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george mikan is a hall of famer, lookin like this:
He didn't get in based on his LOOKS.
Quote:
lmao looks like david letterman. what do u think a player like dwight howard would do to this unathletic (yet hall of fame) skeleton lol
robinson, ewing, all the recent centers would've broken this fool in half
and that goes for everybody playing in that era and the era that wilt played in.
players who played before like.. 1980 are a joke. 80s+ produced the best players ever- bird, magic, hakeem, Jordan etc.
To use your logic then, their opponents had no business being on the same court with those guys, right? 20-30 years from now there'll be the same sentiments about players in that era being the greatest ever, and how those you currently view as the best, are a joke. Arrogance and a lack of respect and perspective for those that came before us is really getting out of hand!
^lol look at this garbage level of skill and athletic ability.. most moves now werent even invented and thus not used back then... what is there to "respect"
oh because he played in 1789 im supposed "respect" him lol. magic started playing almost 30 years ago and hes still regarded as one of the greats, same with jordan, bird, hakeem etc. george mikan couldn't start for a college team now let alone play in the nba.
get real. look at how awkward they are handling the basketball.. no defense.. basically a goofier version of me playing basketball when i wasin the 4th grade. bunch of hacks.
The knowledge, technology and materials made the designs possible for the times.
The sport has evolved. Those guys played when it was a sport not the business it is today.With the advances in styles of play, tactics, training, coaching, medicine, nutrition and overall participation, you expect the kind of progress you see in today's game. Who knows whether if those guys given the same facilities, wouldn't have been as great as the ones you idolize today? They are greats in their OWN times, and there will be more to come that will fuel the debate.
I remember watching a movie where the sport had evolved into vertical moving baskets with variable scores, players able to leap from one end of the court to the other in seemingly absurd moves today. Will it happen? I don't know, but I wouldn't bet against it. If those old timers had been told there would come a time when a player would take off from the free throw line and DUNK the basketball, they'd probably have questioned the DUNK concept, not the flight aspect, ridiculous as it may seem. The dunk hadn't been 'invented' yet, flight had.
Too many variables to have a definitive answer. At least with the tire analogy, there's no argument the first is a much superior design, but the designer(s) skills are debatable.
The knowledge, technology and materials made the designs possible for the times.
The sport has evolved. Those guys played when it was a sport not the business it is today.With the advances in styles of play, tactics, training, coaching, medicine, nutrition and overall participation, you expect the kind of progress you see in today's game. Who knows whether if those guys given the same facilities, wouldn't have been as great as the ones you idolize today? They are greats in their OWN times, and there will be more to come that will fuel the debate.
I remember watching a movie where the sport had evolved into vertical moving baskets with variable scores, players able to leap from one end of the court to the other in seemingly absurd moves today. Will it happen? I don't know, but I wouldn't bet against it. If those old timers had been told there would come a time when a player would take off from the free throw line and DUNK the basketball, they'd probably have questioned the DUNK concept, not the flight aspect, ridiculous as it may seem. The dunk hadn't been 'invented' yet, flight had.
Too many variables to have a definitive answer. At least with the tire analogy, there's no argument the first is a much superior design, but the designer(s) skills are debatable.
I agree. The players in 40-50 yrs will look back at the players today as nothing special. They might raise the rim by then and they will be faster, stronger,etc. I remember when people were saying that there will never be another Dr. J with those flashy and power dunks, but then MJ came along.
unless roids or mutations are involved there is no way you are going to see the huge disparity in skill and athleticism that you see between players like mikan and wilt to hakeem and jordan/kobe/lebron/pippen etc
4 years from now will mark the 30th anniversary of jordan's rookie season.
10 years later, the 40th season since his rookie year
unless you think john wall or evan turner are suddenly going to start taking off from the 3 pt line, then no, you will not see that kind of ridiculous difference as you did with those early basketball players.
the fact that no player now is putting up magic or jordan like numbers (maybe close, but no way as good or better) is proof of this. and these are supposed to be bigger, faster, stronger players. playing against lame defenses.
Oh thee of limited imagination would be in fine company with these other doubters of various developments we take for granted to day:
Famous Quotes (http://www.ucsofa.com/famousquotes.htm - broken link)
Even though, by your own admission and in your own words, you can see the evolution of the game to date, you refuse to see the same possibilities for the future of the game.
If history made these famous folks eat their words in their own lifetime, I pray you have an opportunity to do the same.
LMAOOOOOO @ comparing human athletic ability to things like computers/technology and "acting"
LOLOLLLLL
yes one day we'll have mutants like those in x-men comics freezing time and thus eliminating the need for time outs. they'll also have superhuman healing abilities like wolverine and the injured reserve will be a thing of the past
in the year 2525
history is proving me right and proving you wrong, the span of years between the era of a lanky unathletic "player" like mikan and michael jordan is about 30 years give or take...
we're 26 years from the date that michael jordan began playing basketball
what are players doing NOW that jordan wasn't doing in 1984,85, 86 etc? the dunk contest is proof.
last year's rookie of the year's numbers aren't better than jordans in his rookie year
lebron james and kobe bryant, the top 2 players in the league today didn't put up nearly as good numbers as jordan did in his rookie season
defenses are weaker than they were 20 yrs ago
where is your argument? unless you're making a hypothesis involving future human evolution in 900 years, there is no basis to your argument.
oh wait a quote from 1940 about computers good job.
LMAOOOOOO @ comparing human athletic ability to things like computers/technology and "acting"
You missed the point entirely!!! I could have posted athletic records to make the same point, but chose not to because I suspect you refuse to see the bigger picture. Runners, jumpers, swimmers e.t.c, today compete in the same contests but their times are much better and continue to improve.
Your question regarding MJ's numbers compared to today's players and those in Mikan's era ignores the fact that the court hasn't gotten bigger but the players have, and the length of the game hasn't increased but the ability of the athletes to perform at top speed (speed, strength and stamina) and the introduction of the 24 second clock have made a difference.
Change those factors or lower the 24 second clock to give teams more possessions and see what happens to individual scoring, and you'll see a big difference, but it would then bring up the same argument you have now. They have more room to create and do the things that others before them didn't have.
You claim defenses are weaker, but according to those that play the game it is harder now and the shooting isn't anywhere near what it used to be.
And your focus is on a particular player so I'll address that one as well. No matter what, you can't ignore the fact Mikan, as 'un-athletic' as you claim he was, won seven championships and three scoring titles, not to mention rebounding and shot-blocking. This from a guy that was near-sighted too!!! It wasn't today's NBA, but it wasn't the rec league either. He worked at his craft, and his peers, no matter the era or generation, voted him one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players.
The players today have the benefit of much more than he and his generation had. If the roles were reversed the argument wouldn't be any less valid.
I give them all their due, for performances that at the time are/were considered worthy of greatness, but I can't go so far as to claim that one is greater/better than the other. If your point is Hakeem was the best center of his generation, no doubt, I agree, beyond that, fruitless debate.
The game will evolve some more, and some of the ideas I've posted will come, one way or another. You will be having the same argument with young 'uns that think their generation of players have no equals.
LMAOOOOOO @ comparing human athletic ability to things like computers/technology and "acting"
LOLOLLLLL
yes one day we'll have mutants like those in x-men comics freezing time and thus eliminating the need for time outs. they'll also have superhuman healing abilities like wolverine and the injured reserve will be a thing of the past
in the year 2525
You are failing to account basketball was still in its infancy in Mikans era--and had ALOT of room to grow and change. The change that took place from the 50s to 80s was extreme, noone would have thought the same level of change would happen from 1980-2010. and lol @ you not seeing the similarties in the evolution of sport and technology. You think there will be as big of a diff from a 1970 and 2000 computer, as to 2000-2030?
Unfortunately, we're dealing with someone that has very narrow views of history and the future. By my estimation 50 years either side of his/her birthday constitutes history and the future.
My favorite quote to compare:
“Everything that can be invented has been invented.” – Charles H. Duell, Commissioner, U.S. Patent Office, 1899
How that man must be cringing, out of embarrassment, in his grave!
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