He is Kobe to Floyd's MJ. During Kobe's initial first few years in the league, he was not a well liked player outside of LA and it was largely due to people seeing him as a cheap knockoff of the real thing. It took him a long time to overcome that stigma, but he finally did carve out his own place in league history and wasn't just looked at as a Fugazi.
Broner has even taken it a few steps beyond the Kobe/Jordan thing. He literally is trying to be a carbon copy... Right down to his facial expressions. It is a little creepy. He needs to make his own way in this sport and, quite honestly, he has too much potential to be relegated to a cheap knockoff of an all-time great.
He could be a real superstar in the game, but I think in order to really capture the public's attention, he is going to have to deviate from his current persona a bit. People don't like knockoffs... They like to feel like they are watching a one of a kind talent.
All of that said, he does have an interesting fighting style. Of course, on the outset, he looks like he is just using Floyd's style to a tee with that style of the Philly Shell and all, but there are some pretty key differences. Floyd was a defensive wizard right from the start and he had to learn how to become a great offensive fighter to go along with it. That took some time for Floyd.
Broner is the other way around... He seems like a naturally gifted offensive fighter who is forcing himself to become defensively sound. This was a mismatch from the start, but Escobedo landed some clean punches along the way that Floyd would have NEVER gotten caught with cleanly even early in his career against that caliber a fighter. However, Broner is also a better offensive fighter than Floyd was at this stage.
He puts his legs behind his shots and really commits to every punch. He was showing some absolutely brilliant body work last night. I see him as a bit of a combination of Floyd and RJJ... Which makes for a pretty damn exciting fighter if he can put it all together. I do think that his defense is a bit overrated and that he will get caught with the kinds of punches that Floyd never did. His chin still really hasn't been tested and it will as he moves up in weight.
He seems to rely on his natural athleticism a lot more than Floyd ever has and, while that will make him the kind of KO fighter that the general public adores, it will also leave him open occasionally to the kind of danger that could threaten to destroy his aura of invincibility.
He needs to stop imitating his persona, but as far as boxing goes, he is a real bright spot for the future of the sport. He may well be the best young fighter in the world. I just need him to step up a little bit in his competition to know for sure
