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Message: [QUOTE="connie, post: 3847526, member: 7882"] mmmm . . . I'm not buying it. Way too many variables; not even apples to oranges. Among other things, Stewie did not win 151 games in college; her [I]team [/I]did. She did not win four straight NCs; her [I]team [/I]did. Put her on this year's team as a freshman, and it certainly cannot be said that she would even win the first of four straight NCs. (Even Geno recently acknowledged that as a freshman she benefitted from a team featuring a strong cast--Senior Kelly Farris, Juniors Stef Dolson and Bria Hartley, Soph KML, not to mention incredible height with Stef, Stokes and Heather Buck, among others). And yes; Stewie won the final four MOP four times. But even she admitted Moriah should have won it in 2014-15. Moreover, while individual stats can certainly be a measure of achievement, one needs to locate such achievement historically, relative to the competition, and relative to the way the game is played and changes. This is especially the case in team sports, where individual achievments are substantially affected by team dynamic and surrounding talent. (If there is any doubt about that, I suggested asking the predicable consequence of putting Tom Brady on the Green Bay Packers and Aaron Rodgers on the NE Patriots over the past two decades. I seriously doubt Brady would have won 17 NFC North division titles, much less 9 NFC titles and 6 SBs. But I'd wager ARod would [I]not [/I]be looking back at the past 16 years with but a single SB appearance to his resume.) Finally, history is replete with individuals who excelled relative to the competition at the time but who likely would not have done so under different historical circumstances. Bill Russell would never have been able to enjoy a Celtics team winning 10 straight NBA titles had he happened to have played in the 1990s. Grete Waitz would never have won the NYC marathon 9 times if she had raced against today's talent. Ted Williams would never have hit .400 had he played in the 2010s. Each represents an athlete at the top of their profession in their respective sports at the time. Do they stand alone, as winners and statistically, with their respect to [I]all [/I]sports? I am by no means convinced--not even if the exercise is restricted to their own sport, and the time and place they played. Located against a broader historical canvas and comparing with other athletes from other sports . . . I cannot agree that such comparisons are even meaningful. [/QUOTE]

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