Insider Special: Best Athlete in the NBA

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Arenas from out of nowhere

By Terry Brown

Friday, March 7 Updated 10:57 AM EST

For those of you just tuning in, Antoine Walker launched not one, not two, but three javelins a world-record 333 feet and 3 inches but failed on each attempt to allow enough time between each throw for officials to get clear.

Arenas

So after nine events at the inaugural NBA Decathlon, where we have gathered scouts from around the league to determine the best all-around athlete in the game today, it is a surprising Gilbert Arenas in first, followed closely by pre-event favorite Jason Kidd with two-sport star Charlie Ward in third.

"There's no doubt in my mind that NBA players are the best athletes in the world," said one of the scouts. "It's the nature of the game. Every player has to play both ends of the court. Every player has to be able to dribble, pass and shoot. Of course, some are better than others in different aspects but in this league, the opposition focuses on taking away your strength until all you've got are your weaknesses. Then it doesn't take long for the good ones to turn those weaknesses into strengths and so on."

In recap, it was Bobby Jackson edging Stephon Marbury, who insisted on dribbling a ball down the lane, in the 100-meter dash, Kobe Bryant taking the long jump, double-pumping twice while in flight, and teammate Shaquille O'Neal winning the shot put over Karl Malone, who has now tallied more cumulative points than any other player in NBA history not to have ever won a single event.

Which took us to the high jump event dominated by Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady, who both decided to forsake the fosbury flop in favor of the unorthodox bunny hop where they took three steps without dribbling and leaped from both feet almost directly up and over the bar, touching chin to knee cap as the bottoms of their high tops cleared the mark.

Tim Duncan finished dead last in the 400 meters after showing up shaved, tapered and nose plugged before Ben Wallace finished first in the hurdles by running through each and every obstacle and leaving a trail of splinters and strewn metal 110 meters long.

"I've got to put Charlie Ward in this," said another NBA scout. "He won a national championship in football then gave it all up to be a chump in basketball. That not only tells you what kind of athlete he is but also what each and every other athlete playing any other sport would do in a second if they could."

Speaking of which, did you happen to see Kevin Garnett uncorking the discus before literally running down the field, catching it, pivoting, then outletting it to himself for another throw.

"I'm going to mention a name here but I've got to start by saying if only he was healthy," said another scout of a 6-foot-5, 190-pound guard who has played in only 10 games over the last two seasons due to injury. "Michael Dickerson has a great body. In fact, he may be too lean if anything. Again, if he was healthy, he could very well be the best athlete out there."

Steve Francis won the pole vault despite forgetting to even use the pole on his second jump but clearing the bar anyway as Chris Webber bowed out of competition with a ruptured id, one event away from declaring an overall champion.

"Did you see Jason Kidd dismantle Gary Payton in the skills competition?" asks another scout. "The guy can do everything great. He didn't become the league's best point guard by accident. And look at all those triple-doubles. You're looking for an all-around athlete and he runs, he passes, he plays defense. As long as shooting the ball isn't ever an event in the Decathlon, I'll go with Kidd."

BANG!

Iverson

And they're off. It's the 1,500 meter run, not only the most grueling event in the Decathlon but the final one, and if you look closely enough, Allen Iverson, who failed to show for any practice or warm-up sessions prior to the event, has already taken a commanding lead.

"I've been watching these players for years," said one NBA scout, "and they still amaze me. But at the same time, I almost expect to be amazed each year. I guess you could say we're spoiled."

As they round the second corner, it looks as though Iverson is actually increasing his speed, but it will take an awfully big margin of victory if he hopes to catch Arenas in the overall standings.

"Iverson is fast as [censored]," said another scout. "And never runs out of energy. The guy could run forever. And to be honest with you, I don't think it's necessarily because he keeps himself in such great shape but rather his body is forced to keep up with his intense competitiveness. In a 48-minute game, he'll play 45 and complain to Larry Brown about the missing three, then get back in the game and drive to the basket as hard as he did in the first minute just to prove a point."

But there's Arenas, coming out of nowhere again, in this race, in this entire competition, in the currently running basketball season that started as a last-ditch effort to save the career of a second-round shooting guard and is going to end as a springboard for a free-agent point guard.

"Look at how many points he gets from posting up," said one of the scouts. "He rebounds great for his position and is still super quick. He finishes strong and is pretty competitive. Thinking in terms of speed, strength, agility and explosiveness, I've gotta say Gilbert Arenas is the best athlete."

It's Iverson, it's Arenas, it's Iverson, it's Arenas . . .

"Watching an NBA game on TV or even from courtside fools you sometimes," said one of the scouts. "Since they're all so tall you begin to think that they're all average height. You forget that the typical player is actually getting taller while also getting faster and stronger just to stay competitive. Also remember that being a great athlete doesn't automatically mean you're a great player. But in terms of running and jumping and so on, NBA players have no match."

. . . it's Iverson, it's Arenas, WAIT! It's Robert Traylor, Shawn Kemp and a potato sack going three-legged in a photo finish.

Be sure to join us next week as the WNBA tackles the Pentathlon.