Why do people think any good NBA/NFL athlete can beat the Klit bros?

Inspired by another recent thread here.

Now as I've said, I'm not a fan of Wlad's style, but even I have to acknowledge the man has great skills and is athletic for his size in the boxing ring.

It seems that there are a lot of people out there that thinks that if Shaq or Lebron James or Ray Lewis took up boxing either at a young age or later age that they can beat the Klit bros and be HW champs.

We dont know that. Being good at one sport doesn't translate to another. See Michael Jordan as a prime example A great NBA player but a mediocre baseball player who couldn't hit, field, or even run the bases without looking goofy. Those 2 sports stars at the highest level like an Deion Sanders or Bo Jackson is incredibly rare. Would anyone here think that Lebron James could be like Roger Federer or Wayne Gretzky if he took up tennis or hockey at an early age instead of basketball? I'm sure there's a lot of people out there that thinks Lebron can be another Gretzky or Federer if he took up those sports, I don't.

Being a good big athlete at another sport doesn't mean it would mean the same thing in the boxing ring. Things like stamina, the ability to take a punch to the body or head and having good movement inside that boxing ring also has to be taken into consideration. At the HW division size is 1 thing, but usually it's great skills that determines the winner much more than size imo.

What do you guys think?

I don't really know what thread your referring to, so cant comment in much depth. Obviously boxing is largely unlike any other sport as far as intangibles go. One thing I have no doubt of is that basically any NFL or NBA team today has players with greater overall athletecism than probably any HW fighter in history, that's almost a no brainer really. So could Lebron James have been a great HW fighter if he dedicated himself to boxing the same way he has basketball, from a young age? Unless he had a completely glass chin or just lacked the mentality under pressure, I highly suspect he could have. Are you arguing that he isn't a better pure athlete than the Klitschko brothers? Because that is assanine really.

Ha ha... you're not gonna get any arguments from me, bulldog. I remember what happened to "Too Tall Jones" and Mark Gastineau (ex-NFL stars) when they tried their hand at boxing. They got their asses whipped. Being a star at one sport doesn't necessarily translate into being a successful boxer.

However..... going back to the original thread about the Klitschko's chances in MMA, I'd have to bet against it. Same reasoning. Just 'cause they've been successful boxers, it doesn't mean they'd do good in a street fight, or in MMA style fighting. I still point to Wlad's suspect chin, which hasn't been truly tested after his two humiliating KO's, and to Vitali's age, stiffness, and general lack of coordination. Given some training, I suppose they could be marginally successful, but nothing like the dominance they've shown over the bunch of incompetent losers they've faced lately.

Obviously using any crossover examples is not going to tell you anything one way or another. Of course someone who trains their whole life for one sport and then once well past their physical peak decides to give another a shot isn't going to be dominant, that's just redundant to say. I would HOPE that the arguement you are trying to respond to is that if one athlete had focused entirely one another sport from the get go, INSTEAD of their chosen sport, they could be better than so and so, which in the case of boxing obviously holds very little weight either. The point I was making is that Lebron James, for instance, is a FAR FAR FAR better pure athlete than either of the Klitshckos, but that doesn't take intangibles associated with the sport into account obviously. All combat sports are very specific in that sense, I know a couple of guys who were half decent martial artists from a young age who were absolutely useless when it came to so much as catching or throwing a ball etc, but they would beat the hell out of guys who were very multi talented in team sports etc. Just a dumb arguement really.

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Originally Posted by p4pking

I don't really know what thread your referring to, so cant comment in much depth. Obviously boxing is largely unlike any other sport as far as intangibles go. One thing I have no doubt of is that basically any NFL or NBA team today has players with greater overall athletecism than probably any HW fighter in history, that's almost a no brainer really. So could Lebron James have been a great HW fighter if he dedicated himself to boxing the same way he has basketball, from a young age? Unless he had a completely glass chin or just lacked the mentality under pressure, I highly suspect he could have. Are you arguing that he isn't a better pure athlete than the Klitschko brothers? Because that is assanine really.

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What I'm saying is this. Great athleticism in 1 sport does not mean it will translate to another. Lebron is more athletic than Wayne Gretzky, so by your logic he may have been a greater hockey player than Gretzky if he took up the sport? Lebron is more athletic than Diego Maradona would that mean he would be a soccer legend if he took on soccer at an young age? He's more athletic than Roger Federer would that mean he would win 14-15 Grand Slam titles just like him? He's more athletic than Tiger Woods, would that mean he would achieve more success if he took up golf instead of basketball?

MIChael Jordan is more athletic than Babe Ruth, how come he couldn't recognize a curve ball, fastball, change up and start hitting home runs out of the ball park like the Babe?

Being great at 1 sport does not mean 1 will be great at another. That's my point.

The title of the thread is "Why do people think any good NBA/NFL athlete can beat the Klit bros?" It's not "Do you think if NBA/NFL athletes had taken up boxing from the very beginning, could they beat the Klitschkos?" I wish people would stick to the original arguments, instead of twisting it into something else. And given that the title is the former, I maintain that it's ludicruous to think that a Lebron James, a Shaq, or any other NBA'er or NFL'er for that matter could beat the Klits.

So either stick to the original argument, or make up your own new thread.

;)

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Originally Posted by TitoFan

Ha ha... you're not gonna get any arguments from me, bulldog. I remember what happened to "Too Tall Jones" and Mark Gastineau (ex-NFL stars) when they tried their hand at boxing. They got their asses whipped. Being a star at one sport doesn't necessarily translate into being a successful boxer.

However..... going back to the original thread about the Klitschko's chances in MMA, I'd have to bet against it. Same reasoning. Just 'cause they've been successful boxers, it doesn't mean they'd do good in a street fight, or in MMA style fighting. I still point to Wlad's suspect chin, which hasn't been truly tested after his two humiliating KO's, and to Vitali's age, stiffness, and general lack of coordination. Given some training, I suppose they could be marginally successful, but nothing like the dominance they've shown over the bunch of incompetent losers they've faced lately.

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Exactly that's my point. Being good at 1 sport doesn't mean it will translate to another. Even if the Klit bros did MMA at an early age, would they have dominated? We don't know. Maybe, maybe not. But more than likely they wouldn't dominate.

So would Lebron James be another Babe Ruth if he took up baseball at an early age and just went there? How about if he concentrated on soccer at an young age, would be another Maradona? Would he be another Federer?

Remember different sports requires different skill sets, Being overall athletic is 1 thing, but having the right skills sets to be a superstar in a certain sport is another.

So I would say more than likely no, Lebron wouldn't be another Gretzky, Maradona, Federer, Babe Ruth, Lance Armstrong, or Muhamamd Ali, if he took up those sports at an young age and concentrated in it.

And crossover stars from 1 sport really doesn't translate to another either, just to get back to the original point.

Calling SHAQ...;D

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Originally Posted by p4pking

Obviously using any crossover examples is not going to tell you anything one way or another. Of course someone who trains their whole life for one sport and then once well past their physical peak decides to give another a shot isn't going to be dominant, that's just redundant to say. I would HOPE that the arguement you are trying to respond to is that if one athlete had focused entirely one another sport from the get go, INSTEAD of their chosen sport, they could be better than so and so, which in the case of boxing obviously holds very little weight either. The point I was making is that Lebron James, for instance, is a FAR FAR FAR better pure athlete than either of the Klitshckos, but that doesn't take intangibles associated with the sport into account obviously. All combat sports are very specific in that sense, I know a couple of guys who were half decent martial artists from a young age who were absolutely useless when it came to so much as catching or throwing a ball etc, but they would beat the hell out of guys who were very multi talented in team sports etc. Just a dumb arguement really.

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The title of the thread is "Why do people think any good NBA/NFL athlete can beat the Klit bros?" It's not "Do you think if NBA/NFL athletes had taken up boxing from the very beginning, could they beat the Klitschkos?" I wish people would stick to the original arguments, instead of twisting it into something else. And given that the title is the former, I maintain that it's ludicruous to think that a Lebron James, a Shaq, or any other NBA'er or NFL'er for that matter could beat the Klits.

So either stick to the original argument, or make up your own new thread.

;)

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Originally Posted by generalbulldog

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Originally Posted by TitoFan

Ha ha... you're not gonna get any arguments from me, bulldog. I remember what happened to "Too Tall Jones" and Mark Gastineau (ex-NFL stars) when they tried their hand at boxing. They got their asses whipped. Being a star at one sport doesn't necessarily translate into being a successful boxer.

However..... going back to the original thread about the Klitschko's chances in MMA, I'd have to bet against it. Same reasoning. Just 'cause they've been successful boxers, it doesn't mean they'd do good in a street fight, or in MMA style fighting. I still point to Wlad's suspect chin, which hasn't been truly tested after his two humiliating KO's, and to Vitali's age, stiffness, and general lack of coordination. Given some training, I suppose they could be marginally successful, but nothing like the dominance they've shown over the bunch of incompetent losers they've faced lately.

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Exactly that's my point. Being good at 1 sport doesn't mean it will translate to another. Even if the Klit bros did MMA at an early age, would they have dominated? We don't know. Maybe, maybe not. But more than likely they wouldn't dominate.

So would Lebron James be another Babe Ruth if he took up baseball at an early age and just went there? How about if he concentrated on soccer at an young age, would be another Maradona? Would he be another Federer?

Remember different sports requires different skill sets, Being overall athletic is 1 thing, but having the right skills sets to be a superstar in a certain sport is another.

So I would say more than likely no, Lebron wouldn't be another Gretzky, Maradona, Federer, Babe Ruth, Lance Armstrong, or Muhamamd Ali, if he took up those sports at an young age and concentrated in it.

And crossover stars from 1 sport really doesn't translate to another either, just to get back to the original point.

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I think it's safe to say we agree on all points.

I think you're obviously referring to my comments against Nameless. Nameless challenged me to name any heavyweight more athletic than the Klitschkos. He said ANY heavyweight. Not necessarily a boxer. So I said this is too easy and I named Lebron James who is 6' 8" 255 pounds along with many other heavyweights. By heavyweight standards the Klitshkos are no where near top of athleticism. They are not athletic. That was my point. Who said anything about Lebron outboxing anyone??? And its a moot point to ponder if Lebron grew up boxing. He would definitely have the most athleticism that heavyweight boxing has ever seen. You can't measure chin or heart. We'd have to see. But Lebron, Ray Lewis, and many other heavyweights would have the Klitschkos easily outbeat in athleticism. But in boxing we all know there are more factors. We don't know if they have the more unless they grew into the sport. Boxing is a specialist sport and no athlete is going to come in as a 20 something year old and beat a Klitschko. Lets be real and not spin things.

It wasn't YOUR comments I was replying to, blegit.

;)

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Originally Posted by TitoFan

It wasn't YOUR comments I was replying to, blegit.

;)

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No, I know. I was referring to the thread and Bulldog. My bad for not specifying.

Personally I don't see the correlation between hitting a jumpshot and the ability to give and take a punch. Have you seen most NBA fights? I remember Shaq when he tried to hit Brad Miller who wasn't even looking and Shaq still missed ;D and damn near tripped over his own feet.

It's just not their sport. Ever see Mike Tyson play basketball :vd: that was just sad. Then there's Jermain Taylor on one of those countdown shows he was shooting hoops with his wife(who i believe played in college) and he can't even dribble. He hops with the ball, then airballed a shot. Again it's not their sport put Lebron James in the ring with Tyson...see what happens ;)

Ray Lewis? Everybody loves to bring him up when this topic is discussed. Hell, Eddie Chambers would probably whip his ass like he did another Football guy, Derric Rossy. I won't even go into what the Klitschko's would do to him. But on the flipside, put Wlad at Wide Receiver and send him across the middle and see what happens ;)

Bottom line it's not their sport. We'll never know how NBA/NFL guys would do if they took up boxing at a young age so why even debate it.

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Originally Posted by blegit

I think you're obviously referring to my comments against Nameless. Nameless challenged me to name any heavyweight more athletic than the Klitschkos. He said ANY heavyweight. Not necessarily a boxer. So I said this is too easy and I named Lebron James who is 6' 8" 255 pounds along with many other heavyweights. By heavyweight standards the Klitshkos are no where near top of athleticism. They are not athletic. That was my point. Who said anything about Lebron outboxing anyone??? And its a moot point to ponder if Lebron grew up boxing. He would definitely have the most athleticism that heavyweight boxing has ever seen. You can't measure chin or heart. We'd have to see. But Lebron, Ray Lewis, and many other heavyweights would have the Klitschkos easily outbeat in athleticism. But in boxing we all know there are more factors. We don't know if they have the more unless they grew into the sport. Boxing is a specialist sport and no athlete is going to come in as a 20 something year old and beat a Klitschko. Lets be real and not spin things.

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The Klitchkos are more athletic than you think. Vitali was a kickboxing champion. There are different types of athleticism. What makes you think Lebron is more athletic than Wladimir? Cause he can jump higher? ESPN ranked boxing as the toughest sport to compete in, so you are saying an athlete from a lesser sport could have dominated?

Who's to say that just because the klits are only using their hands that they couldnt be great at any other sport? It takes a lot of balance to box, having competed in all three, football, boxing, basketball, plus track and field..I will say that boxing requires more from the body than any of those sports with basketball being a distant last. Might I add just for reference that I can currently run 2 miles in 9:10...so thats 4:35 per mile pace. And in a open mile I've gone as low as 4:02. And it still doesn't demand as much as sparring a hard 6 rounds let alone 12 on the level that pros do it.

So having said that, I don't think that there's a basketball player in the nba that would stand a chance to last more than 2 rounds with either of them. And NFL, I'll give them all a punchers chance, but a very slim one. I mean shaq played basketball his entire life and still didn't manage to match his footwork with his size until late in his career. I mean I've seen Kobe bryant wobbled by a punch from 6'2 190 pound Chris Childs so Vitali knocks his fucking head off easily.

another thing is one has to address the mentality of each athlete as their chosen profession speaks volume to their mindset in regards to the sport itself. The Klits are doctors boxing because they like it. NBA players cry about hand slaps, and being scratched they constantly scream "OUCH ,FOUL"..So while lebron maybe can jump high and dribble I'd doubt he could withstand the the idea of a punch coming from a man his size.

I think it's pretty obvious that Wlad is pretty athletic.

I think people are greatly misunderstanding things. P4P isn't arguing that tomorrow Lebron James could dedicate himself to boxing and make it. He's saying that if James had been boxing since childhood instead of playing basketball, you could damn near guarantee he would be pretty good. I subscribe to that theory.

Yes he comes from a different planet, he very well may be the greatest combination of size and athleticism the world has ever seen. That may be a stretch but it may not be. His mental makeup, will and volition to get better would ensure success in boxing.

No way he beats Wlad now or any time in the future, maybe he never does it period, but it's common sense that he would be successful had he taken it up instead of basketball.

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Originally Posted by amat

I think it's pretty obvious that Wlad is pretty athletic.

I think people are greatly misunderstanding things. P4P isn't arguing that tomorrow Lebron James could dedicate himself to boxing and make it. He's saying that if James had been boxing since childhood instead of playing basketball, you could damn near guarantee he would be pretty good. I subscribe to that theory.

Yes he comes from a different planet, he very well may be the greatest combination of size and athleticism the world has ever seen. That may be a stretch but it may not be. His mental makeup, will and volition to get better would ensure success in boxing.

No way he beats Wlad now or any time in the future, maybe he never does it period, but it's common sense that he would be successful had he taken it up instead of basketball.

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And I absolutely agree. This is all I was saying too and somehow people are picking only certain parts and come up with "Lebron boxing a Klitshko." The bottom line is that Lebron is way more athletic than the Klitschkos. How does anybody refute that with a straight face?

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Originally Posted by amat

I think it's pretty obvious that Wlad is pretty athletic.

I think people are greatly misunderstanding things. P4P isn't arguing that tomorrow Lebron James could dedicate himself to boxing and make it. He's saying that if James had been boxing since childhood instead of playing basketball, you could damn near guarantee he would be pretty good. I subscribe to that theory.

Yes he comes from a different planet, he very well may be the greatest combination of size and athleticism the world has ever seen. That may be a stretch but it may not be. His mental makeup, will and volition to get better would ensure success in boxing.

No way he beats Wlad now or any time in the future, maybe he never does it period, but it's common sense that he would be successful had he taken it up instead of basketball.

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Thank you, that was indeed all I was trying to get across. To address the original post literally is just so completely pointless and self evident I didn't bother. I've never heard anyone say that a given NFL or NBA player could beat any decent fighter if they just chose to take up boxing tomorrow, only that they posses physical tools which are far superior to begin with, and with training could have made much better fighters. This thread is really quite stupid.

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Originally Posted by blegit

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Originally Posted by amat

I think it's pretty obvious that Wlad is pretty athletic.

I think people are greatly misunderstanding things. P4P isn't arguing that tomorrow Lebron James could dedicate himself to boxing and make it. He's saying that if James had been boxing since childhood instead of playing basketball, you could damn near guarantee he would be pretty good. I subscribe to that theory.

Yes he comes from a different planet, he very well may be the greatest combination of size and athleticism the world has ever seen. That may be a stretch but it may not be. His mental makeup, will and volition to get better would ensure success in boxing.

No way he beats Wlad now or any time in the future, maybe he never does it period, but it's common sense that he would be successful had he taken it up instead of basketball.

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And I absolutely agree. This is all I was saying too and somehow people are picking only certain parts and come up with "Lebron boxing a Klitshko." The bottom line is that Lebron is way more athletic than the Klitschkos. How does anybody refute that with a straight face?

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If the K would be basketball champions, at 6.7 and 6.8 with not an oz of fat you would probably say they are the most gifted things on earth.

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Originally Posted by Hunter

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Originally Posted by blegit

I think you're obviously referring to my comments against Nameless. Nameless challenged me to name any heavyweight more athletic than the Klitschkos. He said ANY heavyweight. Not necessarily a boxer. So I said this is too easy and I named Lebron James who is 6' 8" 255 pounds along with many other heavyweights. By heavyweight standards the Klitshkos are no where near top of athleticism. They are not athletic. That was my point. Who said anything about Lebron outboxing anyone??? And its a moot point to ponder if Lebron grew up boxing. He would definitely have the most athleticism that heavyweight boxing has ever seen. You can't measure chin or heart. We'd have to see. But Lebron, Ray Lewis, and many other heavyweights would have the Klitschkos easily outbeat in athleticism. But in boxing we all know there are more factors. We don't know if they have the more unless they grew into the sport. Boxing is a specialist sport and no athlete is going to come in as a 20 something year old and beat a Klitschko. Lets be real and not spin things.

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The Klitchkos are more athletic than you think. Vitali was a kickboxing champion. There are different types of athleticism. What makes you think Lebron is more athletic than Wladimir? Cause he can jump higher? ESPN ranked boxing as the toughest sport to compete in, so you are saying an athlete from a lesser sport could have dominated?

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Are you really serious about comparing Lebron's athleticism to Wladimir Klitschkos? You know there are tests to athletic abilities. Lebron can run a 4.3 40, has a 40+ vertical, is much quicker, more agile, etc. The list goes on. Lebron was All State in Basketball and Football. The guy could be a phenom in 3 or 4 sports that are nothing alike. What does Wlad do that makes you even argue he is more athletic than Lebron? Give me something. And as far as ESPN ranking boxing as the hardest sport. Well, Ray Mercer said that MMA training was harder than boxing. While I like boxing more, I wrestled and boxed for many years and I know certainly that wrestling is harder and requires more athleticism. I only trained MMA, never competed, but the training is easily tougher.

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Originally Posted by Nameless

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Originally Posted by blegit

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Originally Posted by amat

I think it's pretty obvious that Wlad is pretty athletic.

I think people are greatly misunderstanding things. P4P isn't arguing that tomorrow Lebron James could dedicate himself to boxing and make it. He's saying that if James had been boxing since childhood instead of playing basketball, you could damn near guarantee he would be pretty good. I subscribe to that theory.

Yes he comes from a different planet, he very well may be the greatest combination of size and athleticism the world has ever seen. That may be a stretch but it may not be. His mental makeup, will and volition to get better would ensure success in boxing.

No way he beats Wlad now or any time in the future, maybe he never does it period, but it's common sense that he would be successful had he taken it up instead of basketball.

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And I absolutely agree. This is all I was saying too and somehow people are picking only certain parts and come up with "Lebron boxing a Klitshko." The bottom line is that Lebron is way more athletic than the Klitschkos. How does anybody refute that with a straight face?

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If the K would be basketball champions, at 6.7 and 6.8 with not an oz of fat you would probably say they are the most gifted things on earth.

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And that is about the most misconstrued IF you could ever come up with. The Klitsshcko's couldn't possibly be GREAT basketball players, their size is completely typical of so many guys in the NBA who are MUCH faster, stronger, with way better reflexes. Of course it's pointless to compare guys who are in different sports for a large part, but there are certain measures of athletecism which aren't entirely specific to one sport. You think the Klitschko's 40 yard dash, bench press, vertical leap, etc. Would come anywhere CLOSE to even a half decent NFL linebacker or power forward in the NBA? Of course not.

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Originally Posted by JonesJrMayweather

Who's to say that just because the klits are only using their hands that they couldnt be great at any other sport? It takes a lot of balance to box, having competed in all three, football, boxing, basketball, plus track and field..I will say that boxing requires more from the body than any of those sports with basketball being a distant last. Might I add just for reference that I can currently run 2 miles in 9:10...so thats 4:35 per mile pace. And in a open mile I've gone as low as 4:02. And it still doesn't demand as much as sparring a hard 6 rounds let alone 12 on the level that pros do it.

So having said that, I don't think that there's a basketball player in the nba that would stand a chance to last more than 2 rounds with either of them. And NFL, I'll give them all a punchers chance, but a very slim one. I mean shaq played basketball his entire life and still didn't manage to match his footwork with his size until late in his career. I mean I've seen Kobe bryant wobbled by a punch from 6'2 190 pound Chris Childs so Vitali knocks his fucking head off easily.

another thing is one has to address the mentality of each athlete as their chosen profession speaks volume to their mindset in regards to the sport itself. The Klits are doctors boxing because they like it. NBA players cry about hand slaps, and being scratched they constantly scream "OUCH ,FOUL"..So while lebron maybe can jump high and dribble I'd doubt he could withstand the the idea of a punch coming from a man his size.

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You're a sharp runner. Got to give it to ya. But I think it depends what sports you've been a part of longer. My only statement is that Lebron and many of those heavyweights from other sports are more athletic than the Klitschkos. I'm sure if the Klitschkos didn't grow up boxing and came to the sport in their 20s then they would be just an opponent for even a B level guy. Boxing is a specialist sport. You must be involved early to attain success like the top fighters. I've been in boxing almost 20 years and it is not the hardest sport for me. To each's own.

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Originally Posted by Nameless

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Originally Posted by blegit

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Originally Posted by amat

I think it's pretty obvious that Wlad is pretty athletic.

I think people are greatly misunderstanding things. P4P isn't arguing that tomorrow Lebron James could dedicate himself to boxing and make it. He's saying that if James had been boxing since childhood instead of playing basketball, you could damn near guarantee he would be pretty good. I subscribe to that theory.

Yes he comes from a different planet, he very well may be the greatest combination of size and athleticism the world has ever seen. That may be a stretch but it may not be. His mental makeup, will and volition to get better would ensure success in boxing.

No way he beats Wlad now or any time in the future, maybe he never does it period, but it's common sense that he would be successful had he taken it up instead of basketball.

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And I absolutely agree. This is all I was saying too and somehow people are picking only certain parts and come up with "Lebron boxing a Klitshko." The bottom line is that Lebron is way more athletic than the Klitschkos. How does anybody refute that with a straight face?

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If the K would be basketball champions, at 6.7 and 6.8 with not an oz of fat you would probably say they are the most gifted things on earth.

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Yeah, you can come back with a better one than that. Can't you?

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Originally Posted by p4pking

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Originally Posted by amat

I think it's pretty obvious that Wlad is pretty athletic.

I think people are greatly misunderstanding things. P4P isn't arguing that tomorrow Lebron James could dedicate himself to boxing and make it. He's saying that if James had been boxing since childhood instead of playing basketball, you could damn near guarantee he would be pretty good. I subscribe to that theory.

Yes he comes from a different planet, he very well may be the greatest combination of size and athleticism the world has ever seen. That may be a stretch but it may not be. His mental makeup, will and volition to get better would ensure success in boxing.

No way he beats Wlad now or any time in the future, maybe he never does it period, but it's common sense that he would be successful had he taken it up instead of basketball.

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Thank you, that was indeed all I was trying to get across. To address the original post literally is just so completely pointless and self evident I didn't bother. I've never heard anyone say that a given NFL or NBA player could beat any decent fighter if they just chose to take up boxing tomorrow, only that they posses physical tools which are far superior to begin with, and with training could have made much better fighters. This thread is really quite stupid.

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Then you didn't read my original post clearly. Here I'll post the little part for you.

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Originally Posted by generalbulldog

Inspired by another recent thread here.

It seems that there are a lot of people out there that thinks that if Shaq or Lebron James or Ray Lewis took up boxing either at a young age or later age that they can beat the Klit bros and be HW champs.

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I stated that there are a lot of people think that a lot of NBA/NFL players can beat the Klit brothers at a young age or later age (meaning starting and training at a young age sticking with it or starting at a later advance age.) They seem to be under this assumption that NBA/NFL athletes are so athletically supreme that had they started at an young age in boxing they would dominate it, or coming at a later age and dominating it. I don't agree. Because you just don't know if whether or not they could do that. Boxing requires certain things you need to possess. Like heart, chin, will, bravery, mental toughness, killer instinct, etc. You can have all the physical tools in the world, but if you don't possess these qualities, you're not getting far. A prime example is Joshua Clottey, he never had the will, mental toughness, killer instinct to be elite, when he had all the physical tools to be 1 of the best in the game.

There's another completely pointless arguement, what the "hardest" sport might be. Any given sport is infinetely difficult, and mastering a physical discipline is completely impossible regardless of how or how often you train. All you can do for arguements sake is compare the playing field and what level of athletes currently take part in a given sport, and anyone who would make an arguement that boxing or MMA currently is anywhere near the top here needs their head checked as far as I'm concerned.

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Originally Posted by generalbulldog

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Originally Posted by p4pking

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Originally Posted by amat

I think it's pretty obvious that Wlad is pretty athletic.

I think people are greatly misunderstanding things. P4P isn't arguing that tomorrow Lebron James could dedicate himself to boxing and make it. He's saying that if James had been boxing since childhood instead of playing basketball, you could damn near guarantee he would be pretty good. I subscribe to that theory.

Yes he comes from a different planet, he very well may be the greatest combination of size and athleticism the world has ever seen. That may be a stretch but it may not be. His mental makeup, will and volition to get better would ensure success in boxing.

No way he beats Wlad now or any time in the future, maybe he never does it period, but it's common sense that he would be successful had he taken it up instead of basketball.

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Thank you, that was indeed all I was trying to get across. To address the original post literally is just so completely pointless and self evident I didn't bother. I've never heard anyone say that a given NFL or NBA player could beat any decent fighter if they just chose to take up boxing tomorrow, only that they posses physical tools which are far superior to begin with, and with training could have made much better fighters. This thread is really quite stupid.

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Then you didn't read my original post clearly. Here I'll post the little part for you.

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Originally Posted by generalbulldog

Inspired by another recent thread here.

It seems that there are a lot of people out there that thinks that if Shaq or Lebron James or Ray Lewis took up boxing either at a young age or later age that they can beat the Klit bros and be HW champs.

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I stated that there are a lot of people think that a lot of NBA/NFL players can beat the Klit brothers at a young age or later age (meaning starting and training at a young age sticking with it or starting at a later advance age.) They seem to be under this assumption that NBA/NFL athletes are so athletically supreme that had they started at an young age in boxing they would dominate it, or coming at a later age and dominating it. I don't agree. Because you just don't know if whether or not they could do that. Boxing requires certain things you need to possess. Like heart, chin, will, bravery, mental toughness, killer instinct, etc. You can have all the physical tools in the world, but if you don't possess these qualities, you're not getting far. A prime example is Joshua Clottey, he never had the will, mental toughness, killer instinct to be elite, when he had all the physical tools.

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I did read your initial post and adressed pretty well every aspect of it. I acknowledged that you can never know for certain whether a given athlete COULD have been a great boxer due to intangibles, and so on. I am of the opinion that this whole thread is a joke, that is all.

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Originally Posted by generalbulldog

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Originally Posted by p4pking

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Originally Posted by amat

I think it's pretty obvious that Wlad is pretty athletic.

I think people are greatly misunderstanding things. P4P isn't arguing that tomorrow Lebron James could dedicate himself to boxing and make it. He's saying that if James had been boxing since childhood instead of playing basketball, you could damn near guarantee he would be pretty good. I subscribe to that theory.

Yes he comes from a different planet, he very well may be the greatest combination of size and athleticism the world has ever seen. That may be a stretch but it may not be. His mental makeup, will and volition to get better would ensure success in boxing.

No way he beats Wlad now or any time in the future, maybe he never does it period, but it's common sense that he would be successful had he taken it up instead of basketball.

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Thank you, that was indeed all I was trying to get across. To address the original post literally is just so completely pointless and self evident I didn't bother. I've never heard anyone say that a given NFL or NBA player could beat any decent fighter if they just chose to take up boxing tomorrow, only that they posses physical tools which are far superior to begin with, and with training could have made much better fighters. This thread is really quite stupid.

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Then you didn't read my original post clearly. Here I'll post the little part for you.

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Originally Posted by generalbulldog

Inspired by another recent thread here.

It seems that there are a lot of people out there that thinks that if Shaq or Lebron James or Ray Lewis took up boxing either at a young age or later age that they can beat the Klit bros and be HW champs.

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I stated that there are a lot of people think that a lot of NBA/NFL players can beat the Klit brothers at a young age or later age (meaning starting and training at a young age sticking with it or starting at a later advance age.) They seem to be under this assumption that NBA/NFL athletes are so athletically supreme that had they started at an young age in boxing they would dominate it, or coming at a later age and dominating it. I don't agree. Because you just don't know if whether or not they could do that. Boxing requires certain things you need to possess. Like heart, chin, will, bravery, mental toughness, killer instinct, etc. You can have all the physical tools in the world, but if you don't possess these qualities, you're not getting far. A prime example is Joshua Clottey, he never had the will, mental toughness, killer instinct to be elite, when he had all the physical tools to be 1 of the best in the game.

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Yes, but I wasn't one of them who said Lebron or any other guy could beat the Klitschkos. I said they are more athletic. And as common sense would tell you of course they would have a better starting point. But that doesn't determine the ending point. We can't prove what would've happened if Lebron, Ray Lewis, or Shaq(who is not very athletic) grew up boxing. But Lebron and someone like Calvin Johnson have dream heavyweight athleticism. Its an interesting argument but I stick to just not speculating what can't be redone.

Apparently Rasheed Wallace was wiping the floor with Lennox Lewis all day at Kronk in sparring when he played for detroit, somebody I know was there.

Kobe Bryant has a way better chin than Wlad to, he's never been knocked out.

But I'm sure Wlad is a better Kite surfer, and he only started in his twenties. Tough call really.

Completely different sports with different skillsets. Just because someone is good at the skills involved in say basketball doesn't mean they could turn their hand to any other sport! Normally when someone is awesome at a sport, that is it they are just naturally gifted at that sport and then they have dedicated themselves to that sport and made themselves world class. Same thing goes for the Klits, they are very good boxers and very good athletes but could they shoot hoops? Probably not. Could a world class basketball player have thrown a great jab, a great left hook, a wonderful straight right hand? Could they follow a boxing game plan with someone trying to basically trying to render them incapable of being able to stand up anymore? I doubt it!

Wayne Rooney is a great athlete over here, he is probably the best British footballer right now. He also did boxing from an early age, but when it came to making a choice he just couldn't cut it as a boxer and made his choice based on that and chose football. He may have won a few fights in early stages, but had he made it even to televised boxing he would have been seriously beaten up. Fact.

Athleticism isn't enough, boxing requires great mentality just like other sports but it is a different mentality just like golf and swimming require different mindsets!

No way, Ray Lewis would destroy Wlad in a game of tennis, anyone who doesn't see this is just crazy!!!

The best way I can think of it is, Roy Jones.. Probably the most athletically gifted boxer that may ever have boxed, and no way he beats either of the klit brothers in a boxing match..

Is there actually someone dumb enough in the world today to actually believe something as absurd as this?

If so id happily chip in with £10 to see the biggest baddest NFL star get laid out inside 15seconds!!

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Originally Posted by generalbulldog

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Originally Posted by TitoFan

Ha ha... you're not gonna get any arguments from me, bulldog. I remember what happened to "Too Tall Jones" and Mark Gastineau (ex-NFL stars) when they tried their hand at boxing. They got their asses whipped. Being a star at one sport doesn't necessarily translate into being a successful boxer.

However..... going back to the original thread about the Klitschko's chances in MMA, I'd have to bet against it. Same reasoning. Just 'cause they've been successful boxers, it doesn't mean they'd do good in a street fight, or in MMA style fighting. I still point to Wlad's suspect chin, which hasn't been truly tested after his two humiliating KO's, and to Vitali's age, stiffness, and general lack of coordination. Given some training, I suppose they could be marginally successful, but nothing like the dominance they've shown over the bunch of incompetent losers they've faced lately.

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Exactly that's my point. Being good at 1 sport doesn't mean it will translate to another. Even if the Klit bros did MMA at an early age, would they have dominated? We don't know. Maybe, maybe not. But more than likely they wouldn't dominate.

So would Lebron James be another Babe Ruth if he took up baseball at an early age and just went there? How about if he concentrated on soccer at an young age, would be another Maradona? Would he be another Federer?

Remember different sports requires different skill sets, Being overall athletic is 1 thing, but having the right skills sets to be a superstar in a certain sport is another.

So I would say more than likely no, Lebron wouldn't be another Gretzky, Maradona, Federer, Babe Ruth, Lance Armstrong, or Muhamamd Ali, if he took up those sports at an young age and concentrated in it.

And crossover stars from 1 sport really doesn't translate to another either, just to get back to the original point.

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I saw Shaq fight Oscar. I think had he taken up boxing at an early age he could have been decent. He actually won one round against DLH. But one thing was certain; Shaq was fat. He got winded and that's when Oscar came on. No doubt if Shaquille had good coordination and a chin he could have blown the Klitschkos out the water, but that's those intangibles that can't be taught. If it was all about athleticism then Tye Fields would be a champ right now. Ex NBA player, huge and studly, but he's everyone's whipping boy in a boxing ring.

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Originally Posted by p4pking

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Originally Posted by Nameless

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Originally Posted by blegit

And I absolutely agree. This is all I was saying too and somehow people are picking only certain parts and come up with "Lebron boxing a Klitshko." The bottom line is that Lebron is way more athletic than the Klitschkos. How does anybody refute that with a straight face?

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If the K would be basketball champions, at 6.7 and 6.8 with not an oz of fat you would probably say they are the most gifted things on earth.

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And that is about the most misconstrued IF you could ever come up with. The Klitsshcko's couldn't possibly be GREAT basketball players, their size is completely typical of so many guys in the NBA who are MUCH faster, stronger, with way better reflexes. Of course it's pointless to compare guys who are in different sports for a large part, but there are certain measures of athletecism which aren't entirely specific to one sport. You think the Klitschko's 40 yard dash, bench press, vertical leap, etc. Would come anywhere CLOSE to even a half decent NFL linebacker or power forward in the NBA? Of course not.

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I have no idea what Wlad vertical and 40 yard dash is but if I had to bet I would say it is better than 50% of NFL linebackers. I would also say that Wlad is stronger, has less body fat, and more stamina than 95% of NFL backers. I would say he has better hand speed than 100%...;D

I am not saying Wlad is a better athlete than Lebron but there are things that Wlad can do better than Lebron and vise versa. It is hard to compare them when you only see a snapshot of what Wlad can do. I think you can take any top athlete and say if they focused on another sport they could have had success. Michael Jordan proved you cant just switch it up and dominate....;D

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Originally Posted by generalbulldog

Inspired by another recent thread here.

Now as I've said, I'm not a fan of Wlad's style, but even I have to acknowledge the man has great skills and is athletic for his size in the boxing ring.

It seems that there are a lot of people out there that thinks that if Shaq or Lebron James or Ray Lewis took up boxing either at a young age or later age that they can beat the Klit bros and be HW champs.

We dont know that. Being good at one sport doesn't translate to another. See Michael Jordan as a prime example A great NBA player but a mediocre baseball player who couldn't hit, field, or even run the bases without looking goofy. Those 2 sports stars at the highest level like an Deion Sanders or Bo Jackson is incredibly rare. Would anyone here think that Lebron James could be like Roger Federer or Wayne Gretzky if he took up tennis or hockey at an early age instead of basketball? I'm sure there's a lot of people out there that thinks Lebron can be another Gretzky or Federer if he took up those sports, I don't.

Being a good big athlete at another sport doesn't mean it would mean the same thing in the boxing ring. Things like stamina, the ability to take a punch to the body or head and having good movement inside that boxing ring also has to be taken into consideration. At the HW division size is 1 thing, but usually it's great skills that determines the winner much more than size imo.

What do you guys think?

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Why do people think any good NBA/NFL athlete can beat the Klit bros?

Because they're stupid

Wilt Chamberlain was considered to be the Lebron James of his day. An athlete that did outrageous things on the basketball court just like James. And he wanted to fight a prime version of this guy.


http://abritishman.files.wordpress.c...ition-bout.jpg

Anyone here thinks that Chamberlain could have beaten Ali? How about if Chamberlain took up boxing as a youngster and stuck to it? Would he still be able to beat a prime ALi? I really wished that Ali would have taken this fight and fought Chamberlain. It would have put any bullshit notion that some great NBA athlete can beat a prime HW champion.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1Xjt-1Zvwo

I'd bet my legs that if every NFL athlete were given an entire year to train that the KILTS would kayo all them inside of two rounds within the following year.

NBA, Vitali kayos the entire western conference in three months while WVlad takes the east...