As much as I believe Jackson is among the best ever, I don't know if I'd put him in a list of Top 10 athletes IF it includes criteria such as championships and titles. We could see what might have been if his career had not been cut short AND if he had picked one sport to fully commit to. As it is, we only got a few years and a glimpse of his greatness.

Phelps? Hell yeah. He's the GOAT for swimming, especially after laying out a year or two and coming back.

Jordan? Different era, but he was the best in the NBA. Kobe is right behind.

Boxing would be tough. Ali was great but how about Leonard?

(Side note: For those of us old enough to remember, weren't the 1980s great for boxing with Ali, Hagler, Leonard, Hearns, Duran, Boom Boom, Foreman and the others? Just a fun time to watch. Those days are gone forever for boxing.)

Bobby Jones in golf? What he did with wooden shafted clubs, chitty balls and on courses that weren't like today's manicured layouts is remarkable. Was he as dominating as Woods in his prime? No. Woods was an intimidating, boot-on-the-throat beast and had almost everyone cowered while being a likely PED-helped performer who ran roughshod.

But in golf I'd still take Nicklaus as the GOAT. Not just for majors, but look at his 2nd and 3rds and Top 10s during the 1960s and '70s. Through great play and focus he put himself in contention so often to win, won a bunch, and IMO that's the mark of a great one. Just like Kevin Van Dam in the Bassmaster Classic - he's won four but has a litany of Top 10 finishes, meaning he was there on the final day with a chance.

Lot of fun debate, for sure.