Is Serena Williams the greatest American athlete?
In a recent post for The New Yorker, Ian Crouch argued that Serena Williams was the greatest American athlete. "Sorry, LeBron. Sorry, Tiger. Sorry, Derek," he writes. "For fifteen years, over two generations of tennis, Williams has been a spectacular and constant yet oddly uncherished national treasure."
Crouch makes a fine argument on behalf of the world No. 1, who recently won her third-straight U.S. Open and 18th overall Grand Slam. But what about his contention that Serena is the best athlete in the United States?
Based on this article, we pondered the question and compiled a list of the five greatest athletes in America. The criteria was simple: If their careers ended today, which athlete goes down as the greatest? We're talking about the breadth of current careers, not the potential. This eliminates youngsters such as Mike Trout and Kevin Durant.
Honorable mention: Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez, Shaun White, Jordan Burroughs, Clayton Kershaw.
5. Peyton Manning
(AP)
By Thanksgiving, Peyton Manning should be the all-time leader in career touchdown passes. He's coming off an MVP season at age 37, appears poised to win another at 38 and is in the hunt for the Super Bowl yet again. The old guard may prefer Johnny Unitas. The slightly younger guard could go with John Elway or Joe Montana. Brett Favre would go with Brett Favre. But when it's all said and done, Peyton Manning should go down as the greatest quarterback in NFL history.
4. LeBron James
(USA TODAY Sports Images)
Does this seem too low? Maybe, but remember that LeBron is still only 29 years old. He still has a decade of basketball in front of him. Come back in five years and he's likely near the top of this list. For now, his two titles, two gold medals and four MVP are good enough for No. 4 on our list.
3. Tiger Woods
Tiger's run from 2000-2006 was the most dominant in the history of golf. But if we're looking at the breadth of a career, you can't, in good conscience, put him in front of Jack Nicklaus. Jack won 18 majors and was hoisting trophies well into his 40s. Tiger has yet to win a Grand Slam after turning 32. There's still plenty of time for him to surpass his idol. As of now, he's a clear No. 2 in the golf world.
2. Serena Williams
She is wealthy and famous, but it seems that she should be more famous, the most famous. Anyone who likes sports should love Williams’s dazzling combination of talent, persistence, style, unpredictability, poise, and outsized, heart-on-her-sleeve flaws.
The whole piece is great and I agree with every part of it. But I still can't put Serena at No. 1. Who is?
1. Michael Phelps
You can argue that Peyton, LeBron, Tiger or Serena is the greatest of all time in their respective sports. Though you'd have a great case to make for each, just as many people would counter by saying Jim Brown, Michael Jordan, Jack Nicklaus or Chris Evert were better. There's a debate to be had. Not with Michael Phelps. He is undeniably the greatest swimmer who has ever lived and will go down as one of the three greatest Olympians of all time. If Phelps had stayed retired, the crown would belong to Serena. If she wins five more Grand Slams and Phelps doesn't have an impressive medal haul in Rio, Serena would pass him. But for now, Phelps is the king of American sports.