You watch this video and tell me that the guys playing today are more athletic. This was late 80s/early 90s. [video=youtube;HQeMhYJe5JA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQeMhYJe5JA[/video]
Blake Griffin meets Amare Stoudemire... the Reign Man! I grew up watching the lock-out era guys. The recent NBA lockout didn't seem to have a real effect on the players, but in '99, it more or less killed the careers of some potential HOF'ers like Kemp, GRob, and Baker.
Kemp especially. Baker's problem wasn't the lockout. He had some kind of mental breakdown. Robinson was one of those guys that put up great numbers, but was never really a difference maker. Reminded me of Jamal Mashburn, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, and like.... Rudy Gay maybe.
I've seen the Kemp dunk highlights before, whenever people drool over Blake Griffin I bust that video out. Of course there are exceptions, but overall, I still think the NBA is more athletic now than ever. And I do think LeBron is more athletic than all of the players you listed, but of course there's no way for us to know that for sure. Of the players you mentioned, VC is the only one I've actually seen play, the others I was too young to remember.
[video=youtube;Kum-Kv6or-o]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kum-Kv6or-o[/video] See HCP, I was right lol
LOL! Sorry, but that's pretty funny shit right there. "LeBron's better than Jordan... but, ummm, I never actually watched Jordan play!"
Have you watched every basketball player ever play? No? Then how can you say who the best is either? Criticizing someone for not watching MJ play when they were 5 years old is kind of stupid.
I'd like to see what Lebron could do with the rules (and referee interpretation of said rules) in place during Jordan's tenure. I'd also like to see what Jordan could have done with today's fitness, nutrition, and PED advantages.
Dude, there are ways of watching some of his games. You should check them out. The guy was unbelievable. One game, as painful as it was to watch again, was where he absolutely dismantled the Blazers in the finals. The Blazers were actually up big, they were on fire. They couldn't miss. They were actually the better team. Jordan just...... went off. Nobody could stop him. It was nuts.
I have watched that game and a few others. All I said is that I don't remember watching him play in his prime.
The other thing is, I have doubts about how LeBron will handle getting old. So much of his game relies on his athleticism. Jordan adapted. He developed one of the most lethal post games in league history. How will LeBron adapt?
LeBron already has a lethal post game, and I'd expect it to get much better as his mobility decreases. But ya never know. What I wonder about is whether James will go with the shaved head look eventually.. His head definitely won't be as pretty as Jordan's.
No. He wouldn't. Hand checking? Less fouls called? The old Knicks or Pistons would have fucked LeBron up, and there wouldn't have been a ref to save him. Bill Laimbeer would have pull some dirty shit and LeBron would have cried, but nobody would have heard him.
See, I think LeBron would destroy Laimbeer. LeBron is 6'8" 270 of all muscle and Laimbeer was 6'11" 245 and not made of muscle. If you make the argument that LeBron's a pussy, I'd make the argument that had he played in the 90's he probably wouldn't be. If we're going hypothetical you gotta go all the way.
You just have no idea.... the Bad Boy Pistons and the Riley Knicks were brutal. Jordan actually hired a personal trainer to put on more muscle because of the beating he was taking from the Pistons in the playoffs.
I actually get upset that I missed that rough era, love watching highlights from it. I just don't think it's much of a leap to say that LeBron could have been better at handling the physicality than Jordan. Of course he could have been too much of a pussy and completely sucked. I'm just speculation based on my opinions.
Lebron outweighs Laimbeer by 30 pounds. Laimbeer was a bully who only really pulled cheap stuff on people smaller than him. He wouldn't have had the balls to do anything to Lebron. Mahorn, maybe... And seriously, whose handchecks would have handled Lebron? Pippen and Aguirre, maybe? Otherwise, there weren't any perimeter defenders in the late 80's/early 90's who would have been able to handle a player with Lebron's combination of size/quickness, handchecks or not. Do you really think guys like Joe Dumars and Alvin Robertson would have been able to defend Lebron anywhere close to as effectively as they did Jordan? Sorry, I just don't see it.
It's less the players and more the refs and "$50 fine for punching a guy" lifestyle back then. I agree that LeBron's physical gifts make him a once in a lifetime freak of nature, perfectly build to play basketball. But if Jack Sikma can break his leg and be suspended 8 games, he'll do it, and LeBron won't be playing much after that.
