Can Lebron James really run a 44 second 400?

This ^ is the right answer.

Lebron was an all state wide receiver in high school and has a 40+ vert. Dude is fast and explosive.

I give him (his rookie year, conservative estimate)

11.5

23.0

~51-52

off no training assuming a genuine effort in a race with spikes

before you bring height & weight into the discussion remember that Wilt Chamberlain ran 49 for the 440 and was 7 feet tall. James is one of he most freakish athletes of his generation.

Realism wrote:

Lebron was an all state wide receiver in high school and has a 40+ vert. Dude is fast and explosive.

I give him (his rookie year, conservative estimate)

11.5

23.0

~51-52

off no training assuming a genuine effort in a race with spikes

before you bring height & weight into the discussion remember that Wilt Chamberlain ran 49 for the 440 and was 7 feet tall. James is one of he most freakish athletes of his generation.

Also remember that Wilt wasn't called Wilt the Stilt for no reason. The guy had essentially a runner's build when he ran 49. Look at Lebron - he is built like brick wall. No chance he is breaking 55. 60 maybe.

Bronbron wrote:

Tons of very unathletic guys manage to run in the 50 second range. Lebron could run 48-49 right now with no specific training, and 46-47 if he trained for it.

That's ludicrous. Nobody unathletic can run 50. Even 60 is out of the range of the vast majority of the population, including basketball players.

Vertical leap ability has almost nothing to do with it. The 400 meters is almost entirely a contest of top speed which means generating mostly forward motion in an upright position. Running on a basketball court never gets out of the acceleration phase. Total apples and oranges.

0/10

Yeah Right Man wrote:

gggggggg wrote:

There is VIDEO PROOF that Lebron James ran just over 425 meters in 42.8 seconds. This was done running 5 laps around a standardized basketball court. He is the greatest athlete of all time.

This was also done after a full practice and he was wearing Jordans.

Yeah right. I guess that was supposed to be funny. But it failed at that too.

what was the first thing it failed it

Not saying wrote:

This Man wrote:

This ^ is probably about right. No chance at all that he could get near 50.

Only, I wouldn't call him fat. Just not skinny like a runner.

I think 50 flat or just under. I was a distance runner who managed a 51. in the 400, and I've got to believe he has more speed of 400 meters than I ever did. Halfway decent HS girls run 56-58.

Come on....a HS girl who runs 56 is a track star!

Bronbron wrote:

This. I agree that under 45 is not likely at all. However, those saying he would have trouble with a 55?? Are you kidding me? This board is full of a bunch of skinny white distance guys who actually think a 50-51 is fast. I've run 50.x and Lebron would OBLITERATE me at 200. There's no way he loses enough moving up from 200 to 400 for me to come close to beating him.

Tons of very unathletic guys manage to run in the 50 second range. Lebron could run 48-49 right now with no specific training, and 46-47 if he trained for it.

Ah...by definition...one is athletic if one can run in the 50 sec range. Are you a real runner?

LetsRun.com Note: We're virtually certain that Lebron never said it but the discussion of what he could run is worth debating.[/quote]

Yes, because all moot, nonresolvable debates are incredibly productive.

It is truly amazing what a tiny little bubble most of you live in. WTF does weighing 250+ have to do with anything??? If a guy weighed 270 but had the musculature of a distance runner, then of course he would be slow. He sprints up and down a basketball court for a living. This is probably the greatest athlete on the planet we're talking about and many of you think he can't break 55 seconds? If any of you could spend five minutes running up and down a court with him you'd change your mind immediately. Of course most of you here would also claim Lebron couldn't keep up with you on a court. It's ok, just keep believing the 140lb distance runners are the world's best athletes.

Did Huck Seed ever run that 4:39 mile? How about Huck Seed (former college basketball player) vs. Lebron at, say, 500m?

Why was this thread hacked by Letsrun and at what point was the link removed from the original post?

It was a picture of a chubby girl trying to eat a cookie off of her shoulder.

I thought it was funny that people were seriously responding to the topic considering the goof pic.

But I guess LRC thought that the topic was worthwhile and removed the pic.

The pic made the thread for me.

Lashawn Merritt and Kirani James both weigh about 180 pounds. 250+ is way too much to be efficient at any distance, no matter how much of it is muscle. Obviously LeBron is better at quick accelerations on a basketball court than anyone here. That's not relevant to this discussion.

LeBron would probably be somewhere between 55 and 60 in his current fitness. If he trained for 400, which would mean dropping a lot of weight and ruining his basketball career, I'm sure he could break 50.

Ingo Schultz ran 44.66 and he is listed variously as 96kg and 99kg, so around 210-220 lbs.

Here is the finish of the 2001 World Championship 400m, with Schultz in lane 6 running his PR:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RREnfnPtajA

Bronbron wrote:

This. I agree that under 45 is not likely at all. However, those saying he would have trouble with a 55?? Are you kidding me? This board is full of a bunch of skinny white distance guys who actually think a 50-51 is fast. I've run 50.x and Lebron would OBLITERATE me at 200. There's no way he loses enough moving up from 200 to 400 for me to come close to beating him.

Tons of very unathletic guys manage to run in the 50 second range. Lebron could run 48-49 right now with no specific training, and 46-47 if he trained for it.

This is so true and exactly what I was thinking reading these comments. I don't think the skeletons realize what running an all out 400 is like, not doing 6x400s or whatever for a track workout. Totally underestimating bron by saying 55. that is not fast at all especially for a grown man with his power and strength and considering he is a pro athlete.

Sorry, the video is him running 44.87 in the final. He ran 44.66 in the semi.

The only way Lebron runs a 44 second 400 is if there are hurdles and he has to throw down a couple dunks along the way. 41 high with no obstacles.

The only track athlete I can think of that is remotely close to LeBron's size and has run a fairly fast 400 meters is Jurgen Hingsen (listed at 6'7", 225 lbs) who has a 47.65 second 400m PR.