Favorite Sports Heroes of All-Time

Casey Fisher · Post by **Casey Fisher** » Fri Feb 09, 2007 3:35 pm

Wanted to start a thread where we could discuss our favorite pro sports heroes of all-time.

“Magic” Johnson – Los Angeles Lakers – Guard
What can I say? He was my favorite basketball player growing up and was the “Ultimate Team Player”. Was well ahead of his time as a 6’ 9” player who played point guard. His no-look passes and L.A. Lakers fast-break machine was so very fun to watch. It is unfortunate that HIV cut his career short.

Edgar Martinez – Seattle Mariners – DH/3B
Overshadowed his whole career by teammates Ken Griffey Jr., Randy Johnson, Alex Rodriguez, Jay Buhner, and Ichiro. However, this steady hitter ranks among the great right-handed hitters ever. Roops agrees with me on that he deserves to be in the Hall of Fame despite being a DH. Who could ever forget his double down the left-field line to win the Division Series in 1995 vs. the New York Yankees in the bottom of the 11th Inning. It is an image that gives me goosebumps and brings a tear to my eye every time I think about it.

Michael Jordan – Chicago Bulls – Guard
In my opinion, he is the greatest pro athlete of all-time in any sport. I grew up despising the Bulls and wanted them to lose every single year. This made me respect Jordan even more as he torched teams in the NBA Finals and crushed the dreams of Lakers, Blazers, Suns, Sonics, Jazz, Cavaliers, Pistons and Knicks fans everywhere.

Steve Largent – Seattle Seahawks – WR
My favorite football player of all-time. Didn’t have to be flashy and just went about his business. He was a short, slow, white Wide Receiver who was the best WR of all-time at the time of his retirement. Got it done by sheer heart, smarts, and elite route running. Growing up a Seahawks fan, this man put many smiles on our faces…

I figure this list can get it started. Please add your favorite players and/or discuss them or mine…

Post by **Gwen Johnson** » Fri Feb 09, 2007 3:54 pm

Casey
I don't know that I would classify any of the players as Heroes, but you have named a couple of my favorites (Jordan, Largent). How many can we name?

Let me add these to the list:
1. John Brodie (SF 49ers)
2. Larry Csonka (Miami Dolphins)
3. Jack Nicklaus (golfer)
4. Jim Zorn (Seattle Seahawks)
5. Jerry Rice (SF 49ers, Oakland Raiders, Seattle Seahawks, etc.)
6. Tiger Woods (golfer)
Man...there are so many sports stars I've liked over the years. It's hard to narrow it to just a few, but I'll go with that list for now.

Laurie Roberts · Post by **Laurie Roberts** » Fri Feb 09, 2007 4:04 pm

I'm not sure why, but my interest in pro sports has waned substantially over the last 25 years. One favorite does immediately leap to mind, though.

Andre Agassi. I'm not a tennis player, but I totally loved the last ten years of Andre's career. His final match at the US Open is one of my favorite moments in sports ever.

Casey Fisher · Post by **Casey Fisher** » Sat Feb 10, 2007 11:28 am

Excellent additions...

I also wanted to throw John Stockton & Karl Malone on the list. They are two of the best to ever play and definitely deserved a ring. Stockton is definitely a hero around here as a 6 foot tall white guy from Spokane who is the all-time leader in NBA History in steals and assists.

Mike Nordin · Post by **Mike Nordin** » Sat Feb 10, 2007 11:57 am

Buck Williams, Clyde Drexler, and Terry Porter of the Portland Trailblazers. These men had class and are unsung heroes in NBA history.
Steve Largent, the Seahawks hero!
A personal favorite is Anthony Carter of the Minn. Vikings. He might not have had the full career as other NFL receivers because of his time in the CFL, but the man could catch. If you ever get a chance to look at old footage check out his one handed, behind the back grab with two defenders, while his feet straddled the sideline for a 20 plus yard gain. By the way, he broke the most yards receiving in a playoff game for that time during the J. Rice era.
And I agree on ol' poppi, Edgar Martinez! My wife and I attended his farwell game with all the hoppla. It was awesome!

Jason Spoor · Post by **Jason Spoor** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 12:07 pm

I suppose I only consider one man a sports "hero" but I'll give my favorite all-time from each major sport, maybe even a not so major sport.

Hero:

Jackie Robinson - He broke baseball's color barrier in 1947 and never looked back. He played for the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1947-1956 and helped lead them to 6 world series'. Robinson was a member of the NL All-Star team 6 times, won the 1949 NL MVP award and was named the 1947 Rookie of the Year. I could never imagine what he had to go through on a day-to-day basis while playing baseball in a "white man's world".

Favorites:

Baseball - Ozzie "The Wizard of Oz" Smith - (San Diego Padres 1978-81, St. Louis Cardinals 1982-96)

Basketball - Ervin "Magic" Johnson - (Los Angeles Lakers 1979-91 and 1996)

Football - Willie "Flipper" Anderson (Los Angeles Rams 1988-94, Indianapolis Colts 1995, Washington Redskins 1996, Denver Broncos 1997)

Hockey - Wayne Gretzky

Mens Tennis - Michael Chang 662-312 career singles record - 11-33 doubles record - 1 Grand Slam (1989 French Open) turned pro in 1988 and retired in 2003 - highest ranking came in 1996 as he finished #2 - Career prize of over $19 million.

Womens Tennis - Lindsay Davenport Results in singles Career record: 716-188 Career titles: 51 Highest ranking: No. 1 (October 12, 1998) Australian Open W (2000), F (2005) French Open SF (1998) Wimbledon W (1999), F (2000, 2005) U.S. Open W (1998), F (2000)
Results in doubles Career record: 366-110 Career titles: 36 (1 ITF) Highest ranking: No. 1 (October 20, 1997) - Career Prize Money $21,763,653

Laurie Roberts · Post by **Laurie Roberts** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 12:42 pm

I'm also a big Phil Mickelson fan, though I wish he were more consistent. Still, I love his attitude and watching him finally win a couple of majors was so rewarding.

Mike Nordin · Post by **Mike Nordin** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 12:43 pm

What about Arthur Robert Ashe, Jr. (July 10, 1943 – February 6, 1993) was a prominent African American tennis player who was born and raised in Richmond, Virginia. During his playing career, he won three Grand Slam titles. Ashe is also remembered for his efforts to further social causes.

Good one on Jackie.

As far as Heroes go, Ted Williams and all the MLB players that went to war.

Doug Knox · Post by **Doug Knox** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 12:56 pm

Favorites:

Baseball - Willie "ET" McGee
Football - Sweetness
Basketball - His Airness
Women's BBall - Sheryl Swoopes
Hockey - Mario Lemieux
Golf - Payne Stewart
Women's Golf - Michelle Wie
Tennis - Boris Becker (followed closely by Ivan Lendl)
Women's Tennis - Anna Kournikova
Track & Field - Carl Lewis (oh, & Dan O'Brien for his drinking abilities)
Boxing - Larry Holmes
Soccer - Alexei Lalas (or Stallone in Victory)
NWA - Sting (solo) & the Stiener Brothers (team)
Nascar - Rusty Wallace
Indy Car - AJ Foyt

Casey Fisher · Post by **Casey Fisher** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 1:46 pm

Excellent additions to all. Roops, good point on hero. I inteded it to be favorite players... Good call on Flipper Anderson. I remember trading you a Flipper football card for a Steve Largent card when we were youngsters.

Laurie, I love Phil also. Hopefully he can get a major or two this year... Him and Chris Dimarco are my two favorite golfers...

Knox, LOL on adding NWA wrestlers to the list. This just made my afternoon.

Casey Fisher · Post by **Casey Fisher** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:02 pm

Alright Knox, since you threw in some pro wrestlers I thought I would put in a few of my favorites:

Former WWE Wrestlers: Hulk Hogan, Junkyard Dog, “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Bret Hart, The Rock
Current WWE Wrestler: Edge

Favorite NWA Wrestlers: Rock n’ Roll Express, Tully Blanchard
Favorite WCW Wrestlers: Bill Goldberg, Sting
Favorite TNA Wrestler: Christian Cage

Favorite Former MMA Fighters: Don “The Predator” Frye, Dan “The Beast” Severn

Post by **Simon Miller** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:03 pm

I am going to use Knox's template to simplify my answer (I will even borrow a few of his comments!). There are too many to name, so I will keep it simple:

Baseball - Edgar Martinez (Ken Griffey Jr. before he moved)
Football - Steve Largent
Basketball - Larry Bird, Michael Jordan
Women's BBall - Lisa Leslie
Hockey - Wayne Gretsky
Golf - Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Lefty and Tiger
Women's Golf - Michelle Wie
Tennis - Andre Aggasi
Women's Tennis - Steffie Graf
Track & Field - Carl Lewis (oh, & Dan O'Brien for his drinking abilities)
Boxing - Rocky Balboa
Soccer - Pele (or Stallone in Victory) "Hatch, Hatch... halftime, halftime..."
NWA - Junkyard Dog
Nascar - Ricky Bobby & Michael Waltrip (Rick Wainright's guy)
Indy Car - Mario Andretti (Is that Indy?)

Jason Spoor · Post by **Jason Spoor** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:04 pm

Doug Knox wrote:Women's Tennis - Anna Kournikova

A close 2nd on my list - what a great tennis pro, she won so many Grand Slams!

Mike Nordin · Post by **Mike Nordin** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:20 pm

Hey, if you are into playing poker...
Ace/King in texas hold'em is known as "Big Slick", however many poker pro's now refer to it as Anna Kournikova, because it always looks but never wins!

Mike Nordin · Post by **Mike Nordin** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:21 pm

Thats supposed to be "looks good, but"

Casey Fisher · Post by **Casey Fisher** » Mon Feb 12, 2007 2:51 pm

Jason Spoor wrote:
Doug Knox wrote:Women's Tennis - Anna Kournikova
A close 2nd on my list - what a great tennis pro, she won so many Grand Slams!

Very sadly, she is one of the few women athletes to ever be on the cover of Sports Illustrated.

Mike Nordin · Post by **Mike Nordin** » Thu Apr 19, 2007 4:43 pm

Pipe!!!

Ken Lagerquist · Post by **Ken Lagerquist** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 7:46 am

Pro Basketball- Magic Johnson of course. The greatest point guard of all time!!!
Football- Jim Zorn, how could you not like him. Anyway, lets be more realistic, Marshall Faulk in his prime
Baseball- Dale Murphy, one of the greatest Power hitters of his time
College Basketball- Larry Johnson(UNLV)
Boxing- Ivan Drago
Tennis- Johnnie Mack
Golf- Greg Norman, Tiger Woods
NASCAR- Bobby Allison, Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson
NWA- The American Dream Dusty Rhodes
Soccer- Pele
College Basketball Coach- Jerry "Tark the Shark" Tarkanian

Casey Fisher · Post by **Casey Fisher** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 10:32 am

Excellent selections as well Ken. LOL on Ivan Drago.

Hank Rauenhorst · Post by **Hank Rauenhorst** » Thu Apr 26, 2007 4:13 pm

To be the best, you gotta beat the best. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!