6'8 280 pounds with freakish athletism, for those of you overseas who do not know who James is he is an American basketball player.
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6'8 280 pounds with freakish athletism, for those of you overseas who do not know who James is he is an American basketball player.
What kind of heavyweight would Lebron James have been?
The kind who gets knocked out on a regular basis.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Violent Demise
Lol, why do you say that.
Big difference between boxing and basketball.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jerry RiceQuote:
Originally Posted by Violent Demise
Lol, why do you say that.
They say he is actually 6'9" he grew an inch early on while being in the league and I think his weight is more like 265. But to your point I use to think the same about NBA players. Our best heavyweight athletes are in the NBA and NFL. The heavyweight world would have to hope he had no chin although with his size Wladimir learned how to get around that. Lebron is bigger than the Klitschkos and as athletic as Dirrell. The dude is seriously a freak of nature in the athletic department. He has the speed of a guy 6 feet tall and the body strength of a guy 7 feet tall. He guards both guys on the court at their own game and does very well as though he were their size. Of course we'll never find out but it would have been nice if he skipped basketball and football instead of Wilder and Mitchell. Of course Mitchell was injured out and was a good football player but he was nothing special and has gotten to the point of a C level fighter and Wilder was below average in basketball and he too has shown that on size/strength alone he got to C level at least. But boxing will never get the best heavyweights because the cards are so stacked against the sport as those guys will always go the quicker financial route of football or basketball where you become an instant millionaire after 1 to 4 years of free college. But if Lebron grew up boxing it seems he would have been something never before seen in the sport.
I agree but I'm sure Jerry Rice is assuming that Lebron didn't start today. You'd have to imagine if he chose boxing over basketball at some point in childhood. Heck, Wilder started boxing at 20 and he was nothing more than a below average basketball player. And he is smaller and much less athletic than Lebron so Lebron would have a much greater pool of talent to start with. Manny Steward even said all the great heavyweights in America were in basketball.Quote:
Originally Posted by Violent DemiseBig difference between boxing and basketball.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jerry RiceQuote:
Originally Posted by Violent Demise
Lol, why do you say that.
Mount Goofi Whitaker...minus the humility and charm
Thats probably the exact opposite of what Lebron James resembles. Mount Whitaker was size only. He was clumsy, no agility, uncoordinated, etc. Lebron James has the all the athletic tools in nimbleness, agility, coordination, strength, speed, quickness, great reflexes. Whitaker basically had none of that.Quote:
Originally Posted by Spicoli
A horizontal one.
He would have been a bum. Being big and athletic dont mean shit inside the ring. To be a successful fighter, you have to be cut from a different cloth and it requires so much more than just physical stature..
Most great fighters are not normal in the head and pro basketball players and footballers aint got shit on them.
That's why they say one can play basketball and football, but they can't play Boxing..
Regardless of how big Lebron may be, how do we know how he'll react to being punched? He could be a total pussy with no heart.
Showing heart during a basketball game and showing heart inside the ring are totally different.
I agree, but I also believe a few months of training and he could have made a moderately decent career fighting bums as his natural physical ability would help.Quote:
Originally Posted by FinitoElDinamita
But still "Don't fight a puncher" - Roach to Khan
Bro, I have to strongly disagree with you about the size and athleticism. I competed/trained for 17 years and had been a coach/trainer for 20 and I know for certain that size and athleticism are two of the best attributes in the ring. They don't mean everything but they mean a lot and the same goes with heart. People in the other thread were excusing Duran for his losses to the other greats because lack of size. What are you going by saying Lebron would have been a bum? We don't know a man's heart. There are basketball and football players who have the heart of a fighter. Some may have a heart better suited for fighting than a team sport. We just don't know who without testing it so its a purely hypothetical thread. Dirrell would be half the fighter he is if he wasn't so athletic and do you really think Michael Grant would have been a title contender if he wasn't so big? There are so many examples of heavyweights who are/were title contenders off sheer size. Sergio Martinez didn't pick up a glove until he was 20 and his freakish athleticism made him one of the best in the era. Can you answer no to this question with a straight face...Would Vitali Klitschko be a better boxer if he had the athleticism of Dirrell? Guys like Mike Tyson and Manny Steward stated this clearly. In an early 90s interview on ESPN Tyson said if Michael Jordan would have grew up boxing he thinks he would have been phenomenal. Manny Steward went so far as to scout for fighters at basketball games. It wasn't because of their heart.Quote:
Originally Posted by FinitoElDinamita
I think it would have taken more than a few months but I get your point. Physical attributes start you off at a certain point. We don't all begin at the same starting line.Quote:
Originally Posted by VendettosI agree, but I also believe a few months of training and he could have made a moderately decent career fighting bums as his natural physical ability would help.Quote:
Originally Posted by FinitoElDinamita
But still "Don't fight a puncher" - Roach to Khan
Lebron James would be succesful in either boxing, American football or athletics. He's a natural athlete but like many have said it would take lots of training from a young age for him to be more than a gatekeeper in the Heavyweight divison.
James would be a fighter that would piss me off when he fought. He would choke in his big fights until he hooks up with a trainer and promoter that would be able to set him up in the right situation to win.
He would also be one that complains to the ref, over-exaggerate when he gets hit a little south below the border and in the back of the head.
He would also be a bullish type of fighter who would push off a lot and use the ring-ropes to get that extra push off on a shot and moderate slapping instead of turning his punches.
^^^... THAT is exactly how he would be as a fighter when we examine the way he plays Basketball and how he came to be.
He was a choke artist in Cleveland until he was saved by grace in Miami with a player in D-Wade, a complimentary piece in C-Bosh and an exemplary coaching mind in Pat Riley.
He also complains CONSTANTLY to the refs for ticky-tack stuff. More than Kobe did when Kobe started off- Kobe has gotten worse over the years as he got older, but the young Kobe would take it hard and still play on.
If you were to whisp past Lebrck while he was taking a shot, he complains. Whether you hit him or not!
He also FLOPS a bit too frequent, so much that even after years and YEARS of Basketball fans having to endure the mindlessness of the leagues most famed-flopper, former Lakers and Kings Center Vlade Divac, the league had to implement a very strong policy against excessive flopping. A rule that we may as well classify the Lebrick-no-flopping-bullshit rule!
He also travels, constantly. He gives new meaning to "His-Airness", and not in a good way. He has gotten better as of late, but still can be seen at least twice in a game skipping down the court, with the ball in his hand, like a little fairy princess and her flower basket. Lebrick "Travel Agent #1" James!
Lastly, some of those "chase down blocks" from Lebrick were CLEARLY goal-tending. How can you have a chase down block when the ball touched the backboard?? :confused::confused:
THAT's how he plays B-Ball and that is the mentality he would bring to the sport of Boxing.
;D
At best, he would be a very hyped prospect for about the first 20-25 fights. Then people are gonna ask that he steps it up- and then gets a rude awakening and has to re-strategize. But because he is a crowd-pleaser, like Amir Khan, no matter how many times he gets beat or stopped folks are gonna wanna see him. He would end up as a 40 and 6 and 3 record fighter with very dubious wins, with a minor portion of a world title, but never one that got real notoriety- he would be a glorified journeyman who happened to be in the right place at the right time with the right people.
That's how his career would have turned out if we based it on the steps he has took/is taking with B-Ball.
***you can hate me now***
I heard this on an NBA pre-game show, so I think I'm quoting Charles Barkley: "No basketball player knows how to fight."
Haha, makes sense it's a muscle memory thing. Same with soccer or any finesse sport, when you react to keep your hands away from peoples faces instinctively you won't be much good in a scrap.Quote:
Originally Posted by greynotsoold
Obviously Lebron is a pure monster, to many intangibles in boxing or MMA to say anyone would've been half decent just based on general "athleticism" though. I'm not an NFL fan, but Id say it's more likely Ray Lewis or somebody like that could have had a career fighting, just because we know how tough they are.
Yes, I see his point and agree that you can't just throw a guy in there. It takes some grooming and sifting out who just isn't cut to make it. But I'm not going to be bias and ignore the truth that guys have come from other sports and been successful. A football player, basketball player, wrestler, and a cyclist have had at least some success in boxing and all quit their sport and started boxing in their 20s. Its been proven it can be done.Quote:
Originally Posted by greynotsoold
So basically you're saying you think he'd be too soft to be great at boxing. Fair play. At least you brought something with your opinion and you may be right. I can think of at least one boxer who seems to have the same problem. What about David West? He seems to be tough as nails and does actually use boxing as part of his training regimen.Quote:
Originally Posted by ykdadamaja
What kind of HW would Lebron have been? A very large one.
Carlos Boozer looks like a fighter at HW. He looks like he can win a few fights too.Quote:
Originally Posted by jehoshaphatSo basically you're saying you think he'd be too soft to be great at boxing. Fair play. At least you brought something with your opinion and you may be right. I can think of at least one boxer who seems to have the same problem. What about David West? He seems to be tough as nails and does actually use boxing as part of his training regimen.Quote:
Originally Posted by ykdadamaja
Rajon Rondo could be a damn good Jr-Middleweight, while we're at it. lololol...
I don't agree with much of what Max Kellerman says but this question came up a long time ago when he was still in studio for ESPN FNF. He said the American athlete he could see as a boxer who could actually become a world champion was Allen Iverson. I 100% agree
The very best! It's hard to beat speed, size, smarts and almost unbelievable hand-eye coordination.
Quote:
Originally Posted by p4pkingHaha, makes sense it's a muscle memory thing. Same with soccer or any finesse sport, when you react to keep your hands away from peoples faces instinctively you won't be much good in a scrap.Quote:
Originally Posted by greynotsoold
Obviously Lebron is a pure monster, to many intangibles in boxing or MMA to say anyone would've been half decent just based on general "athleticism" though. I'm not an NFL fan, but Id say it's more likely Ray Lewis or somebody like that could have had a career fighting, just because we know how tough they are.
I dont think its a muscle memory thing, some people just have a more natural fluidity in different movements, Lebron is a freak athlete but theres no evidence to suggest he can throw punches, Obviously you can train a bit, but if it's not at all natural it aint happening. TBH he looks downright awkward on the basketball court sometimes anyway.
He's also shown himself to be abit of a mental midget on numerous occassions.