The Eight Foot Two Schlub

[selurah]

ROFLMAO at anyone in this thread who thinks that Shaq is just "average", athletically speaking. Some of you guys are boarderline [censored] retarded.

[Bibigon]

As an aside, Bao Xishun probably isn't the tallest man in the world. Leonid Stadnyk, at 8'3" or 8'4"(as per the AP), is.

I think the 8'2" guy is the best player in the league probably. At that height, you're approaching the physical limitations of the game. It's getting to the point of a pitcher with like a 107 mph fastball(which you need to swing at before it's left the pitcher's hand.)

[Duke]

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two words.


shawn bradley.

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Was actually pretty athletic. I believe he was a pretty good golfer.

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I remember reading an article talking about his intense training to get ready for the NBA game (after coming back from his mormon mission). It involved bench pressing 80 pounds for like 12 reps, and things of that nature. He seemed to be a larger and heavier frame with the strength of an average 12 year old kid.

It's not his fault, but there's a cut-off when it comes to size being an advantage in terms of strength and all. Shaq is an amazing specimen because he really is like a bigger guy who is proportionally stronger. That's a rare commodity.

[Duke]

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ROFLMAO at anyone in this thread who thinks that Shaq is just "average", athletically speaking. Some of you guys are boarderline [censored] retarded.

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Nice word (boarderline).

He's like a typical somewhat athletic guy, and then blown up (and made proportionally stronger). Usually when you blow them up, physics is their enemy and they get weaker. That's why he's an anomaly and also why he's so great.

[Duke]

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People keep bringing up real life players to refute the point that an 8'2 guy would dominate. This makes NO SENSE. The guy David describes in the OP is 8'2" tall and well over 400 lbs, he's also of normal proportions with no significant physical/health problems and has the agility/speed/endurance of an average 6' tall man.

The NBA, or any other league, has NEVER seen a specimen like this. No one even remotely close to this has ever played pro ball, and probably never will. To say, "look at George Muresan/Manute Bol/Mark Eaton, etc" is completely irrelevant. The guy David is describing has NEARLY A FOOT and hundreds of pounds on any of them, plus he's more durable, proportional, and coordinated.

This guy is taller than any man on the planet currently, he is NOTHING like anyone in the league...ever. To compare him to guys who all started in the NBA at one point, and were significantly inferior to the guy this thread is meant to discuss in many ways does nothing to help the argument that he wouldn't excell.

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Your opinion coincides with mine.

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If he can't shoot free throws this all goes up in smoke. Can you say "hack-a-schlub"?

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And when the entire team fouls out, he'll have free reign to put the ball in the hoop without jumping or even running. When they're playing 5 on 0 after the first quarter of using that tactic, well, he'll average like 200 points a game.

[Brocktoon]

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He's like a typical somewhat athletic guy, and then blown up (and made proportionally stronger). Usually when you blow them up, physics is their enemy and they get weaker. That's why he's an anomaly and also why he's so great.

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Exactly Duke. What some people seem to have a hard time fathoming is that if you take a guy who was at the 65th percentile for 30 yr old males between 71 and 73 inches and blow him up to 8'2" while keeping him in perfect proportion and allowing him to maintain 100% of his althletic abilty he would now likely be the most athletic person on the planet who was above 8ft tall and quite possibly ever in the history of humankind.

The human body is not meant to be that big and the rare times it is there are usually myriad physical ailments that come along with it. Shaq is an unbelievable athlete mainly because he suffers so few of the physical ailments that limit the majority of men his size. Shaq is easily 99 percentile plus in terms of altheticism for men over 7ft tall. Compare his mobility, agility, stamina, coordination, etc to the population pool of 6ft tall men and he drops significantly.

Is he still better than "average"? Sure he is, but he's not World Class by any means. Plus, he's a pro athlete who should theoretically be working on his conditioning almost constantly. Shrink Shaq and he needs to find another job.

[KenProspero]

There's an article in today's (March 10, 2007) New York Times about Sun Ming Ming, a 7'9" 387 lb, (175 kilos) center from China. Although he's still 5" short of the original question, he's probably as close as we're likely to see in the next few years.

From what I can find, he doesn't seem to be burning up the minor leagues, though the NBA is keeping an eye on him. I haven't seen anyone predict superstardom for him. However, he's still a raw talent, and learning the game so who knows.

[nineinchal]

WHILE WE RAISE THE BASKET.

[tolbiny]

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There's an article in today's (March 10, 2007) New York Times about Sun Ming Ming, a 7'9" 387 lb, (175 kilos) center from China. Although he's still 5" short of the original question, he's probably as close as we're likely to see in the next few years.

From what I can find, he doesn't seem to be burning up the minor leagues, though the NBA is keeping an eye on him. I haven't seen anyone predict superstardom for him. However, he's still a raw talent, and learning the game so who knows.

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Sun also had surgery on his pituitary gland ~ a year and a half ago which had inhibited his conditioning and made it difficult to practice for decent stretches of time (to go along with other "normal" problems of being >7').

[acesnates]

Is this the kind of stuff a brilliant math mind ponders?