yes he was one of the best ever, he did 661 without a shirt in the early 80's, the raw record to this day is only 715, i'd say that puts Kaz as one of the 5 best ever.
i remember reading a while ago that right before got injured he'd hit 700x2 in the gym and was gearing up to be the first guy to blow through the 700 raw barrier.
don't forget, too, the pauses they made those guys do was NUTS. serious one-second-rest. no disrespect to mendy/hoornstra/wilkerson or any of those guys, but the judges are so fast on the "press" command that it seems like a touch and go lift.
best ever? certainly close to it. not the "strongest" ever, but the best. there's a difference.