in my mind, the true greats can win games by themselves, consistently, time and again. they have elevated themselves to a point of ability that no one can forsee anyone following in their footsteps in that profession, or another talent of that level coming along in our lifetime.
1. wayne gretzky. wiki his name and see his body of work. some would argue that he was protected by the league. i grew up watching him. he wasnt protected by any one other than marty mcsorley. he made scoring goals and play making look effortless. you had to see him play to know what i mean. i dont even have the words to explain it. it was as if god himself touched the shoulder of gretzky. there will never be another wayne gretzky.
2. michael jordan. if you had a chance just to watch him play you'd know there will never EVER be another jordan. EVER.
3. mike tyson in his prime before cus died. he was a phenom. nobody will ever step in the ring with that much power, anger, speed and pure ability all in the same package. there will never be another prime mike tyson. he was so scary he admitted most of his fights were won before he even got in the ring. that is pure dominance.
4. ray lewis. some say LT. nobody was more feared then RL in his prime. nobody has been more feared since. nobody has now, back in the day, or since that kind of closing speed or could go sideline to sideline like ray lewis. i honestly cannot see another football player coming along regardless of position that was a dominant as ray lewis. most players rely on a supporting cast to win games- RL could win games by himself.