Notes from TNT’s Coverage of the NBA Playoffs – Tuesday, May 5, 2009: LeBron Gets His MVP Trophy and Dirk Gets Called Out by the TNT Crew
(AP Photo/Mark Duncan)
TNT’s “40 Games in 40 Nights” NBA Playoffs coverage continues on Wednesday, May 6th with the Orlando Magic @ Boston Celtics (Game #2) at 8 p.m. ET followed by the Houston Rockets @ L.A. Lakers (Game #2) at 10:30 p.m. ET.
TNT NBA Tip-off presented by AutoTrader.com
Announcers: Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Chris Webber
Barkley on receiving his NBA MVP award in 1993, scoring 24 points and 10 rebounds in a Suns loss: “You are so stressed out about wanting to play well. It is the greatest honor you could have as a player…(But) it fires the other team up. I felt tremendous stress… You just end up not playing well. It sucked and it fired the other team up.”
Smith on the Atlanta Hawks needing to win Game #1 with LeBron James and the Cavs reacting to his receiving the MVP award: “This is Atlanta’s best chance…because you (the Cavalier players) get out of character on a night like this.”
Barkley on Dallas forward Dirk Nowitzki following his being knocked to the ground by Denver forward Kenyon Martin: “His reputation is he don’t want physical contact, ‘we are going to beat the hell of him.’ That started last year when he let (NO Hornet) David West put his finger in his face.”
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Game #1: Atlanta Hawks (72) @ Cleveland Cavaliers (99) - Cleveland leads the series 1-0.
Announcers: Dick Stockton and Mike Fratello; with Cheryl Miller reporting
Fratello on Cavaliers center Zydrunas Ilgauskas: “As good a seven foot shooter as you are ever going to see.”
Hawks head coach Mike Woodson, interviewed by Miller, on LeBron James: “I love the pace. I thought we were right on Q with our defense. LeBron is going to have his way in terms of scoring points, but we have to cut off some of these other guys.”
Fratello on the Cavaliers improved defense: “No only is Cleveland so dangerous offensively, but defensively they are the best defensive team in the NBA.”
Fratello on LeBron James as a team leader: “He is so big on camaraderie that during their eight day layoff he hosted a dinner…He has been big on bonding together. He is a tremendous leader of this team.”
Fratello on Hawks forward Al Horford: “I’m not sure if it is the bad ankle with (Al) Horford but somewhere in that Miami series you saw him lose his offensive confidence, he’s just not the same offensive player as he was during the regular season.”
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T-Mobile Halftime Report
Announcers: Johnson, Barkley, Smith and Webber
Barkley on LeBron James scoring 22 points in the first half but having no assists: “He’s not playing well. He’s trying to be overly aggressive. The Cavaliers have a horrible offense. Walking the ball up and giving the ball to your best player and making him pass the ball, I don’t understand why they don’t fast break more. LeBron James coming at you full steam would be scary. Walking the ball up letting LeBron go one on five, it’s just a horrible offense. it’s not going to show against the hawks but it’ll show against the better teams.”
Webber on coaches’ tendency to slow the pace down: “A lot of people are going to need to change that thought process and understand that is okay to run. It’s not a bad play if you run as fast as you can and then pull it back out.”
Smith on LeBron James trying to hard to score and not getting his teammates involved: “That’s not a steady diet, that’s dessert. You don’t live on dessert, you live on steak, potato and vegetables.”
Barkley: “I live on dessert.”
Smith on Nowitzki talking about how well Denver’s Chris Andersen, Kenyon Martin and Nene guard him: “Wow, I never heard a great scorer say somebody can guard him.”
Barkley: “If a guy says he can stop you it should piss you off.”
Webber: “I never heard a true warrior, a never heard a true dog say someone can guard me…He is throwing rose petals (at Martin and Andersen). I’m just shocked.”
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Fratello on the Cleveland Cavaliers franchise: “This whole program in Cleveland is at the top…It starts with the owner, Dan Gilbert…and then Mike Brown, just the right demeanor and attitude.”
Fratello on Hawks center Zaza Pachulia: “Pachulia not nearly as effective as he was against Miami. In Miami he just bullied the big guys down low against the Heat.”
Stockton following a spin move in the lane by James: “LeBron making it look easy.”
Fratello: “He spins, he’s so strong, so big and he finishes.”
Cavaliers head coach Mike Brown, interviewed by Cheryl Miller, on two good defense plays by Wally Szczerbiak in the third quarter:
Brown: “Wally’s got quick feet.”
Miller: “You’re joking, right?”
Brown: “No comment.”
Fratello on Cavaliers center Ben Wallace: “Terrific individual defender, shot blocker, fierce rebounder and got better offensively, actually.”
LeBron James, interviewed by Cheryl Miller, on receiving his NBA MVP Trophy prior to the game: “It was an unbelievable night for me as an individual. You think about the others that have come before you; the Oscar Robertsons, the Michael Jordans, the Kareem Abdul-Jabbars, the Kobe Bryants. It’s humbling and to be able to present it in front of these 20,000 plus that have watched me grow from a young man to a man, it’s a great day.”
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Southwest Airlines Gamebreak:
Johnson, Smith, Barkley and Webber
Dirk Nowitzki on being defended by Denver’s Nene, Kenyon Martin and Chris Andersen: “I think Birdman (Andersen) does a good job because he’s so long, he can contest my shot. And K-Mart (Martin) and Nene are stronger and try to body me more. And Birdman is just long and even when I want to shoot it he can contest it. They have three very good defenders in the post position.”
Smith on what Nowitzki’s comments do to his team: “What is does is it feeds the stereotype of him and what the Dallas Mavericks are, especially after a game where a guy (Martin) pushes you out, gets a flagrant, it just fed into the stereotype that this guy is playing a little soft and the team is soft, when actually these guys can’t guard him. None of the three guys he named can really guard Dirk Nowitzki.”
Barkley on Nowitzki’s comments: “I never heard a great player say another player can guard him….My Grandmother, who is my best coach ever, she’s not wrapped to tight up top…My Grandmother used to call me after every game and if I didn’t play well she would say ‘Boy, you are embarrassing the whole family.’”
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Game #2: Dallas Mavericks (105) @ Denver Nuggets (117) - Denver leads the series 2-0.
Announcers: Matt Devlin, PJ Carlisemo with Marty Snider reporting
Carlisemo on defending Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki: “Anytime you are playing a great player, and Dirk Nowitzki is definitely a great player, you want to show him different looks. You are not going to stop him, you have to show him different things. You just want to make him a little bit uncomfortable. If you show him the same look all the time it’s just too easy for the great players.”
Carlisemo on Nuggets forward Chris “Birdman” Andersen: “They better put a body on the bird…birds are little, difficult to box out birds…Offensive rebounding is a knack, you have to move. Very few players do it better than the Bird.”
Carlisemo on the Nuggets defense: “This team doesn’t just run on turnovers, but on blocked shots.”
Carlisemo on the double technicals called on Denver forward Kenyon Martin and Dallas forward Ryan Hollins: “I think the refs have to show more discretion in laying out technicals, particularly (what would be) harmless technicals in the regular season, because they are certainly not harmless in the Playoffs.”
Carlisemo on an air ball three-pointer by JR Smith with over three second left in the half, leading to a Dallas three-pointer: “Very, very poor decision by JR Smith.”
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T-Mobile Halftime Report
Announcers: Johnson, Barkley, Smith and Webber
Webber on Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki’s comments about Denver players being able to guard him effectively: “As a scorer and one who hung around many scorers and great players, hung around, worked out and put my shoes on with since I’ve been young, I never heard one of them say, ‘this guy could check me.’ I don’t care if he knew in his mind, ‘man this guy is great, but you know he’s got long arms, he always gives me trouble.’ We didn’t acknowledge it and they didn’t acknowledge it.”
Barkley on Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki acknowledging three Denver defenders: “(Nowitzki) didn’t acknowledge one (defender), he acknowledged three. There might be one guy who can slow you down or stop you, but three can’t. Not if you’re an MVP, future Hall of Famer, and you have to be the dominant player. Dirk has to play well for the Mavericks to be successful.”
Barkley on great players not acknowledging that players can defend them: “Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, they might say the guy makes me work hard but that’s all they can do, they got no shot of stopping me.”
Webber: “Little Chris Paul wouldn’t say it and he’s 5’1″.”
Barkley: “Chris Paul is at least 5’3″.”
Webber on Hawks forward Josh Smith: “If (Josh Smith) did this every game and just played his position he’s be an All-Star for many years.”
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Carlisemo on Dallas center Erik Dampier: “Erik Dampier is one of those palyers that people want to talk about what he can’t do. He does enough good things to help his team be successful.”
Carlisemo on the sharpshooting of Denver guard Chauncey Billups and Dallas guard Jason Terry: “Chauncey Billups senses when his team needs offense…Jason Terry thinks his team always needs offense.”
Carlisemo on Denver forward Dahntay Jones: “This is a tough minded, aggressive defender, a confident defender. He has become an excellent starter for the Denver Nuggets.”
Carlisemo on the homecourt advantage of the Denver Nuggets: “It’s beyond the homecourt advantage, Denver is playing extremely well both offensively and defensively, whether they are home or away, but this building in particular the way they are playing right now, you have to stay with them and build up a lead because they can play so many people, they get such a lift and again for me to hear two former players in the league, Byron Scott and Rick Carlisle, complain about the altitude and say how difficult it is for their kids to play, it’s a big, big, big homecourt advantage for the Denver Nuggets.”
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Inside the NBA presented by Hyundai
Announcers: Johnson, Barkley, Smith and Webber
Smith on the Denver Nuggets improving both offensively and defensively this season: “I want to apologize to George Karl and the Denver Nuggets because I didn’t realize they were that good. I honestly didn’t know they had turned the corner on the defensive end as well as turned the corner on ball movement. I saw about four plays that J.R. Smith, when he went into the lane (in the past) he would have taken bad shots earlier in the season or last year, but he’s not taking the shots, he’s bringing the ball back out and he’s actually finding people. Carmelo Anthony, same thing. They are the best basketball team in the West right now. They are playing the best basketball by far in the Western Conference.”
Barkley on the impact of Nuggets guard Chauncey Billups: “(The Nuggets) are starting to believe they are a good team. As a player and as a team at some point it’s like, ‘you know what? We are pretty damn good.’ George Karl has to think he’s Phil Jackson. George Karl has tremendous confidence and he’s a heck of a coach and Chauncey Billups has calmed that locker room down. They’ve always had a lot of talent, but (Billups) has brought stability and leadership, he calmed J.R. Smith down and he’s got Carmelo (Anthony) because (he’s saying) ‘you’ve got play defense for us to go to the next level.’ They have been the best team in the playoffs.”
Barkley on the urgency for the Lakers to win the championship this year: “Kobe (Bryant) said something very interesting, this is a good test for them. I told you this, if (the Lakers) don’t win this year they are in trouble. If they don’t win the championship this year they are in serious trouble. One, they have to make a decision on Lamar Odom and (two), I don’t think Phil Jackson is coming back. I think if they lose this year he will retire and I think they won’t resign Odom.”
Smith on whether the Lakers are tough enough to be a championship team: “I think (the Lakers) are tough enough to win a championship and they have all the elements in place. There is no championship team that is going to go through a series and not lose on the home court, that is rarely going to happen. Toughness comes in a lot of forms. Toughness doesn’t just come in physicality, it comes in mental toughness, being able to take the adversity and fight through it, and not always depend on the fact that you are better than the team, or you can get things done, but also when teams are playing at their best to shut things down. So yes, the Lakers are still tough enough to be a championship team.”
Webber on the Lakers addressing their lack of toughness, which prevented them from winning the NBA Finals last year: “We interviewed Kobe in the beginning of the season and he said last year the reason why they lost the championship is they weren’t defensively tough enough, and they weren’t aggressive. I take that to mean he told the team that and they worked on that during the summer, and these little lessons that they are going through now, they are keeping that in their mind. If that’s all they had (to work on), they weren’t aggressive enough and they didn’t meet the challenge, I think they will be ready to do that.”
Webber on the best athlete in sports: “LeBron James is the best athlete in all of sports. Who is a better athlete?”
Barkley: “(The NHL’s) Alex Ovechkin.”
Webber: “If LeBron could pitch, he might be the nicest pitcher, if LeBron was on skates with his speed and his body…”
Smith: “Put him at fullback or put him at wide receiver.”
Webber: “(LeBron) is an alien, he is really not human. He is the best athlete in all of sports.”
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Lebron might be the best athlete in the NBA but best athlete in all of sports? I don’t know about all that. And it might even be a stretch to say he’s the best athlete in the NBA. How do you measure athletic greatness? How do you prove that Lebron is a better athlete than, say Wade or Kobe, or Iggy, or J-Smoove? How could you prove or disprove it?
I think statements like Webber’s would be better served if he (or anyone else) would just include these three words, “In my opinion…”, along with a statement like that.
Dude he’s a point power forward. A hybrid between Magic and Oscar Robertson. There will always be discussions like this when unique happens…and rightfully so.
I know what he is but i’m still not going to say he’s the best athlete in the NBA. I’m certainly not going to say he’s the best athlete in all of sports. I just can’t imagine him being more athletic than an NFL player. I think that T3 made this same argument a while back.
I think Nowitzki’s comments are a bit of a rope-a-dope. Just because he gives some props to some guys doesn’t mean he doesn’t think he can’t make shots. I totally agree he shouldn’t be doing this and I think that Nowitzki is soft and I wish he would bulk up, and back down on people, but I don’t believe that it indicates he doesn’t have faith in his abilities. That said, I agree that it was a bit stupid to say, especially in the heat of a playoff match-up when his team is getting its azz handed to it.
All that said, I watched Nowitzki in game 2 and damn……yeah, I’ve watched him before, but given this is the playoffs I was yelling even more at the TV, WHY DON’T YOU BULK UP? Can you imagine what he would do if he’d bulk up and play the low post. I think Mizzo, or another commenter here, said one time, that Nowitzki is a 7′ SG. It’s true. And even if he didn’t bulk up, when you’re 7′ tall, you can take it to the hoop. Nowitzki has a handle. He’s an idiot for not diversifying his game.
I hear what you are saying GN. Trust me I do, but when you see NFL players in attendance oooh and aaah when LeBron gets his play on, your mind starts to wonder.
You don’t think LeBron is more athletic that Antonio Gates?
Every time I see this guy in person, he seems as if he gets bigger, stronger, faster and jumps higher and higher by the second.
There’s something tremendously exponential in his growth.
He might create a unique stat. The come from behind blocks he gets when he isn’t in the frame has to be chalked up to abnormal athleticism.
If you’ve played sports and worked on your body while playing, you notice different movements your body just didn’t seem to do before. A quick movement most athletes wouldn’t dream of doing. It’s a combination of the mind and body syncing through time.
LeBron is that athlete. Back in the day he would have been a center/power forward…period.
There’s nothing to compare him to in terms of his all around play. The athletes you mention are tremendous athletes. Covering the Sixers, I’m amazed at some of the things Andre Iguodala does. The dunk against the Pistons in the playoffs last year was just monster. His athleticism approaches LeBron’s and so do the others, but LeBron’s height, strength and talent adds another dimension to what we know, have seen and are yet to see.
Dwight Howard is the only player in the NBA who I would say is maybe a comparable athlete, but LBJ’s skill set puts him on another planet not in this universe.
Go to a couple of games and see for yourself. You just gotta see it in person. There was a game in Philly this year where Danny Ferry sat next to me in press row. I introduced myself and we had an off the record conversation on James. Just as we were talking, dude drove to the hoop and banged it on poor Willie Green in a play Willie had no idea was going to happen. A game he plays in isn’t a game until LeBron gets his dunk. Yes, Kobe, Flash, Howard and Iguodala are ridiculous, but I gotta go with 23…the Craig Ehlo get back.
Mizz,
NFL players “oooh and aaah” when Kobe, Wade & AI are ballin’ out of control. That’s just them showing respect, admiration and being fans of the NBA. We all do that from time to time. It still doesn’t prove that Lebron is a better athlete than those guys.
LeBron may be more athletic than Antonio Gates (then again, maybe not) but AG is just one of over 1600 players in the NFL. If we’re talking about speed, jumping ability, agility, physical endurance, quickness, stamina, strength, it aint even close. The NFL is in a league of it’s own when it comes to great athletes.
Also, think about all the guys who ran track in the NFL. I bring up this point because track & field consist of multiple events to showcase athleticism (i.e. 40 yd dash, High jump/long jump, decathalon, benching/weight lifting, hurdles, 100 & 200 Meters, etc.)
What is the NBA’s signature event to showcase athleticism? I think mostly everyone will agree that it is the Slam Dunk contest.
And who is the NBA’s biggest star who has not participated in the Slam-Dunk contest? Lebron James.
I’ve seen LeBron play and I appreciate his amazing talent and athletic skill but I gots to keep it real here. Like I said, he could very well be the best athlete in the NBA. But to say he is the best athlete in all of sports is stretching it.
Name one player in the NFL who has LeBron’s size, strength and athleticism? One.
His athletic skills transcend every event you’ve mentioned with the exception of the endurance event.
GrandNubian:
Actually, I believe the argument I made was that across the board, I believe NFL players were generally superior from an athletic standpoint. I made that assertion because I believe the comparison is inherently biased AGAINST the NBA. The NFL has more players, more body types, more athletic diversity.
With that said, I think LeBron James is a phenomenal athlete. If I were to compare him to Kobe and Wade, I believe (can’t confirm for sure) that he is much faster than both of them. He is clearly stronger. He jumps higher and farther. His peripheral vision is at least as good. His lateral agility, side to side speed and flexibility are off the charts — as is his endurance. Frankly, it is only the BASKETBALL skill of Kobe and Wade that even have them in the conversation.
People continue to compare LeBron and Magic athletically, but there is no comparison. Magic was my favorite player — and I’d still start a franchise with him over Michael Jordan — but athletically, Magic was largely a below the rim magician. LeBron is both. He is that unprecedented dude. But…
As comparisons go with the NFL, there are guys in the league who are capable of some incredible things. I always think of Orlando Pace. Pace can dunk a basketball. In his youth, he could out and out fly. 330 pounds running 4.7 or 4.8/40′s. He had lateral agility and power and quickness and durability. Orlando Pace was/is a phenomenal athlete who played a game that only showcased a small portion of his talent.
The last time this question was raised, I submitted the name Usain Bolt. It’s all so subjective. I think the one thing that we can agree on is that basketball is a game that allows LeBron to showcase all of his skills. If he played in the NFL, he could be a wide out or a tight end. Would he be more dominant than Antonio Gates or Tony Gonzalez or Shannon Sharpe or Randy Moss? It’s hard to say — but I doubt it.
Great question for a great argument — best conducted over pints of Guinness. Mizzo, you’re buying because you keep bringing it up!
Calvin Johnson…..
His athletic skills transcend every event as far as the NBA is concerned. I think that the only physical trait where Lebron may have the edge w/ NFL players is jumping ability.
I hear you T3. And speaking of doing some incredible things, how about William “The Refrigerator” Perry. He could dunk a basketball and he was bigger than Orlando Pace.
Mizzo:
The question of size, strength and athleticism in comparing LeBron to NFL players is tricky. Essentially, you’re asking which 6’8″, 250 player in the NFL can run and jump like LeBron James?
I don’t think that’s a fair question.
First off, how many guys in the NFL are actually 6’8″? Very few. I bet you could count them on 1 hand. So the next question is — what’s a fair comparative height for the NFL? Football is a power, leverage game when a low center of gravity is critical. I believe the average height in the NBA is around 6’6″ or 6’7″. Can we say, then, that a fair comparison would be with NFL players who are at least 6’3″? I don’t know the average height, but I suspect that an NFL player who is 6’3″ is as relatively tall as is LeBron.
If we go from there, we can at least start to work our way around to an apples to apples conversation.
Next up — Strength. This is easy. I’d suspect that every single linebacker, undersized DL (think LaMarr Woodley) and tight end in the NFL is as strong as LeBron James.
So, if you can accept that 6’8″ is an unfair expectation for the NFL, then we’ve already knocked out 2 criteria — without naming names. All we need now is to peruse lists of dudes across 32 teams with size, strength and athleticism.
So, here we go.
1. Karlos Dansby — LB, Arizona Cardinals. 6’4″, 250 – 260 lbs. Blazing sideline to sideline speed. Covers tight ends, backs and wide receivers in different packages. Blitzes with power. Dominant defensive force for AZ.
Here are his measurables.
Height: 6 ft 4 in
Weight: 250 pounds
40-yard dash: 4.45 sec
Bench press: 485 pounds
Vertical jump: 41½-inch
Right-handed
And, I’m done. And so is this conversation. Can a brother get a, ahem, “witness’??
GN:
I don’t know what LeBron’s vertical number is, but it’s not much higher than Dansby’s. There are dozens of players in the NFL with 40″ verticals.
We just need to change the frame of reference. From an athletic standpoint, a guy like Dansby is simply hard to compete with. The difference between the NFL and the NBA is that you can craft a game plan where Dansby is isolated. You can run to the opposite side all day long.
You could run toward Darnell Dockett (another AMAZING athlete). I don’t know why you’d do that — but you could. In the NBA, you can’t run or hide from any dominant player. They always have the ball in their hands. Not linebackers. The funny thing is that people outside of Arizona and Auburn probably don’t even know who Dansby is. He’s not a household name — yet. But, he’s the real deal.
We can’t forget that he’s 24. How many years is he away from his physical prime?
@Temple: Nah man! lol You can’t take out his height. That’s the most important component and what makes this argument unique. Yes, basketball allow his skills to be on full blast, but you can’t compare him to a linebacker.
Ain’t no linebacker in the league touching the top of the box. None.
Just like in my questions to LeBron, I’d put him at quarterback. He said receiver, but for the sake of continuing this discussion without limiting his skills, the guy I compare him to is Pryor.
These debates are for history. Have them amongst us now or the “victors” have them later…and devoid of the frothy Guinness pints that make a brotha thirsty…even at 10:00.
@T3
“Amen….”
Dansby’s vertical is 41.5????
Dayum….dude is a freak of nature. And should I even mention that he benches 485lbs? How many NBA players can do that?
Mizzo:
The first point is that there are only a handful of men who are 6’8″ in the entire NFL…so, if you’re going to only look at those players — this is a fairly silly exercise. What’s really the point? LeBron is a better athlete than the five second-string right tackles in the NFC and the three third-string left tackles in the AFC. What does that “prove”?
Not much.
You simply cannot peruse NFL rosters looking for 6’8″ players to compare with LeBron. That’s called Selection Bias. We can’t go down that road. It leads to false starts and dead ends.
—-
As for comparing LeBron to a linebacker — are you suggesting that merely because Karlos Dansby is a linebacker, he is not worthy of comparison?
If you’re going to discount Dansby’s 41″ vertical, can we discount LeBron’s bench press? Whatever his number is — it’s not 485.
This takes a bit more time than I have, but I believe there are many, many players in the NFL who run 4.4 or 4.5 40′s (or faster) who also have 40″ verticals and the ability to lift 400+.
Touching the “top of the box”, bruh, is reflective of his starting point — six feet and eight inches above the ground. It’s not reflective of his leaping ability. Let’s talk VERTICALS and let the chips fall where they may. Its just like the Bell Curve — you know “white” kids are smarter than everyone else — “Look at their scores!!!”
Let’s get LeBron’s numbers as a starting point. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to provide those. I’ve put Dansby’s up. Let’s get this.
GN:
If you watch the Super Bowl again, watch how cautious the Steelers were with Dansby. They were aware of his presence on every play. They couldn’t do a damned thing with Dockett, but they were keen on dealing with Dansby. He still had 8 tackles, 2 stuffs, a pick and a pass defensed. Rrrrrruh!!!
@T3
“Touching the “top of the box”, bruh, is reflective of his starting point — six feet and eight inches above the ground. It’s not reflective of his leaping ability.”
It would actually be higher than 6’8″ because he’s using his hand(s) (right or left), which is probably more than 2ft above his head.
GN:
Oh, I know. LeBron’s long arms are an asset here, but would be a hindrance in terms of weight lifting.
I think you’re right about the length of arms though. Perhaps more importantly, since the top of the box is only 11’6″ off the ground, a guy like Dansby should be able to hit that EASILY asssuming his arms extend about 21″ over his head. That’s not asking much.
Dansby has a tremendous wingspan. I’m sure he touches the top of the box every morning as part of routine stretching exercises. LOL. “Top of the box.” Mizzo — you slay me!!
Exhibit B:
New England Patriots tight end — Benjamin Watson.
Listed between 6’3″ and 6’5″ (depending on the source).
Weight: 255
Speed: Clocked sub 4.4. Drafted by Pats and had faster times than ALL University of Georgia wide receivers and defensive backs.
NFL Speed: Watson is the dude that caught Champ Bailey on a full field diagonal sprint to stop a touchdown.
Strength: 34 reps of 225. Damn!! Don’t know his max, but it very likely between 450 and 525.
Vertical: Don’t know, but I’d bet a pint he can touch the top of the box too — without even riding the elevator.
I’m just getting started. Still working the SEC and haven’t even touched Florida or Louisiana or Texas.