable was the best American wrestler ever. That's not even debatable.

    Basketball- Michael Jordon
    Football- Jerry Rice
    Baseball- Ted Williams
    Wrestling- Dan Gable
    Hockey- Wayne Gretzky
    Boxing- Muhammad Ali

    2 sport, I don't include Jim Brown. He played NCAA lacrosse, sure, but soooo many athletes have played more than 1 in college. If you're talking professional 2 sport athletes, then the debate is between Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders.
     
  4. Shaaarrrp Shaaarrrp is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 8:07pm) in reply to The Alchemist

    All of the above sports: Jim Thorpe
     
  5. bdecker7649 bdecker7649 is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 8:18pm) in reply to BigGunX

    How can you say Dan Gable was the best Wrestler ever? Best coach, yes. But his wrestling accomplishments weren't nearly as good as Cael's. 4 years undefeated with 4 NCAA championships and a gold medal in Olympics>2 years undefeated with 2 NCAA championships, one 2nd, and a gold medal.
  6. Xmas32 Xmas32 is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 8:44pm) in reply to Shaaarrrp

    Yeah but you forget that Gable didn't allow a single point during those Olympics hell, none of his matches were even close if memory serves me right. Plus Gable did this when the Soviet empire was at their peak and their athletes were getting the best of the best when it came to training. Now I don't want to sound like I'm discrediting Cael's acheivement because I'm certainly not. He's a once in a lifetime guy same as Gable. Gable also missed out on an Olympics due to a boycott correct? If Cael continues to win on the international circuit and brings home another gold, then I think he can overtake Gable. Right now Gable is up by just a nose..
  7. jfiiue4 jfiiue4 is online now

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:00pm) in reply to The Alchemist

    Football: Brett Favre (even though im a bears fan)
    basketball: Jordan
    Baseball: Ummm Babe Ruth
    Wrestling: Dan Gable/ Hulk Hogan
    Hockey: Gretsky
    Boxing: Ali
    Fighting: Matt Hughes (Sapp is just a huge piece of crap that cant even move)
    Golf: John Daly j/k Tiger
    Bowling: Parker Bohn III
  8. The Alchemist The Alchemist is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:01pm) in reply to BigGunX

    word is jim brown was the greatest lacrosse player of all time and that he obv didnt pursue it because the money is in football...i'd say being the best in one sport and the top 5 in another makes would give him the crown there

    i said walter payton obv because i'm from chicago :) e1 knows rice is the nuts

    you really take ted williams over willie mays? batting avg aside, being one of the greatest hitters ever coming from a pitchers era, and being the best defensive player with the exception of ozzy to me = the best player.. i think top 5 all time hr and top two all time defensive = #1 player

    btw i'd say cael's current accomplishments outweigh gable's...dont get me wrong, gable was the shit...but college wrestling is so competetive is sickening...to even think about going undefeated for 4 years in the big XII conference is mind boggling to me..it's very very hard for even the best wrestlers to do this in highschool
    cael did the unthinkable in college..and when he was done he brought home a gold medal ASAP..i mean the man hasnt lost a match since before he hit puberty
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  9. bfactor bfactor is offline Server Clogger

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:02pm) in reply to jfiiue4

    I have more respect for Ayrton Senna than any other human in recent competitive history. This guy's dexterity seriously rivaled Leonardo DaVinci. Totally unreal.
  10. BigBadDevil BigBadDevil is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:07pm) in reply to The Alchemist

    Basketball - Magic Johnson
    FootBall - too hard to compare postions Elway, Rice, Sanders,White... etc
    Baseball - Babe Ruth
    Wrestling - The Ultimate Warrior
    Hockey - Gretzky
    Boxing - Ali (before prison)
    Fighting - Bruce Lee
    Lacross - some stoner
    Soccer - Some queer from a foreign country
    2 sport - Bo or Deon
  11. The Alchemist The Alchemist is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:08pm) in reply to jfiiue4

    brett farve is not to QB what Jerry Rice is to WR, brett farve isnt to QB what Joe Montana, John Elway, Dan Marino are to QB..Brett favre is top 5QB and top 15 overall

    and btw..sapp whoops ass since he started sumo :)
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  12. Earlybird893 Earlybird893 is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:14pm) in reply to BigBadDevil

    Jim Thorpe-GG thread
  13. Earlybird893 Earlybird893 is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:15pm) in reply to Shaaarrrp

    damn shaaaarrpp...didnt even see this....i agree
  14. The Alchemist The Alchemist is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:15pm) in reply to BigBadDevil

    basketball goes to micheal jordan HANDS DOWN...undisputable...only somebody from LA would dare blaspheme micheal jordan's name in public...hell, magic johnson isnt the greatest LA laker of all time(Wilt Chamberlain)

    babe ruth? ok look...fat drunks who dont play defense dont count as the greatest player of all time...he was a great home run hitter, and a so so pitcher
    babe ruth isnt even the best home run hitter of all time

    you did however make a good point with bruce lee, but for the sake of all thats good please dont ever say micheal jordan is not hands down the greatest basketball player ever
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  15. Shaaarrrp Shaaarrrp is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:17pm) in reply to The Alchemist

    from wikipedia:
    George Herman Ruth (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948), better known as "Babe Ruth" , also commonly known by the nicknames "The Bambino" and "The Sultan of Swat", was an American baseballplayer and a national icon. Consistently chosen as the greatest baseball player in history, his home run hitting exploits and titanicappetite for living made him one of the representative figures of the Roaring Twenties. He was one of the first five players elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame,and he was the first player to hit over 30, 40 and 50 home runs in oneseason. His record of 60 home runs in the 1927 season stood for 34years until it was broken by Roger Maris with 61 home runs in 1961. He was a member of the original American League All-Star team in 1933.In 1969, Ruth was named baseball's Greatest Player Ever in a ballotcommemorating the 100th anniversary of professional baseball. In 1998, The Sporting News named Ruth as Number One in its list of "Baseball's 100 Greatest Players." In 1999, Ruth was elected to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in fan balloting.
     
  16. The Alchemist The Alchemist is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:19pm) in reply to Shaaarrrp

    nh shaaarrrrp
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  17. The Alchemist The Alchemist is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:20pm) in reply to Shaaarrrp

    nh shaaarrrp
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  18. BigBadDevil BigBadDevil is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:23pm) in reply to The Alchemist

    The argument of Magic vs Jordan is never ending so I will not continue.. you can search previous threads.

    Babe Ruth put up phenomenal stats considering 1) he was always drunk and 2) they played shorter seasons back then. He also won 200+ games as a pitcher. Good players have come and gone (Tony Gwynn, etc), but Ruth takes the cake.
  19. The Alchemist The Alchemist is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:24pm) in reply to Shaaarrrp

    i guess you dont have to play great defense to be the best ever
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  20. Shaaarrrp Shaaarrrp is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:29pm) in reply to The Alchemist

    not with these stats
    • Third in career home runs (714)
    • First in career slugging percentage (.690)
    • Third in career runs scored (2174)
    • Second in career runs batted in (2213)
    • Third in career base on balls (2062)
    • Led American League in Batting Average once
    • Led American League in On-base percentage 10 times
    • Led American League in slugging percentage 13 times
    • Led American League in OPS 13 times
    • Led American League in runs scored 8 times
    • Led American League in Total Bases 6 times
    • Led American League in Home Runs 12 times
    • Led American League in runs batted in 6 times
    • Led American League in Walks 11 times
    • Led American League in Strikeouts 5 times
    • Led American League in Runs Created 9 times
    • Led American League in Extra-Base Hits 7 times
    • Led American League in Times on Base 8 times
    • Led American League in At Bats per Home Run 13 times
    • * Won 7 World Series
    • New York Yankees All-Time Leader in Batting Average (.349), On-base percentage (.484), Slugging Percentage (.711), OPS (1.195), Runs (1,960), Total Bases (5,131), Home Runs (659), Walks (1,852), Runs Created (2,485), Times on Base (4,405) and At Bats per Home Run (10.9)
    • Holds New York Yankees single season records for Batting Average (.393 in 1923), On-base percentage (.545 in 1923), Slugging Percentage (.849 in 1920), OPS (1.382 in 1920), Runs (177 in 1921), Total Bases (457 in 1921), Walks (170 in 1923), Runs Created (233 in 1921), Extra-Base Hits (119 in 1921), Times on Base (379 in 1923) and At Bats per Home Run (8.5 in 1920)
    • Fourth in lowest career World Series ERA 0.87 (minimum 20 innings pitched)
    • Second in consecutive scoreless innings pitched in the World Series (29 2/3 innings)
    • Second highest batting average in a World Series (.625 1928)
    • Second in career World Series home runs (15)
    • Third in career World Series slugging average (.744)
    • Third in career World Series OPS (1.211)
    • Third in career World Series total bases (96)
    • Third in career World Series runs scored (37)
    • Fourth in career World Series runs batted in (33)
    • Only player to hit 3 homes runs twice in a World Series game (1926, 1928)
     
  21. The Alchemist The Alchemist is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:36pm) in reply to BigBadDevil

    i'm not saying he wasnt the shit..but you cant use other uncontrolable factors like length of seasons when trying to decide who was the best baseball player ever because there are far too many to try and weigh them against each other...like for example the pitchers werent as good when the babe(which is true) nobody was throwing 95+mph back then

    pete rose and willie mays

    pete rose had the most hits ever and he had i think 7 gold gloves between C, IF, and OF
    willie mays had 12 gold gloves 660hr, .300+ hitter

    gg babe ruth
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  22. The Alchemist The Alchemist is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 9:42pm) in reply to Shaaarrrp

    greatest baseball player, not greatest yankee, not greatest hitter

    greatest baseball player = hitting + defense or pitching by itself
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  23. Unforseen Unforseen is online now

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 10:34pm) in reply to The Alchemist

    Going to extreme sports

    Overall Extreme sports athlete: Shawn Rice
    Best skateboarder: Ovb Tony Hawk (Halfpipe) and Rodney Mullen (Street)
    Snowboard: Shawn Rice
    Surf: Kelly Slater, or Laird Hamilton
    Moto-X: Travis Pastrana
    BMX: Dave Mirra or Matt Hoffman
    Motocross Racing: Ricky Carmichael
    Inline skating: Taig Khris or Eito Yasutoko
  24. BigGunX BigGunX is offline Mr OT Party

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 10:46pm) in reply to Unforseen

    Xmas32 just gave all my reasons for choosing Gable over Sanderson. Just because Gable lost his last match in college doesn't mean you disqualify him from being the greatest. Gable's Olympic performance was just absolutely sick. The only person I can think of with an equally impressive performance in international competition was Alexander Karelin, who did it over many years. That guy was just a beast.

    Obviously Sanderson is incredible. But I stand by the idea that if you ask 100 wrestling fanatics who is the greatest wrestling in American history, more will say Dan Gable than Cael Sanderson.
     
  25. KzooKid KzooKid is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 10:59pm) in reply to The Alchemist

    Basketball - Micheal Jordan
    Football - Barry Sanders (def the best to watch at least)
    Baseball - Babe Ruth
    Wrestling - Andre the Giant (dont know any "real" wrestlers)
    Hockey - Wayne Gretzky
    Boxing - Muhamed Ali
    Lacross- Powell
    Soccer - Renoldo (brazil)
    golf- Jack Nicklaus
    Tennis - Pete Sampras
    Cycling- ahh Lance
  26. miller_b07 miller_b07 is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 11:16pm) in reply to KzooKid

    basketball- jordan
    baseball- dimaggio
    hockey- gretzky
    tennis- sampras
    soccer- pele
    football- star
    golf= tiger hands down
  27. Shaaarrrp Shaaarrrp is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 11:17pm) in reply to KzooKid

    Come on yo....Ronaldo does not compare to Pele!!
     
  28. Earlybird893 Earlybird893 is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 11:20pm) in reply to BigGunX

    cael was best wrestler period...he moved up weight classes with continuous success, i believe he had 4 state championships in high school too (colorado??) fucking sick sick sick

    ill leave olympics and college out of it

    never losing except freshman year in high school=the best
  29. BigGunX BigGunX is offline Mr OT Party

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 11:28pm) in reply to miller_b07

    earlybird, if only high school is your criteria, then i can rap off about 10 people from Pennsylvania who I'd consider, led by Cary Kolat who went 139-0 with 4 state titles. Oh, and then 2 national titles in college, and then a silver medal in the Olympics....
     
  30. Earlybird893 Earlybird893 is offline

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    Jul 19th, 2006 (7/19/2006 11:33pm) in reply to BigGunX

    BGX, im saying that he NEVER has had a downfall, gable fucked up the biggest match of his life....cael doesnt lose,,, not losing=best,,,

    agree to disagree sir
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