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Is there any other athletes who could compete?

Lots of midgets (relatively speaking) that can dunk

Of course he isn't. There must have been countless people who are/were more athletic than him. They were just not as talented, thus less famous.

Usain Bolt? Isn't he like 6'5 - arguably the greatest athlete ever in terms of quick twitch athleticism

Benedict_Boozer wrote:Usain Bolt? Isn't he like 6'5 - arguably the greatest athlete ever in terms of quick twitch athleticism

maybe...

I was going to say Usain Bolt but he’s an inch shorter. Not too many 6’6 guys around that were more athletic than prime MJ. He was a marvel.

Edit: you guys beat me to it. Also, no way MJ is the most athletic in those pants. You just can’t overcome that amount of wind resistance.

I never saw MJ jump over a 7' 2" player for a dunk in game before and Vince Carter was also listed at 6' 6"

What do we mean by "at his height"? Like is he the most athletic 6'6 guy?

No.

Not even close.

MrGoat wrote:I never saw MJ jump over a 7' 2" player for a dunk in game before and Vince Carter was also listed at 6' 6"

Vince was never as quick as MJ at his peak. MJ's first step was ridiculous.

Salieri wrote:Of course he isn't. There must have been countless people who are/were more athletic than him. They were just not as talented, thus less famous.

Young MJ was incredibly athletic. Probably the most athletic player the league had ever seen up to that point in time and arguably the most athletic player in NBA history. It’s far from a ridiculous question.

LivingLegend wrote:No.

Bo Jackson is 6'1.....

Benedict_Boozer wrote:Usain Bolt? Isn't he like 6'5 - arguably the greatest athlete ever in terms of quick twitch athleticism

There's more to athleticism than running fast....

Wilt Chamberlain way taller and way more athletic

Even someone like Ibrahimovic is a close call with MJ.

The_Hater wrote:

Salieri wrote:Of course he isn't. There must have been countless people who are/were more athletic than him. They were just not as talented, thus less famous.

Young MJ was incredibly athletic. Probably the most athletic player the league had ever seen up to that point in time and arguably the most athletic player in NBA history. It’s far from a ridiculous question.

Young MJ was the most athletic player in NBA history. Cool. Now keep in mind that the NBA is one competition in one sport. How many other countries are there, with how many different sports and different competitions? Now, how many of the most athletic individuals didn't make it to the elite because they were, well, basically not elite talent wise? Now extrapolate that for every competition, every sport and every country.

The answer has to be a resounding NO, unless you think the odds of one individual being the most athletically gifted AND the most talented at the same time are less than astronomically small.

Also, keep in mind I didn't say it was a ridiculous question. The answer being clear doesn't mean the question is ridiculous, as I agree MJ was incredibly athletic, and he surely had to be close to the limits of human performance. So whoever was ahead of him in that ranking, couldn't be that far ahead of him for the question to be deemed ridiculous.

Salieri wrote:

The_Hater wrote:

Salieri wrote:Of course he isn't. There must have been countless people who are/were more athletic than him. They were just not as talented, thus less famous.

Young MJ was incredibly athletic. Probably the most athletic player the league had ever seen up to that point in time and arguably the most athletic player in NBA history. It’s far from a ridiculous question.

Young MJ was the most athletic player in NBA history. Cool. Now keep in mind that the NBA is one competition in one sport. How many other countries are there, with how many different sports and different competitions? Now, how many of the most athletic individuals didn't make it to the elite because they were, well, basically not elite talent wise? Now extrapolate that for every competition, every sport and every country.

The answer has to be a resounding NO, unless you think the odds of one individual being the most athletically gifted AND the most talented at the same time are less than astronomically small.

Also, keep in mind I didn't say it was a ridiculous question. The answer being clear doesn't mean the question is ridiculous, as I agree MJ was incredibly athletic, and he surely had to be close to the limits of human performance. So whoever was ahead of him in that ranking, couldn't be that far ahead of him for the question to be deemed ridiculous.

I’m not ignoring any of those athletes in other sports but when somebody says ‘of course he isn’t’ and in turn dismisses the premise completely and without consideration, he does seem to imply that it was a ridiculous question to ask.

6’6” is pretty tall. That’s tall enough to eliminate most of the football freaks that run circles around NBA guys in terms of vertical leap, straight line speed, agility drills, strength approximation (bench 225 for reps, etc). Because, yeah, Bo Jackson would wipe the floor with MJ on pure athleticism but 6’1” is a lot shorter than 6’6”.

I want to answer no just at face value, but I think counterexamples mean a lot in a thread like this. Anyone got a name? There’s probably a defensive end or a really tall receiver in NFL history that can stack up. Calvin Johnson was 6’5”. Maybe someone in the Olympics for a single-attribute sport like leaping events, sprinting, or something along those lines. Someone mentioned Bolt at 6’5” but straight line speed is only one aspect and we don’t know how his vertical compares (or do we? I actually don’t know). Strength, body control, agility, etc. Those are all important components for sports athleticism.

Let me bow out before someone names another European football player, though.

Calvin Johnson is so far the most athletic person we've ever seen

if you consider athleticism the coordination, quickness, jumping(one leg, both legs) speed, change of direction, strength, deceleration,agility, who really compares?