Are there any athletes in other sports that could be top 50 NBA players?

[Cubbies2120]

Do you think there are athletes in other sports that could successfully play in the NBA next year if they fully switched sports?

Also, vice versa - any NBA players that would be legitimate NFL players this year?

[Ice Trae]

I think Matisse Thybulle as a safety would kill it. Solid athleticism and great instincts

[HeartBreakKid]

No.

American fans are strange in that they think that is a thing, and that athletes just pick a sport like they pick a major. Sports are highly specialized and require a lot of skill in addition to experience and athleticism. Most people simply go to the sport they are best at, the exceptions are for sports that are not fully professionalized and can't make a living off of it.

I think this comes probably from the popularity of American football which has some "skill-less" positions and thus it seems like run and jump athletes can just go into any sport.

But back to the question....no. There is zero reason to think otherwise. It's literally baseless.

[minami]

Also, vice versa

Michael Cooper as a potential high jumper should be 'the canon' (or maybe I´m old):

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1987-02-03-sp-679-story.html

[MrGoat]

There might be a couple. Nate Robinson was actually a potential NFL prospect before he switched to basketball, his crazy hops were good for both sports. His athletic scholarship to University of Washington was actually for football. I remember draft reports on Luka that he was lucky he was European because if he was American he would have likely been shunted into football in high school because 6' 7" kinda thick white dude who wasn't super athletic sounds more like a QB or a TE by the way coaches stereotype players like it or not. LeBron would have been an interesting tight end prospect

There are some football players who were pretty good hoopers in college but there's fewer slots in the NBA and the ones who play the ultra athletic skill positions in the NFL are frequently too short to play in the NBA. Top 50 very doubtful

[monopoman]

No.

American fans are strange in that they think that is a thing, and that athletes just pick a sport like they pick a major. Sports are highly specialized and require a lot of skill in addition to experience and athleticism. Most people simply go to the sport they are best at, the exceptions are for sports that are not fully professionalized and can't make a living off of it.

I think this comes probably from the popularity of American football which has some "skill-less" positions and thus it seems like run and jump athletes can just go into any sport.

But back to the question....no. There is zero reason to think otherwise. It's literally baseless.

I don't think this is done as a player could just transition and do it immediately, we all saw how the greatest in MJ didn't get into baseball and became a good player overnight.

For most sports the main requirement is having the athleticism and skill, now for that skill will vary on position. I have no doubt in my mind that LBJ could have been an incredible football player he had all the tools to do that. Now sure, him trying to be a QB or something would probably have not worked out but a guy with his athleticism, speed and size would have been a superstar as a NFL player.

There might have been a transition since he would have to learn how the NFL works, and understand his role but it would have likely happened eventually. Meanwhile some other sports like Golf require a great deal of unique skills that do not translate to other sports. Trying to be a great golf player requires a ton of unique skills that are not easy to learn.

[UcanUwill]

Thibaut Courtois and Artem Dzyuba probably could have been good basketball players.

[lambchop]

No.

American fans are strange in that they think that is a thing, and that athletes just pick a sport like they pick a major. Sports are highly specialized and require a lot of skill in addition to experience and athleticism. Most people simply go to the sport they are best at, the exceptions are for sports that are not fully professionalized and can't make a living off of it.

I think this comes probably from the popularity of American football which has some "skill-less" positions and thus it seems like run and jump athletes can just go into any sport.

But back to the question....no. There is zero reason to think otherwise. It's literally baseless.

I don't think this is done as a player could just transition and do it immediately, we all saw how the greatest in MJ didn't get into baseball and became a good player overnight.

For most sports the main requirement is having the athleticism and skill, now for that skill will vary on position. I have no doubt in my mind that LBJ could have been an incredible football player he had all the tools to do that. Now sure, him trying to be a QB or something would probably have not worked out but a guy with his athleticism, speed and size would have been a superstar as a NFL player.

There might have been a transition since he would have to learn how the NFL works, and understand his role but it would have likely happened eventually. Meanwhile some other sports like Golf require a great deal of unique skills that do not translate to other sports. Trying to be a great golf player requires a ton of unique skills that are not easy to learn.

This. It's really position based. An NFL could only be in the NBA as a rim protector and finisher. Hard to be a top 50 player doing that. The most realistic scenario is a player ending being like Tarik Black - low skill with great energy and athleticism. But there's no way an NFL player can simply join the NBA and be a consistent shooter / great passer etc.

Watch on YouTube

[HeartBreakKid]

No.

American fans are strange in that they think that is a thing, and that athletes just pick a sport like they pick a major. Sports are highly specialized and require a lot of skill in addition to experience and athleticism. Most people simply go to the sport they are best at, the exceptions are for sports that are not fully professionalized and can't make a living off of it.

I think this comes probably from the popularity of American football which has some "skill-less" positions and thus it seems like run and jump athletes can just go into any sport.

But back to the question....no. There is zero reason to think otherwise. It's literally baseless.

I don't think this is done as a player could just transition and do it immediately, we all saw how the greatest in MJ didn't get into baseball and became a good player overnight.

For most sports the main requirement is having the athleticism and skill, now for that skill will vary on position. I have no doubt in my mind that LBJ could have been an incredible football player he had all the tools to do that. Now sure, him trying to be a QB or something would probably have not worked out but a guy with his athleticism, speed and size would have been a superstar as a NFL player.

There might have been a transition since he would have to learn how the NFL works, and understand his role but it would have likely happened eventually. Meanwhile some other sports like Golf require a great deal of unique skills that do not translate to other sports. Trying to be a great golf player requires a ton of unique skills that are not easy to learn.

Most sports require a ton of skill. American Football is relatively unique in that there are some positions that do not require a "skill" per say (or a highly refined one).


But American Football is a tiny minority. Trying to become elite in another sport is like asking can players in the NBA become elite fieldgoal kickers, punters or quarterbacks in the NFL. Which sounds a bit daft


While on the topic of Football, most basketball players are too slow and too tall to join the NFL and the few that could have close to no shot at being a top 50 player (which is a pro bowler, basically).

[D.Brasco]

I think Matisse Thybulle as a safety would kill it. Solid athleticism and great instincts

But could he be a top 50 NBA player?

[Scuall]

His athletic scholarship to University of Washington was actually for football.

That's actually by rule. Any collegiate scholarship athlete that plays two sports including football must have the scholarship count against the football team.

[HeartBreakKid]

There might be a couple. Nate Robinson was actually a potential NFL prospect before he switched to basketball, his crazy hops were good for both sports. His athletic scholarship to University of Washington was actually for football. I remember draft reports on Luka that he was lucky he was European because if he was American he would have likely been shunted into football in high school because 6' 7" kinda thick white dude who wasn't super athletic sounds more like a QB or a TE by the way coaches stereotype players like it or not. LeBron would have been an interesting tight end prospect

There are some football players who were pretty good hoopers in college but there's fewer slots in the NBA and the ones who play the ultra athletic skill positions in the NFL are frequently too short to play in the NBA. Top 50 very doubtful

Being an NFL prospect is different from being a top 50 NFL player. Nate Robinson was not even a top 200 basketball player which is his main sport, he would not be a pro bowler in the NFL which is a top 50 player.

Lebron would have no chance at being a top 50 player, even if Lebron ended up being a good TE in the NFL. TE's are some of the least valuable positions in the game.

[ropjhk]

There was this guy back in the 90's who played minor league baseball, wasn't too good at it but I think he would have made for a pretty good basketball player. I forget his name though... sounded like two first names.

Wilt was a track and field star.

Iverson played football and many say he could have been a star in that sport.

There's a number of NBA players who played football in high school and college. Some of them could have been stars in the NFL IMO.

Don't know which NFL players could have been NBA stars.

[vxmike]

No.

American fans are strange in that they think that is a thing, and that athletes just pick a sport like they pick a major. Sports are highly specialized and require a lot of skill in addition to experience and athleticism. Most people simply go to the sport they are best at, the exceptions are for sports that are not fully professionalized and can't make a living off of it.

I think this comes probably from the popularity of American football which has some "skill-less" positions and thus it seems like run and jump athletes can just go into any sport.

But back to the question....no. There is zero reason to think otherwise. It's literally baseless.

I don't think this is done as a player could just transition and do it immediately, we all saw how the greatest in MJ didn't get into baseball and became a good player overnight.

For most sports the main requirement is having the athleticism and skill, now for that skill will vary on position. I have no doubt in my mind that LBJ could have been an incredible football player he had all the tools to do that. Now sure, him trying to be a QB or something would probably have not worked out but a guy with his athleticism, speed and size would have been a superstar as a NFL player.

There might have been a transition since he would have to learn how the NFL works, and understand his role but it would have likely happened eventually. Meanwhile some other sports like Golf require a great deal of unique skills that do not translate to other sports. Trying to be a great golf player requires a ton of unique skills that are not easy to learn.

Most sports require a ton of skill. American Football is relatively unique in that there are some positions that do not require a "skill" per say (or a highly refined one).


But American Football is a tiny minority. Trying to become elite in another sport is like asking can players in the NBA become elite fieldgoal kickers, punters or quarterbacks in the NFL. Which sounds a bit daft


While on the topic of Football, most basketball players are too slow and too tall to join the NFL and the few that could have close to no shot at being a top 50 player (which is a pro bowler, basically).

Agree. Basketball, Baseball, Hockey, Soccer, Tennis, Golf, etc all require specific skills you can’t just learn and master at a pro level in a short period of time. Guys spend their lives honing these skills.

American Football is really the only sport where some positions require very little “skills” other than general knowledge of the game. You just have to be the biggest, strongest, fastest, etc. Obviously some of the best raw athletes in the NBA could probably transition to the NFL if they dedicated their training to it. Probably not top 50 though. Most elite athlete kids these days get identified early and shunted towards the sport that best fits their size, height, body composition, etc.

Zion probably should have played football though LOL.

[BlackThought]

top 50 lol.

If any of them have actually played D1 ball then perhaps they can crack summer league tryouts. Otherwise the closest they'll get is playing against NBA players in summer pro am games.

[sp6r=underrated]

No.

American fans are strange in that they think that is a thing, and that athletes just pick a sport like they pick a major. Sports are highly specialized and require a lot of skill in addition to experience and athleticism. Most people simply go to the sport they are best at, the exceptions are for sports that are not fully professionalized and can't make a living off of it.

I think this comes probably from the popularity of American football which has some "skill-less" positions and thus it seems like run and jump athletes can just go into any sport.

But back to the question....no. There is zero reason to think otherwise. It's literally baseless.

Pretty much. I would say there are likely NBA players playing other sports than basketball but that is almost entirerly in countries without basketball as a mainstream sport.

[azcatz11]

I think Matisse Thybulle as a safety would kill it. Solid athleticism and great instincts

He’s way too tall and not nearly twitchy enough at his height. He doesn’t have the body either.

NFL players are far better athletes than NBA players for the most part.

[Hellcrooner]

I think Zion an doncic would make good suomotoris

[Zeno]

Whenever I think of NFL guys who could have played in the NBA, I think of Randy Moss.

Watch on YouTube

[payton2kemp]

No.

American fans are strange in that they think that is a thing, and that athletes just pick a sport like they pick a major. Sports are highly specialized and require a lot of skill in addition to experience and athleticism. Most people simply go to the sport they are best at, the exceptions are for sports that are not fully professionalized and can't make a living off of it.

I think this comes probably from the popularity of American football which has some "skill-less" positions and thus it seems like run and jump athletes can just go into any sport.

But back to the question....no. There is zero reason to think otherwise. It's literally baseless.

I mean its definately been done before. Bo Jackson did well in both sports (MLB,NFL) Deion Sanders played both as well. Danny Ainge was also good at both, its possible but they have to play both sports from a young age.