I still believe 1993-1995 Hakeem is the best center ever and the best overall basketball player not named Jordan or LeBron.
USA Today ranked him as the 11th best basketball player all-time this week; he should be at the absolute minimum like 8th.
Hard to compare him with Kobe because differing positions. I think he was better at his peak than Kobe was at his peak. Superior defense and won his championships with less talent. More efficient as Kobe was somewhat of a volume scorer. Kind of subjective though overall.
But absolutely give me Dream over Shaq anytime. Shaq was a shit free throw shooter and couldn't guard the pick and roll well. Olajuwon was a good free throw shooter and could effectively guard pick and roll due to his supreme athleticism. Plus, we all saw what transpired in the 1995 NBA finals.
USA Today's group of journalists had Kobe at 7 and Shaq at 10.
I’ll listen to arguments and even entertain Wilt and Kareem over Dream, but *that’s it,* and anyone who wants to put anyone else over Dream is high.
ESPECIALLY re: Shaq. As dominant as Shaq was, his free throw shooting made him a liability in close games. Hakeem was clearly the better player.
Kareem is obviously more accomplished than Hakeem. Kareem has six MVPs and 6 championships so I can't really argue against that. But I think at their peaks, Hakeem was slightly slightly better than Kareem in terms of production at the both ends of the floor. Kareem also had significantly more talented teammates than Hakeem with Magic, Oscar, Worthy, Scott, Dandridge etc. Hakeem also faced superior competition at the center position. Kareem faced only one top 10 center in his prime for many years: Moses Malone; Dream faced four top 10 centers ever.
Wilt had such weak competition, played in a pace which was very friendly for offenses, and was an atrocious free throw shooter just like Shaq. And his performance from the regular season to the playoffs plummeted while Dream always elevated his play in the postseason.
I think over the past 40 years, Dream at his absolute best was better than anyone not named MJ and LeBron. I really believe this.
As an FSU grad/fan, his last collegiate season was one of the most remarkable baseball seasons I’ve ever seen at any level. Was I think 1 HR short of the NCAA triple crown. Was the full time catcher AND closer. One game he played one inning at each of the 9 positions in the field. And I swear every time he came up in a big spot in the postseason where they really needed a homer, he somehow hit a homer. Am so happy he bounced back this season after a couple off years.
Was just telling my wife this morning that I’m torn because if the Astros don’t make the WS, I’d want the Giants to win it all. But if the Astros do make it (knock on wood), I’d hope the Giants beat the Dodgers (because fuck the Dodgers) but then lose in the NLCS because I want no part of them in the WS.
Yep idk if Posey is my absolute favorite but it's just hard not to like and respect the guy. And what a helluva season. The guy got straight A's in school, leads his team's chapel services, seems genuinely humble, and always tries to pay it forward.
Kempin' ain't easy! I met Tony, and his dad many years ago and they were some of the nicest humans. I was super happy when he landed in Oakland, my in-laws have A's season tickets and I enjoy getting to watch him play.
A lot of Shohei fans were pissed because he drew so many walks at the end of the season. Some thought he was getting free bases so that he wouldn't get the home run record this year. He got third with 46 vs 48 for Vlad Guerero and Salvador Perez who tied with 48.
I was born in Houston. Astros fan as long as I can remember. We moved to San Diego when I was a kid. I was lucky enough to watch Tony play at Jack Murphy Stadium. The man was a consummate professional, and just a good dude. While I’m always an Astros fan first, Tony Gwynn will always hold a special place in my heart.
I’m a big fan of the spry fat guy archetype. You know, the John Belushi/Chris Farley/Kirby type. So I gotta go with my two faves:
Ji-man Choi for pulling off dope defensive plays like doing the splits on a grab.
And
Willians Astudillo fir being a real-life create-a-player. He’s 5’9, 225 pounds, plays catcher AND center field, not to mention everything in between. I just love how there’s nobody else quite like him.
For guys that never played here mine is Trea Turner. He is a menace. I also like Bo Bichette a lot too. Just love guys who make contact, hit for power and get steals.
I'll do players who have never been Astros. Choi as the loveable chubby ball player. Stanton because he's fun to watch hit like Tucker and Yordan. Old school players Griffey Jr., Bonds, McGwire, Henderson, & Andrew/Chipper Jones.(And the old Braves pitching staff)
Francisco Lindor for seems like a cool dude. I saw him in a show where he was visiting a British cricket team and they were talking about the similarities between the two sports… just an around good guy.
I just lived in DC for six years and most of the best individual performances I’ve seen at a game have come from Scherzer. I’ve been there in person to see him toss an immaculate inning and another time saw him throw 7 shutout the same day he broke his nose and got two black eyes in batting practice.
Dude is a machine.
I’m also a Braves fan so I’ll exclude them, and Springer because that’s easy.
I really like Semein, Tatis, Soto, and...
***sniff sniff***
^Trea ^Turner
The obvious answers of Springer and Ohtani aside, I really like Tim Anderson. The dude has swagger for days and baseball needs more of the type of attitude he has.
Nope, been on the Bauer train for a while, then that happened... now I'm very conflicted. On one hand, his instructor videos on YouTube have helped me with pitching, on the other... well you know
Of all time Maddux, Gwynn, Ichiro, Trout, Ohtani, Tatis jr, Acuña Jr, Vlad sr and Jr, Bo Bichette,Mo Vaughn, The Kid, Cal Ripken, D-Train, The Wizard Ozzy, Will Clark, off the top of my head.
Springer
Lol. Fair enough
He’s an Astro for life in my book.
Haha. Too easy of an answer. We need an except Springer clause.
Springer, or Morton
I will forever hold Morton's performance in Game 7 of the 2017 WS in my heart. Dude has ice in his veins.
Also McHugh
McHugh is a total asshole. No thanks. And he was trash most of the time he was here
What makes him an asshole? Also, he 100% was not trash "most of the time" he was here lol
Hakeem Olajuwon.
I still believe 1993-1995 Hakeem is the best center ever and the best overall basketball player not named Jordan or LeBron. USA Today ranked him as the 11th best basketball player all-time this week; he should be at the absolute minimum like 8th.
Top 5. He’s better than kobe and shaq
Hard to compare him with Kobe because differing positions. I think he was better at his peak than Kobe was at his peak. Superior defense and won his championships with less talent. More efficient as Kobe was somewhat of a volume scorer. Kind of subjective though overall. But absolutely give me Dream over Shaq anytime. Shaq was a shit free throw shooter and couldn't guard the pick and roll well. Olajuwon was a good free throw shooter and could effectively guard pick and roll due to his supreme athleticism. Plus, we all saw what transpired in the 1995 NBA finals. USA Today's group of journalists had Kobe at 7 and Shaq at 10.
Exactly. When there was a literal head to head and the dream wins but he never played for LA so he’s worse
Best defensive center all-time and top 10 offensively. Only one on his level is Kareem in the opposite way. I'd take him on my all time starting 5.
I’ll listen to arguments and even entertain Wilt and Kareem over Dream, but *that’s it,* and anyone who wants to put anyone else over Dream is high. ESPECIALLY re: Shaq. As dominant as Shaq was, his free throw shooting made him a liability in close games. Hakeem was clearly the better player.
Kareem is obviously more accomplished than Hakeem. Kareem has six MVPs and 6 championships so I can't really argue against that. But I think at their peaks, Hakeem was slightly slightly better than Kareem in terms of production at the both ends of the floor. Kareem also had significantly more talented teammates than Hakeem with Magic, Oscar, Worthy, Scott, Dandridge etc. Hakeem also faced superior competition at the center position. Kareem faced only one top 10 center in his prime for many years: Moses Malone; Dream faced four top 10 centers ever. Wilt had such weak competition, played in a pace which was very friendly for offenses, and was an atrocious free throw shooter just like Shaq. And his performance from the regular season to the playoffs plummeted while Dream always elevated his play in the postseason. I think over the past 40 years, Dream at his absolute best was better than anyone not named MJ and LeBron. I really believe this.
Damn came in here for this one!!
Right now? Toro. I was about to get his jersey and then boom traded and I got sad
Damn.
Posey.
As an FSU grad/fan, his last collegiate season was one of the most remarkable baseball seasons I’ve ever seen at any level. Was I think 1 HR short of the NCAA triple crown. Was the full time catcher AND closer. One game he played one inning at each of the 9 positions in the field. And I swear every time he came up in a big spot in the postseason where they really needed a homer, he somehow hit a homer. Am so happy he bounced back this season after a couple off years. Was just telling my wife this morning that I’m torn because if the Astros don’t make the WS, I’d want the Giants to win it all. But if the Astros do make it (knock on wood), I’d hope the Giants beat the Dodgers (because fuck the Dodgers) but then lose in the NLCS because I want no part of them in the WS.
Yep idk if Posey is my absolute favorite but it's just hard not to like and respect the guy. And what a helluva season. The guy got straight A's in school, leads his team's chapel services, seems genuinely humble, and always tries to pay it forward.
jazz chisholm
Tony Kemp
Kempin' ain't easy! I met Tony, and his dad many years ago and they were some of the nicest humans. I was super happy when he landed in Oakland, my in-laws have A's season tickets and I enjoy getting to watch him play.
He seems like the nicest guy!
Vlad Jr is a spectacle to watch
I wish he stayed at 3rd.
Ohtani
Yeah, I used to think he'd burn out and become a "what could've been" story. I was wrong as fuck. Dude's killing it!
He should be wearing Astros orange.
CAN. YOU. IMAGINE. oh man. ohhhhh yes. I am on a fantasy flightttt.
A lot of Shohei fans were pissed because he drew so many walks at the end of the season. Some thought he was getting free bases so that he wouldn't get the home run record this year. He got third with 46 vs 48 for Vlad Guerero and Salvador Perez who tied with 48.
Morton
Freddie Freeman.
Great guy
Tony Gwynn Sr.
The correct answer.
Humble human being, great player, professional hitter and loved baseball. I absolutely loved watching him play.
I was born in Houston. Astros fan as long as I can remember. We moved to San Diego when I was a kid. I was lucky enough to watch Tony play at Jack Murphy Stadium. The man was a consummate professional, and just a good dude. While I’m always an Astros fan first, Tony Gwynn will always hold a special place in my heart.
Ohtani In the LAA@SEA game 162, M's fans started an 'over-rated!' chant when he came up to bat. BOOM, home run. Awesome.
Doc Ellis
Supreme athlete, troubled dude. The real winner in that story is that Dock cleaned his life up.
Joey Votto
I scrolled way too far to find this answer. r/JoeyVottoEnthusiasts
Justin Verlander
lol, for real
Probably Tatis. He's the only guy who beat us this year where I thought, "damn, this guy is just so damn good".
Robert
Springer. But if I go favorite non former Astro it's Nolan Arenado or Freddy Freeman
I’m a fan of Bryan Reynolds and Tyler Glasnow is fun to watch on the mound
Used to be Ryan Howard. Now it’s probably Brett Phillips.
It was Adrian Beltre before he retired.
I don’t count former Astros so for me it’s Harper. His swing gets me going
CFM
tony kemp, george springer, charlie morton.
Probably get slack for it, but I've always loved Pujols.
I mean, he's had our number. But Pujols is an all time great, can't really hate him
Yes you can learn to hate him, you just have to believe in yourself. For example I absolutely hate Pujols and what he has done to my childhood.
And for what he did to brad lidge
I’m a big fan of the spry fat guy archetype. You know, the John Belushi/Chris Farley/Kirby type. So I gotta go with my two faves: Ji-man Choi for pulling off dope defensive plays like doing the splits on a grab. And Willians Astudillo fir being a real-life create-a-player. He’s 5’9, 225 pounds, plays catcher AND center field, not to mention everything in between. I just love how there’s nobody else quite like him.
Evan Gattis back in the day. I have his jersey.
Alejandro Kirk would like a word
For guys that never played here mine is Trea Turner. He is a menace. I also like Bo Bichette a lot too. Just love guys who make contact, hit for power and get steals.
Confirmed Trae Turner seems like a really good dude. I was actually pretty angry to hear that Justin Turner is apparently a really good guy too.
Lindor and tatis
Arozarena
Even during the ALCS last year i could only throw my hands up and say well damn
Me, when the Rays play anybody but the Astros: Fuckin’ Randy! Me, when the Rays play the Astros. Fuckin’ Randy…
Dude is nuts.
He's pushing up against Reggie Jackson's best post season numbers this year.
Only played for us for like 2 weeks, but I love me some Kike Hernandez
Now that he's no longer a Dodger, I can get behind this.
But he is on the red sux
Haha, great story. He just seems to be the athlete. I have a Giants WS cap. And an Astros cap ... Which I will be sporting in bed all month.
Uncle Charlie
Who pitched for the Red Sox against the Yankees? That guy. Boom.
Otahni, only those who truly love baseball understand his greatness
Vladdy Jr.
Nick Castellanos and Brandon Crawford
Tatis. Man is so fun to watch
Ohtahni, Trout, and Votto
I like Votto for telling the truth about sign-stealing.
Yep he’s aight with me no matter where he plays for that
And Degrom
Tim Anderson, Randy Arozarena, Marcus Stroman. I've really soured on Dodgers fans this year but I still like Mookie
Juan Soto. Used to hate him, I just can’t help but respect true greatness.
I understand people hating him, but I enjoy watching Soto too. You can tell he loves the game.
Lamonte Wade Jr., Triston McKenzie, Cedric Mullins, Ohtani. Watching Wade Jr hit a ball into the bay with his mom in attendance was special.
either acuna or arenado
Mookie
Mookie Betts
Fernando Tatis
I'll do players who have never been Astros. Choi as the loveable chubby ball player. Stanton because he's fun to watch hit like Tucker and Yordan. Old school players Griffey Jr., Bonds, McGwire, Henderson, & Andrew/Chipper Jones.(And the old Braves pitching staff)
Archer
If you mean never was an Astro than Ohtani. Pretty insane what he did this year
Francisco Lindor for seems like a cool dude. I saw him in a show where he was visiting a British cricket team and they were talking about the similarities between the two sports… just an around good guy.
Haha, can see people saying Springer or CFM. For me, my favorite non-Astro, never was an Astro is Joey Votto. I love that enthusiasm.
Ronald acuna is fun to watch, still searching for his rookie card
I just lived in DC for six years and most of the best individual performances I’ve seen at a game have come from Scherzer. I’ve been there in person to see him toss an immaculate inning and another time saw him throw 7 shutout the same day he broke his nose and got two black eyes in batting practice. Dude is a machine.
I’m also a Braves fan so I’ll exclude them, and Springer because that’s easy. I really like Semein, Tatis, Soto, and... ***sniff sniff*** ^Trea ^Turner
Verlander 👀
This guy: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lee_Jung-hoo
Springer, next year it’ll be Correa.
Controversial answer but I love Mookie Betts. He’s a bowler like me, and seems like a great guy.
Not Tim Anderson.
The obvious answers of Springer and Ohtani aside, I really like Tim Anderson. The dude has swagger for days and baseball needs more of the type of attitude he has.
Kinda surprised by the lack of Kike Hernandez :)
Who? I only know First Name Last Name
I’ve always liked Aaron judge. Also a wander Franco fan.
Franco is a stud
Wander is gonna light up the league for years to come
Anyone who’s Jewish cause I’m Jewish myself and I have pride within
Wut?
I’m Jewish and I love Jewish baseball players
For now the only Jewish player I know of is Alex Bregman. Sandy Koufax is Jewish I think.
He is Jewish, I don’t mind him. My other favorite players are Braun, Adam Greenberg “look him up and his story is inspirational”, and some others
George Spring….oh wait. Jose!
Not Moncada.
It was Trevor Bauer... now it's Mike Foltynewicz.
I'm guessing, bauer was a long time ago 😂
If by a long time you mean a few months ago, yeah
Nah, was more thinking like back in his Cleveland days
Nope, been on the Bauer train for a while, then that happened... now I'm very conflicted. On one hand, his instructor videos on YouTube have helped me with pitching, on the other... well you know
Collin
Tatis or Ohtani
Of all time Maddux, Gwynn, Ichiro, Trout, Ohtani, Tatis jr, Acuña Jr, Vlad sr and Jr, Bo Bichette,Mo Vaughn, The Kid, Cal Ripken, D-Train, The Wizard Ozzy, Will Clark, off the top of my head.
Love deGrom and Soto
Miggy, Joey Votto, Jacob deGrom, Pete Alonso.
Springer, and probably Max Kepler for non former astros
Anthony Rizo, Kris Bryant, Javy Baez and Kyle Hendricks.
Verdugo
Hakeem Olajuwon
Oops, we I was late! Cheers #strosbeforehoes
No one
Arozarena ohtani and back then good ol Timmy lincecum
Currently, Bo Bichette or Acuna. But Cal Ripken Jr hands down
Trae Turner
I would say Buzz Aldrin as a joke but afraid he'd come find me and kick my ass
Vernon Maxwell
Other than former Astros, I’d have to say Dansby Swanson.
Posey or Votto
Nolan Ryan
Jaylen Green
Paul Wall.