Is it true that the "best" athletes in the USA are in the NFL, NBA, MLB or NHL?

No, your logic went so far off course I don't even know where.

The best potential soccer players aren't in the NBA, NFL, MLB, etc.

It's that too many of the best potential soccer players, didn't play soccer, they ended up getting sucked into football and basketball from a young age. They never went pro in those sports, maybe didn't even play in college, but the point is they did not ever get recruited to play soccer at a high level and that is why they never developed as soccer players. The best athletes played football even if it wasn't THEIR best sport, they were just good enough to play, and soccer got the second pick from the talent pool.

Le Foot wrote:

No, your logic went so far off course I don\'t even know where.

The best potential soccer players aren\'t in the NBA, NFL, MLB, etc.

It\'s that too many of the best potential soccer players, didn\'t play soccer, they ended up getting sucked into football and basketball from a young age. They never went pro in those sports, maybe didn\'t even play in college, but the point is they did not ever get recruited to play soccer at a high level and that is why they never developed as soccer players. The best athletes played football even if it wasn\'t THEIR best sport, they were just good enough to play, and soccer got the second pick from the talent pool.

This is partially correct, but the OP\'s point can apply to some as well. I don\'t think baseball players would necessarily bet better soccer players than our soccer players, but some football and hockey players would probably have made great soccer players. Depends on position, but I\'d think receivers and running backs could do quite well in soccer.

There are 0 athletes in the MLB, let alone "best athletes".

I some areas it's not debatable. The weights and throws guys who win US and Olympic championships deserve to be recognized as "the best"; but it is just not debatable that if all of the football offensive and defensive linemen in college and the NFL focused on shot up, hammer, etc, they would dominate the sport. There was a thread earlier about Michael Carter breaking the US high school shot record by 9 feet, he went on to be a college champion and Olympic silver medalist with shot being an after-thought to his football, and he dropped it when he went pro. He would have dominated if he has concentrated on shot.

Football players (and especially baseball players) are way overrated by the sports ignorant American public.

They're all good athletes but they are specialized.

No, MLB,NBA,NFL,NHL could not step into a track meet and be world class anymore than a world class track and field athlete could be world class in those sports.

Le Foot wrote:

No, your logic went so far off course I don't even know where.

The best potential soccer players aren't in the NBA, NFL, MLB, etc.

It's that too many of the best potential soccer players, didn't play soccer, they ended up getting sucked into football and basketball from a young age. They never went pro in those sports, maybe didn't even play in college, but the point is they did not ever get recruited to play soccer at a high level and that is why they never developed as soccer players. The best athletes played football even if it wasn't THEIR best sport, they were just good enough to play, and soccer got the second pick from the talent pool.

Well, I was trying to present an argument that I do not agree with.

I do not believe that just because an athlete is in the NFL, NBA, MLB or NHL, he is necessarily a better athlete than a pro soccer player or track & field athlete.

Each sport represent a specific skill set and just because you're great in one of those four, it does not follow that you would be great in any athletic activity. This seems obvious?

Consider distance running. A super star NFL athlete is not going to be a super star at running 10k. But if you believe that a 27 min 10k runner is not among the best athletes because that activity is not as "athletic" as football activity, then I think you're misguided.

Although, I might have a misunderstanding about what "athlete" means?

gestev wrote:

There are 0 athletes in the MLB, let alone "best athletes".

Clueless^

subfive wrote:

Although, I might have a misunderstanding about what "athlete" means?

Yes

MLB is loaded with many great athletes. They make what they do on the field look easy. A lot of skill and athleticism on display in any MLB game. For position players it takes a lot to go day after day playing MLB games. They play 160+ games a season. On this basis alone I'd say there are more than 0 athletes in the MLB.

I remember back in the nineties seeing a documentary about the baseball strike. In it, coaches discussed what they were looking for among replacement players. They answered unanimously: 'speed'. I also remember back in the eighties watching Skeets Nehemiah completely outrun the best dbs in the nfl. Bullet Bob Hayes had a very good career in the NFL back in the sixties. So... this will run contrary to the self haters here, but, in my opinion, the best athletes in the US are in T&F. The skills they lack could be taught. Speed and strength are much harder to coach. Too, if you look at participation rates, more kids do track in school than do any other sport.

As for our soccer fortunes, the problem in the US lies in the coaching at the youth level and the culture here. Kids in other countries spend a lot of time juggling and dribbling and mastering the sorts of skills that our players lack. Here I almost never see kids hanging around juggling a soccer ball. The usmnt has athletes good enough to compete against anyone. They don't have the same ball handling skills as the top teams.

Le Foot wrote:

subfive wrote:

Although, I might have a misunderstanding about what "athlete" means?

Yes

Ok, what is an athlete? Help me out.

yes, it is "true"

Cross-country skiers are amongst the best athletes in the world. I would also argue that the fittest soccer players are also amongst the best athletes in the world (probably the midfielders).

Both of these sports combine speed, stamina and strength with a large technical component not seen in other endurance sports.

No way in hell would the average NBA/NHL/MLB/NFL player be successful on a soccer pitch.

Using the ops logic can we assume that the smartest people in the US colleges must be business students because business students end up making the most money?

Could even be alpine skiing.

I remember watching a sports show in which there was a competition with various disciplines (running, jumping, obstacle course, etc.)and had top individuals from a variety of sports...football, baseball, skiing, etc.

Bode Miller crushed them all!

Perkunas wrote:

No way in hell would the average NBA/NHL/MLB/NFL player be successful on a soccer pitch.

How about if they all started playing soccer when they were 4?

Surprise! wrote:

Perkunas wrote:

No way in hell would the average NBA/NHL/MLB/NFL player be successful on a soccer pitch.

How about if they all started playing soccer when they were 4?

I can't say my opinion any more succinctly than I already have. American ball-sports are more dependent on specific skills and/or body-size than soccer or cross country skiing.

Great athletes exist in every sport but certain sports require a more diverse combination of talents.

coach wrote:

Using the ops logic can we assume that the smartest people in the US colleges must be business students because business students end up making the most money?

And that's the problem with that argument. And it is not my argument. I do not think those four sports contain all the best athletes.

subfive wrote:

Since these sports pay the most and are the most popular, those who play at that level are the best athletes, according to some observers. And it then follows that, if an athlete is not in one of those sports, he or she is not one of the best athletes in the USA because they do not play in one of those sports as a pro.

This leads to the belief that the best soccer players in the USA are not among the best athletes in the USA? If those NFL or NBA athletes had been trained to play soccer they would be the best soccer players now rather than those who play pro soccer now?

I am sorry I bothered to read this post. I was hoping you'd actually make a point before sending.