Will Zion be more athletic than Peak Westbrook?

[AZNKidd]

I think the ability to recovery after injury and ability to not be j hired is an underrated part of athleticism. Westbrook came back from a torn meniscus (not due to his own doing) in very good condition. We have really yet to see how Zion’s will play out on an NBA schedule but for now he has no history of significant play style related injuries and all of his injuries thus far seemed avoidable.

[Kabookalu]

Exactly. It's the size of guys like Zion and LeBron, combined with their athleticism that makes them such freaks of nature. But as a pure athlete, Westbrook is better because of his stature.

This was a very confusing sequence for a second lol

I'm making a distincion between being a bigger physical freak, and a better athlete. There is always connection and it's hard to draw he line between the two, but I can't say Zion is a better athlete than Westbrook. Russ is a flawless athlete in my opinion. He has more speed, explosiveness and stamina than anybody, and he even has great strength. He is just not as big as Zion, but I can't say that's a weakness.

What I was talking about was your guys' names lol, cause he's Goner and you're Gooner and I thought you forgot to switch accounts and accidentally pulled a KD lol

[yoyoboy]

He is 6'6

He's 6'6 barefoot, what's LeBron's height barefoot, and do you have a link supporting it?

6'7.25"

https://stats.nba.com/draft/combine-anthro/#!?SeasonYear=2003-04&sort=HEIGHT_WO_SHOES&dir=1

Zion is 6’5.5 barefoot though from the last measurement we have. He’s most likely just listed at 6’6 because the Pelicans chose to only use measurements to the nearest full inch.

[TroubleS0me]

Larry Johnson x Blake Griffin

[cupcakesnake]

he will certainly be 3-4 inches taller and 70-80 pounds heavier...

His ability to fire up that amount of mass will make his athleticism incomparably impactful. To exagerate this question: we wouldn't bother asking "who's more athletic, Shaq or Nate Robinson?". Westbrook's ability to pilot his 6'3 200 pound vessel explosively can't possibly be as impressive as Zion piloting a 6'6 280lbs. at similar speed and burst. you heard me right, NBA players are EVA pilots now.

[Gooner]

This was a very confusing sequence for a second lol

I'm making a distincion between being a bigger physical freak, and a better athlete. There is always connection and it's hard to draw he line between the two, but I can't say Zion is a better athlete than Westbrook. Russ is a flawless athlete in my opinion. He has more speed, explosiveness and stamina than anybody, and he even has great strength. He is just not as big as Zion, but I can't say that's a weakness.

What I was talking about was your guys' names lol, cause he's Goner and you're Gooner and I thought you forgot to switch accounts and accidentally pulled a KD lol

I haven't even noticed that, it's funny.

[cupcakesnake]

He's 6'6 barefoot, what's LeBron's height barefoot, and do you have a link supporting it?

6'7.25"

https://stats.nba.com/draft/combine-anthro/#!?SeasonYear=2003-04&sort=HEIGHT_WO_SHOES&dir=1

Zion is 6’5.5 barefoot though from the last measurement we have. He’s most likely just listed at 6’6 because the Pelicans chose to only use measurements to the nearest full inch.

that's speculation based on him measuring at 6'5.5" barefoot as a 17 year old. I'd really have no problem believing either way that he grew another half inch or he didn't. Since we're talking about half an inch (studies show that the same human measured at different times of the day have a height variance of a half inch), I don't really care and am happy to move forward with the Pelicans announcing he measured at 6'6 barefoot. We can't substantiate anything else and the rampant height speculation (usually based on picture angles) on this board has become nauseating. There's no question he's a little shorter than Lebron.

[Pelly24]

He's not reliant on his strength as some people think. He will use it when he's in the paint, bodying up whoever is in his way when he rises up for a lay up or tough shot, but when he's on the perimeter he'll use his jaw dropping quickness to get around defenders.

Watch on YouTube

1:37
4:54
6:41
7:52
8:23
10:20
10:30

If there's a flaw to his game (other than shooting), it's that he tries to finesse things too much instead of bullying his defenders with his mass, like at 3:38. At 5:04 he does barrel into his defender, but it doesn't even look like he was trying to, it just happened.

Also this play at 2:50 in the video below

Watch on YouTube

Is one of the most explosive first steps I've ever seen in my life. Zion, at least when he's driving to the rim, actually plays like Russell Westbrook/Derrick Rose relying on quickness and handles rather than brute strength. If he decides to go all LeBron when he's driving downhill, god bless everyone that has the courage to defend him in transition.

Man at minimum he just needs to get back to his college weight. You can see a legit difference in his weight between these games and the preseason games.

Honestly if he gets back to his high school weight, its game over. This in my opinion is the perfect mix for him. Still big and strong but nothing over the top.

Watch on YouTube

I wont lie though, the year to year growth in his weight seeing him as a senior, to Duke and now the start of this season isn't the best sign. But I still have faith he can get this under control.

I honestly didn't realize HOW MUCH he gained from duke til now until I went back to see a duke highlight. He was noticeably more trim and defined. What's crazy is, as fluffy as he is now the kid's still been displaying jaw dropping athleticism (the speed/quickness hasn't diminished). However, I think that extra weight is definitely affecting his motor. This is a guy that was being compared to a bigger westbrook.

When you saw him at Duke he was constantly jumping for offensive rbs and a legit rim protector. Now he could be saving himself for the reg season but he definitely needs to shed 10 pounds of weight. I find it mystifying that NOLA didn't lock dude up in the cardio room after summer league. Now im wishing even more my Heat drafted him (he would literally look like Lebron bf% wise).

I think people are making a lot of assumptions about Zion's weight and his conditioning, sorta like what they do when they assume big men don't spend time on their freethrows during the summer. I'm sure Zion did do a lot of conditioning this past summer, but the fact is that a true baseline for his size and overall build is really just starting to solidify, incredibly enough. He's got a naturally enormous frame, but he's as explosive and agile on the ground and in the air as 2009 DWade. He's just a different order of being from almost anyone in NBA history. He's like a 280 pound Michael Jordan. It's unreal.

As for this comparison, I'd say Zion is already the best athlete I've ever seen on the hardwood. For this comparison, his first step is maybe a bit slower than Westbrook's, but he's much shiftier and more well-balanced in the air. He's got body control like a Kobe Bryant or a Kyrie Irving on the ground and in the air. LeBron also has amazing body control, which, in conjunction with his strength and size and touch, is why he'll always be a great finisher. Russ has a 40 inch vertical and like Zion can takeoff equally well off one foot or two feet (both are MJ like in this way). But Zion somehow jumps like 5 inches higher than that and he gets into the air even more quickly. I've never seen anything like Zion, really. He's maybe the most powerful player in the league already. The closest is I guess LeBron, but even at his peak LeBron wasn't as shifty or quick with his first step. What LeBron did have over Zion is probably open-court speed. For me, MJ, LeBron, Russ and Zion are the four or so most athletic players ever.

[Pg81]

I think so, yes. Zion might be one of the best athletes ever. Think he is more athletic than prime Barkley who was an athletic beast.

[Johnny Firpo]

Factoring weight and size in, I think so.

[Woody Allen]

Peak Westbrook is most athletic ever. It's a hard comparison.