NBA - Main

12 readers

2 users here now

Game analysis, highlights and everything else that is happening in the NBA.

founded 11 months ago

MODERATORS

communick@nba.space

Are NBA players better athletes then the NFL or is it the other way around? (alien.top)

submitted 10 months ago by frozteh@alien.top to c/nba@nba.space

44 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Remaking a new topic from years ago. Look let me get this straight, some NFL athletes are absurdly insane in athleticism. No one is beating Tyreek Hill in terms of explosiveness and speed. But am I wrong to say, that NBA players have the higher ceiling? Like if money and long term health weren't a concern, if NBA players focused on training their bodies on prepping for football, their ceiling would be so much higher. Instead of Kyle Pitts we have KD at tight-end on the falcons, instead of Megatron on the Lions we have LeBron James on the Browns, 3 inches taller. I'm not saying they WOULD be better. But they have the POTENTIAL to be better, their ceiling is higher. Apparently this is a wild take. NBA players are tall, fast, and leap as high as a lot of NFL players.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] BulgeKhalifa@alien.top 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I just had this discussion with a guy on another thread yesterday. Here was my argument:

You might be surprised to learn that NFL athletes are, on average, much stronger and more explosive than NBA players.

Guys like Joe Ingles would never in a million years scratch the practice squad of an NFL team. And I know that's an extreme example. But there's plenty more guys -- even top tier guys (like James Harden, Jokic, Doncic, and Curry -- who absolutely excel in the NBA but would never make it even close to D1 in college football, let alone the NFL.

To put it bluntly, you actually have it backwards in terms of athleticism.

NBA players do have one thing going for them that would prevent most NFL guys from getting into the league, and that's obviously height. You could also argue that they have on average much more finesse, and that's a big deal too when it comes to basketball. But it's really the combination of those two things -- not athleticism -- that are the real differentiators.

The more I thought about it -- it's probably a stretch to say some of those guys wouldn't go D1, given just how many D1 schools there are. But I stand behind saying that they for sure wouldn't go pro, nor would many of them be one of the top players in a good conference like the SEC.

We often think of NBA players as "explosive" solely because of their highlight reel dunks. But the reality is that only a couple of players on each NBA roster are actually capable of posterizing bigs.

Steph Curry is one of the top 10 players of all time, and the guy can barely dunk. He's quick, but he relies much more on his stamina than his explosiveness.

Lots of guys in the NBA can run up and down the court for 40 minutes a game. But I don't think the average NBA player would stand a chance against the average NFL player in a 40-yard dash (lineman and QBs not included).

It's almost a given that to play in the NFL, you have to be able to rep out a 225-lb bench for multiple reps. (Not that bench pressing is everything, but it's one measurement for overall explosiveness). The least amount of reps EVER performed by a guy at the NFL combine was 1. And one of the best players in the NBA of all time (Durant), couldn't even muster 1 such repetition.

NBA is just a different skillset.

[–] 9jajajaj9@alien.top 1 points 10 months ago

lineman and QBs not included

Kickers, punters too