It's a ridiculous notion to assume that a guy who was great at one position/sport would automatically be great at all others if he put his mind to it. It just has no basis in logic.
Would Wayne Gretzky or Babe Ruth win the 100m dash at the Olympics if they trained really really hard their whole lives? Common sense says that no, they obviously would not. Neither was exceptionally fast, and they're both white.
Charles Barkley is a golf fanatic, he golfs like 8 days a week. So why isn't he on the PGA tour?
Jerry Rice and Lawrence Taylor are both all-time greats at football. Could they switch positions and be equally effective? Obviously not. Taylor would be too bulky and slow, and Rice would be too small and light.
I can say with complete certainty that Paul Kariya would NOT have been one of the best defencemen of his era. Similarly, Derian Hatcher would not have been a stud right-winger. Both players maximized their abilities by chosing a position that suited their skill set.
Ignoring the role that body type (among other things) plays in athletics is just silly.
Would Wayne Gretzky or Babe Ruth win the 100m dash at the Olympics if they trained really really hard their whole lives? Common sense says that no, they obviously would not. Neither was exceptionally fast, and they're both white.
Charles Barkley is a golf fanatic, he golfs like 8 days a week. So why isn't he on the PGA tour?
Jerry Rice and Lawrence Taylor are both all-time greats at football. Could they switch positions and be equally effective? Obviously not. Taylor would be too bulky and slow, and Rice would be too small and light.
I can say with complete certainty that Paul Kariya would NOT have been one of the best defencemen of his era. Similarly, Derian Hatcher would not have been a stud right-winger. Both players maximized their abilities by chosing a position that suited their skill set.
Ignoring the role that body type (among other things) plays in athletics is just silly.