Sue Bird, according to Megan Rapinoe.
She may not even be in the top 500, and that’s probably being generous.
She may not even be in the top 500, and that’s probably being generous.
Best athletic career ever?
- Thread starter 18IsTheMan
- Start date
I wasn't sure who was going to be in your post when I saw the title, but Sue Bird wasn't at the top of my list. She actually hadn't crossed my mind.
I would assume that's the case for nearly 100% of Americans.
Not even the top Bird!!!!.......That Megan..What a likeable character.!!
I don't know that even Brady would be at the top. Best athletic career ever is a really broad topic and can be defined a bunch of different ways.
Michael Phelps won a bunch of golf medals.
Brady won a bunch of Super Bowls.
Bill Russell won a bunch of rings.
Michael Jordan has a freakin shoe brand named after him. His career earnings are nearly $2.3 Billon.
The list goes on and on.
I was unaware of their relationship. I guess the nonsensical comment makes sense now.
Bird averaged 11.4 ppg over her career and never won an MVP. She would, at the least, be behind every athlete who has ever won an MVP.
True there's several to chose from but when Brady went to Tampa and took over a team that hadnt made the playoffs in 13 years and hadn't won a playoff game in almost 20 and led them to a Super Bowl at age 43 solidifies my vote...not to mention his NE days
I hate it, but I'm inclined to agree. As a Bills fan, I hated NE and Brady especially. But when he left NE they went in the tank and he took a previously moribund TB team to a Super Bowl title in his first season. Hard to top that.
The only thing I know is that no WNBA player will ever hold the title of "best athletic career ever".
Lord, get jsusc to tell you his thoughts on Brady. I'm not going to link a thread from the Rivals site, but he is anti-Brady.
dont know how you could be anti-Brady....I'm not a fan of his really ,I'm an Eagles fan , but dont know how you deny his accomplishments
I'm not saying Brady wasn't incredible. It would be hard to argue he didn't put together the most impressive NFL career of all time. But stretching that to include all athletes ever is a whole different story.
If I had a choice, it would probably be Pele. Don't know anyone who dominated his or her sport more than he did.
I think if we are talking about the career on paper Bill Russell has to be considered, 5 time NBA MVP, 12 time NBA All Star, 11 NBA championships, 2 NCAA championships, NCAA tournament MVP, 3 college player of the year awards, 2 time consensus NCAA All American
Lionel Messi has to be in the conversation after the World Cup, right? He has an overwhelming list of team and individual achievements.
How about one Babe Ruth.....Most popular player in the most popular game.....He hit more HR's than most teams when he played.
Jack Nicklaus
Muhammed Ali impact even greater outside the ring.
just for thought
Jack Nicklaus
Muhammed Ali impact even greater outside the ring.
just for thought
Ruth single-handedly changed the way a game was played. To this day.
Not many players can claim that.
I certainly never kept up with Bird's career, but it certainly shouldn't be diminished after looking up her accomplishments. Maybe the greatest female career ever?
The thing that stands out the most is that she was playing in two different leagues every year - and winning championships in both (4 WNBA titles, 5 Russian league titles). Add in what is essentially a third season each year against the best competition for the EuroLeague, and she won five EuroLeague titles as well. Plus, two NCAA Championships and five Olympic gold medals - she is a winner.
The thing that stands out the most is that she was playing in two different leagues every year - and winning championships in both (4 WNBA titles, 5 Russian league titles). Add in what is essentially a third season each year against the best competition for the EuroLeague, and she won five EuroLeague titles as well. Plus, two NCAA Championships and five Olympic gold medals - she is a winner.
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Not even close. She couldn't tie Serena Williams shoes.
At no point was Bird was ever considered the best in her sport. That knocks her out of contention.
She was a good role player who played on good teams, a la Steve Kerr.
some ESPN writer did a "Top 25 Best WNBA Players Ever" article......he had Bird 6th so...
Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra (May 12, 1925 – September 22, 2015) was an American professional baseball catcher who later took on the roles of manager and coach. He played 19 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) (1946–1963, 1965), all but the last for the New York Yankees. He was an 18-time All-Star and won 10 World Series championships as a player—more than any other player in MLB history.[2] Berra had a career batting average of .285, while hitting 358 home runs and 1,430 runs batted in. He is one of only six players to win the American League Most Valuable Player Award three times. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest catchers in baseball history[3] and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1972.
Add one more superlative -- NBA coach. Russell also coached the Celtics to an NBA Title.
She didn’t say greatest athlete, but greatest “athletic career.” In her career, she won championships. Tons of them. In 22 years she won 21 championships.
And she was better than a “role player.” While she didn’t win MVP in the WNBA, she was first or second team all-wnba 8 times, a 13 time all-star and is on the 25th Anniversary Team. That’s not a Steve Kerr-like career.
She's digging deep if she's gotta count Russian and European titles. WNBA titles barely count.
10 World Series titles, 3 MVPs (including back-to-back), 18x all-star is tough to beat Yeah, he was on some loaded teams, but he was a major contributor. That's neck and neck with Russell.