The debate of the best Lacrosse player of all time is finally settled. Tommy Burch tells his top 3, and why these players are above the rest.
Top 3 Best Lacrosse Players of All Time
Picking out the best players in Lacrosse is much more of a challenge than most professional sports. This sport takes into account the most from college accolades, as that is the most popular form of the sport. Professional careers aren’t taken as much into account, but they are important in their own regards.
Finding the best players is difficult with less exposure and more to sift through. However, the three people listed below have proven to be the best at what they do, and stand out amongst the rest.
3. Mikey Powell, A
Mikey Powell is, without debate, the best pure attackman to ever play college Lacrosse. This may be the Syracuse fan in me, but Powell was a freakshow on the field. He led the Orange to 2 national championships and won the NCAA Tweaaraton Award 2 times in the process. He was an NCAA Men’s Lacrosse First Team member for all 4 years of his college career, again proving his significant contribution to the sport.
He holds the Syracuse all-time points scored record, which is even more impressive due to the fact that Syracuse is the best dynasty in Lacrosse history. He went on to only play a few years of professional ball in the 2000s, sitting out a couple of years to pursue music. This is the reason he ranks only at No. 3, as he may have ended up as No. 1 if he played directly after college.
2. Gary Gait, M/A
Another Syracuse alum, Gait was undoubtedly just as skilled if not more than his counterpart Powell. What makes him different is his college team’s success and his accolades in the pros. He was not a First Team All-American every single year, only 3 times compared to powell. He was an Honorable Mention for one year, still incredibly impressive for anyone.
After he won 3 national championships, he went on to play in the NLL and MLL. He was one of the most dominant professional Lacrosse players ever, winning a combined 7 MVPs in the leagues combined. He is a US and Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Famer, and holds the record for the most NLL MVPs earned with 6.
1. Jim Brown, M
The PLL MVP is named after him, and rightfully so. Although he is one of the best running backs in NFL history, he was even more esteemed on the Lacrosse field. Although his time was much longer ago, he managed to be a 2x All-American in his years of playing.
His stats were not recorded as much on paper, but the legend still remains. In 10 games in 1957, he had 64 points with 43 goals and 21 assists. This was way ahead of his time, as even in the NCAA last year, he would have been in the top 30 in goals scored with 9 fewer games.
