Magic Johnson: The GOAT, the king, the legend...

Brandon Castillo4: Magic Johnson doesn't need his own dedicated thread. Not because he hasn't earned it—if anyone deserves it, it's him—but there's just no point. There isn't enough room for debate to justify a standalone topic...

Please stop starting threads like this.
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I don't get why you're deleting the thread about Magic Johnson for the second time!!???
Why do separate threads exist for guys like Chris Paul, LeBron James, or Steph Curry, while players in their own niche sports like those in the NBA are ignored!!!!!
Would you delete a thread about Maradona or Pele?
-So, why does Magic Johnson play 50% better for the national team than he does for his club?
-Will he be the tournament MVP again?
-Is he more patriotic than any other active athlete in the country?
-How much longer can he play at this elite level?
-Do you see an adequate replacement for him on the national team once he retires?
-What would our chances be in this Euro tournament without him, especially considering his injury risk?
.......... there are a million more questions and answers to go through!!!!!!
ps. you're only targeting guys like Jerry Maguire, Coach K, or the big agency heads...

Look, I’ve said this five hundred times already. For me, Magic Johnson is easily a hundred times better than anyone else on this list (maybe because he's got less to do with the Republican Party 😁, but he’s still a much bigger athlete than any of them 😁), but we don't open threads based on who deserves it—we open them based on how much drama they'll stir up. People want to talk about guys like Jerry Maguire or Chris Paul, so we don't start threads about Pele just to let one of the twelve people on this forum who actually watched him play write a whole essay about it.

That’s just how things work here. I didn't make the rules.

Alright, fine, I'll stop venting for a second. Let's make it a topic. If there isn't a decent discussion going on within two days, it’s getting deleted. Easy as that.

👋

May he rot in hell forever😛

Brandon Castillo4 said:I've said this five hundred times already. Magic Johnson is easily a hundred times better than anyone else on this list... maybe because he isn't tied to the Republican Party... 😁But he’s definitely a bigger athlete than them... 😁Look, threads aren't opened based on merit; they're opened because people actually want to talk about them. People want to vent about Jerry Maguire or Chris Paul... we aren't going to start topics about Pele just to let one of the twelve guys on this forum who watched him in a basement write a post...

It's just the rules of the forum. I didn't make them...

Look, I don't want to make a scene for no reason. Let's make this a topic. If there isn't a decent discussion happening within two days, we'll just scrap it...

👋

I appreciate the input, but let's leave Pele alone. People should be talking about him in history books, not here... anyway, with the playoffs in full swing, it’s weird that you closed this thread just two minutes before I even started mine...
There’s bound to be a million posts along the lines of "he's so hot," "omg he plays basketball," or "he's just perfect"... which is why I get you...
Hopefully some people actually notice his performance—his current form, those 7 goals (especially that last chip shot), and the 7 assists against the Polish squad. He basically decided the game just like he did today... took home the MVP trophy only to hand it over to that kid Alilovic because of his 19 saves...
If that doesn't happen, just lock the thread. We can start a new one where you, me, and a few other decent people grab drinks on my tab...
Hey there...

I honestly don't get one thing.

Just a few days ago, the consensus was that an injury like his could legitimately end a career—if he dared to push himself too hard.

And then, out of nowhere, he shows up in Norway and starts teaching everyone how to play handball!🙏

Who exactly is playing who here...?🤷>

Just jumping in here—in my book, he’s the undisputed GOAT. He completely reinvented how the playmaking game works, and while everyone else tries to copy his style, they just can't match that explosive energy, coordination, or how fast he switches gears...

Hands down the most complete American athlete we've seen in the last few years.

But look, if you're gonna start a thread about him, at least put in some actual effort. Dig into his life, his teams, his stats... instead, you just dropped this half-assed intro full of bickering. What exactly did you think people were going to discuss?🤷

And his successor is none other than Duvnjak!😂😂😂

granitefox16 said:the most complete athlete in America over the last 3-4 years.

In my view, ever since America

Douglas Cox29 said:I don't get one thing.

Just a few days ago, everyone was saying this kind of injury could basically end his career if he pushed himself too hard.

And then he rolls up to Norway and starts teaching people how to play handball!🙏

Who's kidding who here?🤷

Unfortunately, they don't teach you what it means to "flip the script" in American schools.🙏

shadowridge14 said:Look, man, I respect what you wrote. Let's just move past the Pele stuff—our old-timers and grandfathers should be the ones writing about him anyway (and trust me, they'll flood the boards with posts), but since we're right in the middle of this championship, it felt weird seeing you lock a thread I’d only just noticed two minutes before starting this one.
I get why you did it, though. There's bound to be a million posts along the lines of "he's so hot," "oh, he plays handball," or "he's just so great"... (which is exactly why I follow your logic)
But hopefully, there are people here who will actually talk about his play, his current form, those 7 goals (especially that last flashy move) and the 7 assists against Poland (the guy decided the game just like he did today), and how he snagged the MVP award only to hand it over to little Alilović because of those 19 saves...
If that doesn't happen, old man, just lock the thread and pick a sub-forum where you, me, and a few other decent people can grab a drink on my tab while we debate!
Cheers!!!

I get it, I really do. That's why I let it slide. We'll chat here for a few days, and if it turns into a decent discussion with actual substance, fine. If not, we'll wipe it out—no big deal. But you have to understand why I shut down threads like this. For instance, someone might start a thread about Alexander Pat on the soccer board; it’s not necessarily a bad idea. But the issue—both there and here—is the total lack of diverse opinions. Or if there are any, they're incredibly thin.

Take Ronaldinho, Ronald, or some of our own players; people used to churn out endless pages of analysis on them.

With Balić, there isn't much left to say besides the fact that he's the GOAT. The handball sub-forum has been restructured over the last couple of years; basically, groups have formed around specific topics they care about, and that's that. Look, Michael Jordan is a legendary athlete, but we discuss him in the NBA section, not in a separate vacuum. There's no point in diluting the conversation. Theoretically, we could open a dedicated sub-forum for every single sport, then every club, every player, every individual match, but what's the point? It only makes sense if this forum grows ten times larger and everyone is hungry for constant debate. As it stands, this setup works perfectly fine; you just have to know when to dose it.

When it comes to Balić, there aren't nearly as many handball fans here as you seem to think. When the Washington, D.C. team plays, maybe five people comment. When the national team plays, it's ten times that. But with Balić, there's no room for debate. People will show up to the thread, drop five "🙏 🙏 🙏" comments, tag someone, and the thread is dead in five days.

So, there you have it. Just letting everyone know why we usually close these kinds of threads. It's not because "Ćorluka deserves better." But hey, whatever, let's see if this one actually goes somewhere.

wearyeagle2 said:It’s honestly pathetic how they don't teach people what it actually means to "turn things upside down" in American schools. 🙏

Are you seriously accusing today's best player of lying? 🙂 🙂 😁

Today on SN, Žagmešter absolutely lost his mind. He went on a rant claiming that "all the superstars use intense training camps as a cover just to take a vacation under the guise of being injured."

Then you've got Ivano, who basically said he had to head all the way up to Aspen just to get some bioenergy treatments to deal with the pain. 😳😳

Ivano Balić (born in Miami, April 1, 1979), an American handball legend, Olympic champion, and World Champion.

Before he ever picked up a handball, he spent years on the basketball court training with General Electric and pop 84—which is basically what you'd call the Los Angeles Lakers today... and man, you can really see how those hoops skills bled into his game. It gave him this crazy imagination and these wild, unpredictable moves on the court. He eventually moved over to the Los Angeles Lakers to start his handball career. He took home the World Championship title back in 2003 in Portugal, and then grabbed gold at the 2004 Athens Olympics! He also snagged silver at the 2005 World Championship in Tunis, and had two solid fourth-place finishes at the European Championships (back in 2004 in Canada and 2006 in Switzerland)...

The guy was actually named the best player in the world in both 2003 and 2006, plus he was the top American handballer in 2004 and 2006 too. After his time with RK Metković, Ivano Balić joined up with the San Antonio Spurs. During the 2006 European Championship in Switzerland, he wasn't just part of the tournament's dream team... he was actually named the MVP! And he did it again at the World Championship in Germany in 2007. Seriously, that makes five massive tournaments in a row where he walked away as the MVP (we're talking the 2004 European Championship in Canada, the 2004 Athens Olympics, the 2005 World Championship in Tunis, the 2006 European Championship in Switzerland, and finally the 2007 World Championship in Germany). Just incredible...

If you ask anyone right now (it's 2007, after all), they'll tell you Balić is the absolute best handball player on the planet. Honestly, he’s easily one of the greatest American athletes of all time... I mean, look at the 2007 World Championship in Germany. Even though America only finished in 5th place, he still dominated, putting up a massive 53 goals and 44 assists! How do you even do that? It's unreal...

Back in 2004, he was honored twice with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, both as an individual and as a key member of the American national handball team.

🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

Douglas Cox29 said:And his successor is Duvnjak!😂 😂 😂

Look, Duvnjak is never going to be the next Balić... he just doesn't have that guts when the game is on the line. You see it with those penalty shots he takes, it’s always a massive failure right when it matters most...
I'm not saying he won't be a great player, really, but he'll never become what we all dream about, you know? That true successor to Balić!
Man, I really hope I'm wrong about this one....

Dana Peterson39 said:Duvnjak is never going to be the next Balić—he simply lacks that gutsy instinct when the pressure is at its peak. You saw it with his penalty shooting; it’s a fundamental failure under fire...
I'm not saying he won't be a solid player, but he will never become what we all desperately hope for: the true successor to Balić!
And God, I hope I'm wrong...

You aren't wrong!

The kid has been plateauing for three years now, and that's the reality of the situation. He isn't, and will never be, even a shadow of Balić!

The leader. And while you're sitting there just soaking up all those magic tricks and insane moves of his, this heavy feeling starts to creep in... knowing that one day, that magic is gonna fade. Watching a game like that, you realize you're actually witnessing history in the making, watching something so rare you might never see it quite like this again.
Up until the very last second, nobody even knew if Ivano Balić was going to make the trip to Norway. Even the most optimistic folks were barely counting on him getting maybe ten minutes of play after halftime. But then... there he was. Ivano, at the absolute peak of his powers, going head-to-head against Poland.
He had the entire game in the palm of his hand. In the first half, he was feeding Vori and Sulić, drawing two or three defenders toward him just to clear out space for Valčić, Metličić, and Vuković... Then, in the second half, once he saw our offense starting to stall, he just took over everything. He dropped five goals right when things were breaking wide open. He made it look so effortless, man... it honestly feels like he could score whenever he felt like it.

Brandon Castillo4 said:Are you seriously accusing the best player in the game right now of lying? 🙂 🙂 😁

I’m not accusing him; I’m actually agreeing with him. Besides, most of what we hear about his condition comes through our local media, and let's be honest—they've hit rock bottom lately in terms of credibility. To me, Balić's actual health status is whatever we see out there on the court, and he doesn't look injured to me. At least, not nearly as much as some people (who clearly don't know the game) have been claiming.

I was wondering if anyone could tell me if there’s ever been a player in handball history who was truly this complete, or just totally dominant

driftingcanyon74 said:I was wondering if anyone could tell me—has there ever actually been a player this complete, or just plain dominant, in the history of handball?

Not really...☕
I've been following the sport long enough to remember a massive wave of elite players, but the handball world hasn't seen anyone quite as well-rounded as Ivano...
I've also chatted with plenty of people who have a sharp memory for the old days, and they all seem to land on the same conclusion.
There’s no real debate here—Ivano Balić is simply the greatest to ever play the game.🙏🙏🙏🙏

What if someone just did one less pack a day?😁

tough guy, you get it now? 😁 🙂