Lebron's leg muscles wtf

[alenleomessi]

its just an angle.. he has skinny legs compared to his upper body and so do most basketball players.. you would be a mess with tree trunks in the nba

[theaussieguy]

he is one bow legged dude with legs of a sprinter. I think this in part why he is such an amazing athlete for a guy his size. He is so unique, he is obviously a massive beast but looking at him he has this slenderness about him despite his shear size.

[ClipperRevival]

You mentioned nothing about skill and position.

Using the criteria you initially posted, there have been guys bigger/stronger than him, just as fast and explosive. Not many, but definitely a few.

Wilt is the first to come to mind, Shaq as well, a few others. They played the positions they were taught to play, but as raw athletes there have been a few in the history of the game at least as impressive as Lebron.

Shaq? The guy was extremely coordinated for a guy his size but he couldn't run up the court in transition with the acceleration, speed and explosiveness of LeBron. Are you going to disagree with this?

The game has never seen his COMBINATION of size, speed, power and athleticism. Some might've been a bit taller/heavier but didn't possess the acceleration/explosion and some might've been smaller/lighter but didn't have the power.

[CavaliersFTW]

its just an angle.. he has skinny legs compared to his upper body and so do most basketball players.. you would be a mess with tree trunks in the nba

The Lopez twins have big looking legs in the NBA and some of the slowest feet you'll ever watch

It should be noted though, it's big lower legs that seem to be counter productive in the NBA to things like speed. Big upper legs are a good thing, especially in combination with lean lower legs. Players like Artis Gilmore or Wilt Chamberlain come to mind as players that had huge upper legs, but thin lower legs. Wilt was a 48.9 second 440 runner and ran a 4.6 40 at 290 pounds, the same 40 time as Lebron James runs and Lebron is 30 pounds lighter.

Lean, long legs down low but powerful and massive in the thigh is what makes a great open-field sport athlete as it nets a long powerful stride.

[CavaliersFTW]

Shaq? The guy was extremely coordinated for a guy his size but he couldn't run up the court in transition with the acceleration, speed and explosiveness of LeBron. Are you going to disagree with this?

The game has never seen his COMBINATION of size, speed, power and athleticism. Some might've been a bit taller/heavier but didn't possess the acceleration/explosion and some might've been smaller/lighter but didn't have the power.

Yet they had more coordination. So you can say Lebron never had "their" combination of your same criteria...

And young Shaq could get up and down the court. I don't know exactly how fast he was in comparison with Lebron but he was fast. And a lot bigger and stronger so why nit pick?

Wilt was not only measurably stronger and bigger but also measurably just as fast in a sprint and I'd guarantee even faster in 1/4 mile+ races. At 28 years old Wilt ran a hand timed 4.6 40 without even wearing shoes at 290 pounds timed by Kansas City Chiefs coach Hank Stram.

LeBron ran a hand timed 4.6 40 with shoes on, at 260 pounds about 2 or 3 seasons ago.

And Wilt was a 48.9 second 440 runner and a 1:53 880 runner. Those are phenomenal numbers that show not only great speed, but great stamina on top of speed. Do you think Lebron with his bow-legs is going to be running sub 50 second 440's or sub 2 minute 880's?

[ImKobe]

meh, my calves are bigger.

[CavaliersFTW]

meh, my calves are bigger.

Good trait for sports where staying planted is important. Not a good trait for running or agility.

[ClipperRevival]

[COLOR="Red"]Yet they had more coordination. So you can say Lebron never had "their" combination of your same criteria...
[/COLOR]
And young Shaq could get up and down the court. I don't know exactly how fast he was in comparison with Lebron but he was fast. And a lot bigger and stronger so why nit pick?

Wilt was not only measurably stronger and bigger but also measurably just as fast in a sprint and I'd guarantee even faster in 1/4 mile+ races. At 28 years old Wilt ran a hand timed 4.6 40 without even wearing shoes at 290 pounds timed by Kansas City Chiefs coach Hank Stram.

LeBron ran a hand timed 4.6 40 with shoes on, at 260 pounds about 2 or 3 seasons ago.

And Wilt was a 48.9 second 440 runner and a 1:53 880 runner. Those are phenomenal numbers that show not only great speed, but great stamina on top of speed. Do you think Lebron with his bow-legs is going to be running sub 50 second 440's or sub 2 minute 880's?

The key word here is "combination." Meaning LeBron was the perfect blend of size, power and athleticism where he could play a small man game (bring the ball up court about as fast as anyone) or play a big man game (guard 4s or post up down low). The smaller guys might be more coordinated but they lack the element of power.

And you might be right about Wilt, in terms of pure athleticism. But I am talking about their impact on the basketball court. LeBron has the ability to bring the ball up court like a guard. Wilt couldn't. Why? Because he was a big and that wasn't his responsibility nor did he have the handles to do so. Could he possibly beat LeBron in a straight line race? Who knows. But I am talking about what these guys can do on the court.

I hope you get my jist. I get your jist. You are speaking specifically as athletes, outside of the court. I am talking about how their athleticism impacts the game.

[CavaliersFTW]

Big calfs = more weight/mass to lug around when leaping/running. You are less agile with big lower legs. The upper legs are a different story, that's where you want power.

[CavaliersFTW]

The key word here is "combination." Meaning LeBron was the perfect blend of size, power and athleticism where he could play a small man game (bring the ball up court about as fast as anyone) or play a big man game (guard 4s or post up down low). The smaller guys might be more coordinated but they lack the element of power.

And you might be right about Wilt, in terms of pure athleticism. But I am talking about their impact on the basketball court. LeBron has the ability to bring the ball up court like a guard. Wilt couldn't. Why? Because he was a big and that wasn't his responsibility nor did he have the handles to do so. Could he possibly beat LeBron in a straight line race? Who knows. But I am talking about what these guys can do on the court.

I hope you get my jist. I get your jist. You are speaking specifically as athletes, outside of the court. I am talking about how their athleticism impacts the game.

Pretty subjective though. Why not Connie Hawkins body for that? Why not Oscar Robertson? Magic Johnson? Charles Barkley? Maurice Stokes? Gus Johnson? Kevin Garnett? Scottie Pippen? Julius Erving?

There's a couple of pretty good candidates for that job.

[ClipperRevival]

Pretty subjective though. Why not Connie Hawkins body for that? Why not Oscar Robertson? Magic Johnson? Charles Barkley? Maurice Stokes? Gus Johnson? Kevin Garnett? Scottie Pippen? Julius Erving?

There's a couple of pretty good candidates for that job.

Magic? The guy lacked athletcism. Come on.

Pippen? Lacked LeBron's size and power.

Erving? Was outweighed by LeBron by about 40 lbs.

Again, the key word here is "combination". Meaning the perfect blend of size (6'8" and 250 lbs), power/strength AND off the charts athleticism.

Garnett was pretty special in his own right though. If we are talking about guys 6'10" or taller, few could match his combination of coordination, agility and athleticism.

[ClipperRevival]

I must add though that the most special big I have ever seen in terms of athleticism is Hakeem. Most will scratch their head and might say Wilt or Howard or even DJ but Hakeem had the lower body fluidity of a guy about 6'6". His foot quickness and mobility was off the charts. Not to mention his agility. That's why you saw an offensive arsenal from a big that has never been seen before. His vast array of spin moves and his ability to contort and twist his body in all sorts of directions made him special.

Sure, some guys could jump higher but no one had Hakeem's lower body fluidity. Not to mention, his buttery soft hands.

[CavaliersFTW]

Magic? The guy lacked athletcism. Come on.

Pippen? Lacked LeBron's size and power.

Erving? Was outweighed by LeBron by about 40 lbs.

Again, the key word here is "combination". Meaning the perfect blend of size (6'8" and 250 lbs), power/strength AND off the charts athleticism.

Garnett was pretty special in his own right though. If we are talking about guys 6'10" or taller, few could match his combination of coordination, agility and athleticism.

Magic: More coordinated

Pippen: Longer more fluid

Erving: WAY more coordinated and agile esp in mid-air, some of the biggest hands ever

...Lacking Lebron-like power is a variable that can be made up for in other grounds. While some of those guys trade off power, they make up for it by being superior to Lebron elsewhere. Thus, it seems kind of subjective to me to favor all the attributes Lebron possesses over their own unique combinations of athletic skills that enabled them to play multiple positions with great success in their own right. Those guys were all similarly versatile players that can play 1-4, or 2-5 or 1-5 with varying degrees of success in their own right.

One thing Lebron has got on some of them (Gus Johnson in particular), and this could be in large part due to luck though I think Lebron's got solid genetics here is durability. Lebron def has an edge in Durability over some of the other candidates.

Oh forgot to mention one more guy, one of my fav players Elgin Baylor deserves a nod here. 6-5 (w/o shoes, so "6-6") 225-236lbs, could also play 1-4 as proficient as anyone. Like a mini Lebron.

[Dr Hawk]

I think David Robinson was more special physically than Hakeem. Taller, stronger and I would say he was as fast, mobile and agile as Hakeem was.

[HomieWeMajor]

Wow they must have gotten so big by running from team to team.