Is Nadal the greatest athlete in history?

Mike Sams said:
Bolt trains specifically for running. With his god-given abilities, he probably would've been an elite level tennis player had he trained for tennis at a young age.
Let's compare like and like.
Juan Martin Del Potro and Ussain Bolt. Both are the same height. You see how Bolt moves and then see how Del Potro moves and you'll instantly realize that Bolt is leagues ahead of Del Potro in terms of speed and athletic ability.
Then factor in that Del Potro was top 4 at one point and a US Open champion. Who's to say that great athletes like Ussain Bolt and LeBron James couldn've have destroyed the likes of Federer and Nadal had they trained for tennis as kids?
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I don't deal in ifs and buts, would haves or could haves.

I am the same height and build as Wozniaki. I know that because I took a selfie with her at the golf tournament in Dubai when she was dating McIlroy. I can tell you for a fact that I would not have been a great tennis player.
 
Thetouch said:
Duh, that's why he trains 5hrs a day on his start, technique, accelaration, speed, endurance and he lifts weights and so on to be prepared for the final moment. Imagine you are in the olympic final which you can only reach every 4 years and millions of people are watching, the pressure is not even comparable to any athlete at this moment. One simple mistake, even false breathing can cnst you the race. A tennis player who is 0:6 0:6 0:5 and 0:40 still can win the match. Guys like Becker and McEnroe went 6 hours against each other but everybody knows they weren't high on putting too much effort in their training sessions.
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He's also got very long strides.
 
clayqueen said:
I don't deal in ifs and buts, would haves or could haves.
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You don't have to.
clayqueen said:
I don't deal in ifs and buts, would haves or could haves.

I am the same height and build as Wozniaki. I know that because I took a selfie with her at the golf tournament in Dubai when she was dating McIlroy. I can tell you for a fact that I would not have been a great tennis player.
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yea but you're a zero athlete that's never trained in anything in your life.
Bolt, Lebron, Jordan, etc are among the world's greatest athletes. Big difference between them and you.
 
clayqueen said:
He's also got very long strides.
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There was a time when most successful sprinters were around 5'8-5'10. Being very tall can make things even tougher because your start lacks power and speed so you have to make up for it with a strong finish, which is what all sprinters work on heavily too especially someone like Bolt.
 
LeBron is such kind of athlete that if he had trained in any other sport, he probably would've been exceptional. No matter if it's boxing, football, NFL, tennis, etc. How good he could've been would've been interesting but he's leagues ahead athletically than the tour.
 
Thetouch said:
There was a time when most successful sprinters were around 5'8-5'10. Being very tall can make things even tougher because your start lacks power and speed so you have to make up for it with a strong finish, which is what all sprinters work on heavily too especially someone like Bolt.
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That logic doesn't work for me.
 
TimHenmanATG said:
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Immense player, the best all around.

Quite a disturbing personality.
 
clayqueen said:
But they haven't proved that they've got all the attributes that makes a top tennis player. Guesswork doesn't do it.
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Sure but one thing we know is that they are more athletic than any player out there. If you have someone like that big lug John Isner winning a Masters, then it's not out of the realm that someone like LeBron doing something special if he had put all his focus on tennis instead of basketball. LeBron's mindset and will to win is as good as the likes of Nadal and Federer. Same with Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan.
 
Mike Sams said:
LeBron is such kind of athlete that if he had trained in any other sport, he probably would've been exceptional. No matter if it's boxing, football, NFL, tennis, etc. How good he could've been would've been interesting but he's leagues ahead athletically than the tour.
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LeBron would have been an NFL player, maybe a good one but there's no realistic chance he'd be a great tennis player or boxer. There is no precedent for someone his build (not height, build) excelling in either sport, at best he'd be a servebot in tennis.
 
weakera said:
LeBron would have been an NFL player, maybe a good one but there's no realistic chance he'd be a great tennis player or boxer. There is no precedent for someone his build (not height, build) excelling in either sport, at best he'd be a servebot in tennis.
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His build would be ideal for any sport. He's a powerhouse of a guy. Not a lanky weakling. He'd probably be a killer in MMA.
 
Mike Sams said:
His build would be ideal for any sport. He's a powerhouse of a guy. Not a lanky weakling. He'd probably be a killer in MMA.
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There's a reason players his size or similar *never* win grand slams.
And there's a reason no one even close to his size competes seriously in MMA.
As coordinated and athletic as LeBron is his physiology is not conducive to every sport, the notion doesn't even make sense.

LeBron would also be helpless trying to square up an MLB slider, just like other crossover athletes who have tried.
 
Question is ludicrous. The answer is just so obviously a resounding “DUH”. A better question would be, “Is Bull the greatest being of all time, including immortal ones such as deities?” and the answer is still an obvious yes.
 
weakera said:
There's a reason players his size or similar *never* win grand slams.
And there's a reason no one even close to his size competes seriously in MMA.
As coordinated and athletic as LeBron is his physiology is not conducive to every sport, the notion doesn't even make sense.

LeBron would also be helpless trying to square up an MLB slider, just like other crossover athletes who have tried.
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Tim Sylvia was a 2 time UFC heavyweight champ at 6'8 and zero athleticsm.
Jon Jones was too weak and unathletic to get into the NFL with his 2 brothers who are both NFL players. So he had to do MMA instead and is one of the greatest of all time.
Any big difference you see between Jones' build and LeBron's? Well other than LeBron being a hell of alot bigger, stronger, faster and more athletic than Jones?
 
Mike Sams said:
It's like Ivo Karlovic moving around the court like Michael Chang. Physically it's impossible or near it. Seeing Bolt move like a 5'7 guy on the track is pretty incredible for someone his height. His legs move as fast as a small guy's.
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You are the king of conjecture.
 
Nadal's the greatest clay courter of all time in my book. Absolutely no doubt. Overall he has the biggest claim to being the GOAT based on 22 majors.
But on grass courts and hard courts, he is behind Djokovic and Federer.
 
Mike Sams said:
Tim Sylvia was a 2 time UFC heavyweight champ at 6'8 and zero athleticsm.
Jon Jones was too weak and unathletic to get into the NFL with his 2 brothers who are both NFL players. So he had to do MMA instead and is one of the greatest of all time.
Any big difference you see between Jones' build and LeBron's? Well other than LeBron being a hell of alot bigger, stronger, faster and more athletic than Jones?
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It's just hilarious that you think having more size necessarily means you would be better at a given sport. This claim betrays powerful ignorance in regards to human physiology.

You must think a 6-foot-1 Schwartzman would win 50 slams lol
 
weakera said:
It's just hilarious that you think having more size necessarily means you would be better at a given sport. This claim betrays powerful ignorance in regards to human physiology.

You must think a 6-foot-1 Schwartzman would win 50 slams lol
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Not just size. Having a blend of size and athleticism and a killer mindset makes for a great athlete. Besides, I never said that LeBron, Jordan, Bolt and them would be slam winners in tennis if they had gone into tennis from childhood. I said they have the athletic qualities, willpower and determination and god given genetics to probably be pretty damn good in tennis. Maybe far better than a lot of the players we have on the tour.
 
Mike Sams said:
Not just size. Having a blend of size and athleticism and a killer mindset makes for a great athlete. Besides, I never said that LeBron, Jordan, Bolt and them would be slam winners in tennis if they had gone into tennis from childhood. I said they have the athletic qualities, willpower and determination and god given genetics to probably be pretty damn good in tennis. Maybe far better than a lot of the players we have on the tour.
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I'm not anti-LeBron by any means and I definitely think he's the greatest basketball player of all time. So I'm not coming equipped with any bias when I say that there is zero chance LeBron could have been more than a servebot in tennis or successful in MMA. Different physical attributes are required. NFL, sure, depending on how his body would hold up from taking hits. MLB and Hockey, utterly hopeless.
 
weakera said:
I'm not anti-LeBron by any means and I definitely think he's the greatest basketball player of all time. So I'm not coming equipped with any bias when I say that there is zero chance LeBron could have been more than a servebot in tennis or successful in MMA. Different physical attributes are required. NFL, sure, depending on how his body would hold up from taking hits. MLB and Hockey, utterly hopeless.
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Kevin Anderson at 6'8 made 2 major finals. He also beat Federer at Wimbledon and took Djokovic to 5 sets.
 
this man will be the best athlete ever(assuming he gets a couple more grand slams to equal rafa)

djokovic of 2011...superman esp in 2011..

ONTENNISsilo-jumbo.jpg
 
mike danny said:
Funny how clayqueen in the past bashed Federer for winning at an advanced age saying the older he gets the less valuable his wins would be while she praises Nadal endlessly for doing the same.

Ah, hypocrisy :D
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Proof.

I have my gripes with Federer but this isn't one of them. I will be very surprised if you come up with me saying anything close to what you've just accused me of.
 
mike danny said:
Funny how clayqueen in the past bashed Federer for winning at an advanced age saying the older he gets the less valuable his wins would be while she praises Nadal endlessly for doing the same.

Ah, hypocrisy :D
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I don't understand that. The older a player gets, the more valuable his wins would be surely? No? Or am I missing something?
 
Mike Sams said:
LeBron is such kind of athlete that if he had trained in any other sport, he probably would've been exceptional. No matter if it's boxing, football, NFL, tennis, etc. How good he could've been would've been interesting but he's leagues ahead athletically than the tour.
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I think his height would have been an impediment in tennis. Tennis requires a different kind of movement than basketball.
 
clayqueen said:
Proof.

I have my gripes with Federer but this isn't one of them. I will be very surprised if you come up with me saying anything close to what you've just accused me of.
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Here you go, you're welcome :P

clayqueen said:
Proportionally, they are equal because Fred is having to play into his middle age just to keep up. The older Fred gets the less impressive his wins will be. He will start to look like the embarrassing uncle dancing at a wedding; like the over-age man still at school competing with young children on the sports field.
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weakera said:
Kevin Anderson has an entirely different build than LeBron James.
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You keep making the "build" argument but not really emphasizing it much. The subject we're talking here is if LeBron and all the NBA greats and NFL greats had trained for tennis exclusively since childhood and how good they could've been on the tour. LeBron is one example and many have said that he'd have been promising in most sports because of his exceptional talent, athletic qualities, size and power, speed, and will to win.
 
Mike Sams said:
You keep making the "build" argument but not really emphasizing it much. The subject we're talking here is if LeBron and all the NBA greats and NFL greats had trained for tennis exclusively since childhood and how good they could've been on the tour. LeBron is one example and many have said that he'd have been promising in most sports because of his exceptional talent, athletic qualities, size and power, speed, and will to win.
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He would be a bot at best.
 
Michael Jordan is by far the greatest athlete of all time, as I see it.

I saw a list from a sports magazine a few months back. They had Fraud at #10 and Serena was also inside top 50. No sign of Nadal there.
 
Mike Sams said:
Well James is listed at 6'7 which means he's only an inch taller than Cilic and Del Potro. So maybe one day we'll get a champion that height.
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If we see a guy that tall who moves like Zverev, hits his FH like Delpo, has a BH like Zverev, the net play of Phillipoussis and the serve of Isner, I'll be down for it :P

Which tall player shots would you take and form the perfect tall tennis player? :P
 
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