agree/disagree
Top 15 Human Highlight Films
By Mad Love on 05/12 at 07:13 PM
<!--They were cultural icons who blended superhuman athletic ability with charisma and flair. Paulie Knep counts down the greatest athletes ever to make us say, "Did you just see that?"
--> by Paulie Knep
Love of Sports Correspondent
We watch sports for many reasons; the competition, the drama, the athletic grace and the test of wills and the escape from everyday life.
Perhaps more than anything though, we watch for those rare moments when an athlete simply takes our breath away by doing something we’d never seen before or didn’t think was possible. Over their careers, the greatest athletes created several of these transcendent moments, filming a personal highlight reel for fans to watch for years to come.
These athletes have compiled the greatest highlight reels over the past 25 years.
15) DEION SANDERS
Primetime’s most exhilarating moments came as a kick-returner, where his quick cuts and blinding speed often resulted in spectacular touchdowns. However, if you really want to see how fast and graceful he was, check out a clip of him legging out a triple for the Atlanta Braves.
14) LAWRENCE TAYLOR
It doesn’t matter how many LT highlights you’ve seen; when you watch him dart across the field and cut down a running back from behind, your jaw will still drop. He looked like a man among boys as he’d shed two blockers, instantly accelerate to full speed and launch himself onto an unsuspecting quarterback.
13) PAVEL BURE
The Russian Rocket charged the net so quickly that it seemed as if you were watching a video game. No human could possibly skate that fast. He concluded those bursts with deke moves and a swift wrister which rendered defensemen and goaltenders completely helpless.
12) SUGAR RAY LEONARD
Sugar Ray finished off opponents with furious flurries of punches that seemed to be fired in fast forward. What made these assaults even more remarkable was that they often came when it appeared that Leonard was in trouble. He gave the crowd a little extra by taunting an opponent with fake punches or a roundhouse before knocking him out.
11) KEN GRIFFEY JR.
Junior was the Willie Mays of his generation. A true five-tool ballplayer, he wowed us galloping around the bases, gunning down runners, hitting 500-foot bombs, diving for balls and leaping against the wall in center field. He also had the sweetest swing in the game.
10) RONALDINHO
Ronaldinho’s tricky footwork is so alluring that even Americans tuned in to check him out during the 2006 World Cup. His juggling skills are legendary and he often turns defenders into statues as he jukes them with a double touch on his way to a goal.
9) MICHAEL JOHNSON
It wasn’t that he was the fastest man in the world which made him so astonishing to watch, it was that he was so much faster than the second fastest man in the world. It looked as if his golden shoes didn’t touch the ground as he flew past the competition.
8) DOMINIQUE WILKINS
The two-time slam dunk champion was nicknamed “The Human Highlight Film” for his eye-popping finishes. At 6-foot-9, he possessed a combination of leaping ability, strength and grace which made for many of the most artistic dunks the NBA has ever seen.
7) MAGIC JOHNSON
There was nothing more beautiful in all of sports than Magic delivering a no-look pass on the fastbreak. His intuition and court awareness enabled him to react before everybody else and his ability to thread the needle regularly left fans asking each other “How’d he do that?”
6) DIEGO MARADONA
The pride of Argentina dazzled the world with quick speed bursts, brilliant crosses, back-leg passes and masterful maneuvering in tight spaces. His mad dash against Great Britain in the 1986 finals remains one of the greatest goals in World Cup history.
5) VINCE CARTER
Carter’s top ten dunks compare favorably to anybody who has ever played professional basketball, including Jordan, Nique and Dr. J. You have seen him leap over 7-foot-4 Frederic Weiss twenty times and never tire of it.
4) MIKE TYSON
Tyson was like a caged tiger set free in the ring. He pounced on his opponents, releasing a vicious arsenal of lightning-quick hooks and devastating upper cuts. He represents the true carnage of boxing, as nobody in the history of the sport could inflict so much damage in so little time.
3) BARRY SANDERS
Barry’s elusiveness made him a thrill to watch every time he touched the ball. Few athletes have made their opponents look as foolish as Sanders did when he danced his way out of tackles or stopped on a dime and changed direction.
2) MICHAEL JORDAN
When he soared through the air with his body tilted towards the basket, he looked like he was flying. Watch a few of those clips mixed in with his numerous acrobatic finishes and game-winning buzzer-beaters and you’ll be the one with your tongue wagging.
1) BO JACKSON
Bo was the greatest athlete of the past 25 years and he provided us with the most astonishing and diverse highlight reel to prove it. Whether he was running over linebackers, rocketing past entire defenses, breaking bats over his thigh, throwing out runners from the warning track, smacking gargantuan home runs or scaling the wall like spider man, he routinely left us in awe.
Honorable Mentions: Michael Vick, Allen Iverson, Ozzie Smith, Roy Jones Jr. Randy Moss, Wayne Gretzky, LeBron James, Ronaldo, Mario Lemieux
Top 15 Human Highlight Films
By Mad Love on 05/12 at 07:13 PM
<!--They were cultural icons who blended superhuman athletic ability with charisma and flair. Paulie Knep counts down the greatest athletes ever to make us say, "Did you just see that?"
--> by Paulie Knep
Love of Sports Correspondent
We watch sports for many reasons; the competition, the drama, the athletic grace and the test of wills and the escape from everyday life.
Perhaps more than anything though, we watch for those rare moments when an athlete simply takes our breath away by doing something we’d never seen before or didn’t think was possible. Over their careers, the greatest athletes created several of these transcendent moments, filming a personal highlight reel for fans to watch for years to come.
These athletes have compiled the greatest highlight reels over the past 25 years.
15) DEION SANDERS
Primetime’s most exhilarating moments came as a kick-returner, where his quick cuts and blinding speed often resulted in spectacular touchdowns. However, if you really want to see how fast and graceful he was, check out a clip of him legging out a triple for the Atlanta Braves.
14) LAWRENCE TAYLOR
It doesn’t matter how many LT highlights you’ve seen; when you watch him dart across the field and cut down a running back from behind, your jaw will still drop. He looked like a man among boys as he’d shed two blockers, instantly accelerate to full speed and launch himself onto an unsuspecting quarterback.
13) PAVEL BURE
The Russian Rocket charged the net so quickly that it seemed as if you were watching a video game. No human could possibly skate that fast. He concluded those bursts with deke moves and a swift wrister which rendered defensemen and goaltenders completely helpless.
12) SUGAR RAY LEONARD
Sugar Ray finished off opponents with furious flurries of punches that seemed to be fired in fast forward. What made these assaults even more remarkable was that they often came when it appeared that Leonard was in trouble. He gave the crowd a little extra by taunting an opponent with fake punches or a roundhouse before knocking him out.
11) KEN GRIFFEY JR.
Junior was the Willie Mays of his generation. A true five-tool ballplayer, he wowed us galloping around the bases, gunning down runners, hitting 500-foot bombs, diving for balls and leaping against the wall in center field. He also had the sweetest swing in the game.
10) RONALDINHO
Ronaldinho’s tricky footwork is so alluring that even Americans tuned in to check him out during the 2006 World Cup. His juggling skills are legendary and he often turns defenders into statues as he jukes them with a double touch on his way to a goal.
9) MICHAEL JOHNSON
It wasn’t that he was the fastest man in the world which made him so astonishing to watch, it was that he was so much faster than the second fastest man in the world. It looked as if his golden shoes didn’t touch the ground as he flew past the competition.
8) DOMINIQUE WILKINS
The two-time slam dunk champion was nicknamed “The Human Highlight Film” for his eye-popping finishes. At 6-foot-9, he possessed a combination of leaping ability, strength and grace which made for many of the most artistic dunks the NBA has ever seen.
7) MAGIC JOHNSON
There was nothing more beautiful in all of sports than Magic delivering a no-look pass on the fastbreak. His intuition and court awareness enabled him to react before everybody else and his ability to thread the needle regularly left fans asking each other “How’d he do that?”
6) DIEGO MARADONA
The pride of Argentina dazzled the world with quick speed bursts, brilliant crosses, back-leg passes and masterful maneuvering in tight spaces. His mad dash against Great Britain in the 1986 finals remains one of the greatest goals in World Cup history.
5) VINCE CARTER
Carter’s top ten dunks compare favorably to anybody who has ever played professional basketball, including Jordan, Nique and Dr. J. You have seen him leap over 7-foot-4 Frederic Weiss twenty times and never tire of it.
4) MIKE TYSON
Tyson was like a caged tiger set free in the ring. He pounced on his opponents, releasing a vicious arsenal of lightning-quick hooks and devastating upper cuts. He represents the true carnage of boxing, as nobody in the history of the sport could inflict so much damage in so little time.
3) BARRY SANDERS
Barry’s elusiveness made him a thrill to watch every time he touched the ball. Few athletes have made their opponents look as foolish as Sanders did when he danced his way out of tackles or stopped on a dime and changed direction.
2) MICHAEL JORDAN
When he soared through the air with his body tilted towards the basket, he looked like he was flying. Watch a few of those clips mixed in with his numerous acrobatic finishes and game-winning buzzer-beaters and you’ll be the one with your tongue wagging.
1) BO JACKSON
Bo was the greatest athlete of the past 25 years and he provided us with the most astonishing and diverse highlight reel to prove it. Whether he was running over linebackers, rocketing past entire defenses, breaking bats over his thigh, throwing out runners from the warning track, smacking gargantuan home runs or scaling the wall like spider man, he routinely left us in awe.
Honorable Mentions: Michael Vick, Allen Iverson, Ozzie Smith, Roy Jones Jr. Randy Moss, Wayne Gretzky, LeBron James, Ronaldo, Mario Lemieux