Bo knows and the Greatest of All Time

Had he devoted himself strictly to baseball, and had he had more time, Jackson could have become a very good player, perhaps even a great player. Sadly, although it doesn't fit the Nike narrative, he was never a great player and was finally becoming a better than average major leaguer when he was injured. The numbers don't lie.

 

As much as I appreciate and enjoy both the legend and actual accomplishments of Bo, you could make an argument he wasn't even the best two-sport star of his generation.
Brian Jordan started for two years with the Falcons and was on his way to becoming a Pro Bowl caliber player when he gave it up to focus on baseball. He then had a respectable 14-year major league career that included a top-10 MVP finish and an All-Star appearance.

 

I was wondering when someone would point out that Bo was a .250 hitter with a .309 OBP, and the only offensive category he ever led the league in was strikeouts.

 

Fair points, but I think we just never will know how could he could have been had he A) Never gotten injured so seriously and B) Devoted himself full-time to baseball.

I do like what was just mentioned about Brian Jordan, but I would argue that comparing Brian Jordan to Bo Jackson is comparing accomplishments to pure physical attributes. I would split the difference there by saying Jordan wound up with more accomplishments, but Bo was still the better athlete pre-injury. If not for that injury, Bo might have been All-Star/All-Pro for many years, especially since he already was at that level before the injury.

 

Christ almighty. Do better.

LeBron James a puddle jumper? He's played for two teams in a decade. If he's a puddle jumper, than so was Wilt, Kareem, Moses Malone, Dr. J, Barkley, Shaq, Jason Kidd ... need I go on?

Jordan might not have been a clubhouse cancer, in, say, the Isaiah Rider mold, but he sure as hell wasn't easy to be around. He was an alpha dog, not a leader.

 

Jordan has six and probably eight in a row if he does not run off to play baseball. Have people forgotten how good he was?

 

Football free agency has changed the game so much. Whatever people say about the more offense-friendly rules, the inability to keep an offensive line more or less intact for five years might balance that out.

Jordan benefitted from having so many great players in his era. How many current NBA players would make the '92 Dream Team? LeBron, Kobe, Durant and who else?

 

Kay Parker, Aunt Peg, Honey Wilder, Kimberley Carson, Colleen Brennan, Tish Ambrose....very deep talent pool in those days.

Have been a Playboy subscriber for years, even if the rag is barely a shell of its days when I started perusing it. Never minded Penthouse (the Forum was mandatory reading as a teenager) but I wasn't big on the fuzzy pics of a naked Bob Guccione in the background of half the pictorials.

 

No. People recognize that there are other players who were or are even better. It IS possible, you know.

Bill Russell won 11 rings in 13 seasons, including eight in a row. Is he better than Jordan?

 

If you trace back the last five years, Duncan.

 

Not at small forward and shooting guard.

I think Roy Williams had it right and was not exaggerating when he came back from that small basketball camp and told Smith that he might have just seen the greatest shooting guard prospect ever.

Compare Jordan's steals stats with those of Kobe and James.

James is having an unreal last couple of seasons offensively, but Jordan averaged more than a steal per game in his prime.

I also think Kareem needs mentioned a lot more on the GOAT threads in basketball.

 

Jordan's steals? That's what you're going to use? (And, actually, Jordan averaged 2.3 SPG for his career, as opposed to LeBron's 1.7).

How about LeBron being a better passer, and better rebounder?

How about the fact that LeBron has almost twice as many triple-doubles as Jordan, in five fewer seasons?