Out of the countless number of players who have played the game of basketball, Bill Simmons says the most powerful in terms of brute strength are LeBron James, Shaquille O’Neal, and Wilt Chamberlain (not in any particular order).
During a recent episode of the Bill Simmons Podcast with guest Ryen Russillo, the founder of Ringer.com brought up the trio’s names when the subject briefly shifted to dominant players in the league who used their frightening and rare combination of size, sheer power, athleticism, and mobility to shrug off poor defenders, whose glaring lack in all those areas can’t be anymore highlighted than when trying to defend the aforementioned greats. Bill Simmons also mentioned Karl Malone, though, only as an honorable mention.
Interestingly, Simmons, a diehard Boston Celtics fan, had three players who played or is still playing for the Los Angeles Lakers on his top three list of the most dominant physical forces in the history of the NBA.
There’s no question that LeBron James is a force of nature. He can’t simply be stopped, especially in transition. Often playing as a guard, James has no problem using his 6-foot-8, 250-pound frame to demolish puny guards bold enough to stand in his way.
As for Shaquille O’Neal and Wilt Chamberlain, there’s no doubting that the two Hall of Famers were monsters of their generations. Their mere presence on the court buckle the knees of their opponents, who simply didn’t have the tools to put the clamps on them, particularly in the paint, where both players made a living out of taking defenders to the woodshed.
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