New Jersey is known for its love for sports more than most things and it has had many sporting icons over the last few decades. Whether it's basketball, boxing or football legends, there's no shortage of icons in the Garden State and this is why we have written this today.
We want to show love to athletes who make this State as well-loved as it is by its people.
Starting with not only a Jersey legend but a sporting legend as a whole. Shaq is one of the best and most iconic people in the world, he has transcended sport and become a global figure, whether it’s with his brands or his incredible personality, people across the world know Shaq and his character.
His basketball career is an iconic one, although it may not have ended as well as he anticipated. His full career was blessed with many championships and iconic performances. His athletic peak was in the 1999-2000 season when he averaged 29.7 points per game. In his first season under Phil Jackson, Shaq had extra motivation like we had never seen before and this showed on the court.
Whenever you saw Shaq play this season, you knew he was going to be one of the best players on the court and this made betting on him one of the most popular things in the season, like how horse racing is popular all over the world and is loved by many, Shaq is very similar in this regard. He dominated the court that season and won a lot of fans and a lot of money. For this, he could be remembered alone, but his incredible career helps his memory.
Although he was born in Alabama, Carl Lewis represented New Jersey throughout his illustrious career, and what a career it was.
Carl Lewis is arguably the best track athlete of all time, winning nine Olympic gold medals, one silver and ten world championships across his career. Like Shaq, Carl Lewis dominated his field but for an even longer period, with him being named the Sportsman of the Century by the International Olympic Committee. He retired from the sport in 1997 and still to this day is recognized as one of the greatest to ever do it, the true sign of an icon.
As we started writing this list, we realised how many incredible athletes we have that represent New Jersey in everything they do and Mike Trout, somehow, nearly slipped our memory. Despite not winning a championship in his sport of baseball, Trout has put together an already impressive career.
Being the youngest man on this list so far, Trout still has time left in his career. As of right now, Trout is in recovery from a serious injury that will set him back an entire season, although this is a huge blow to the athlete, we think he will come back stronger than ever and solidify himself as one of the best athletes to ever do it from New Jersey.
As a four-time Super Bowl winner and a nine-time Pro Bowl selection, Harris is still remembered as a great even with it being two decades since his retirement. With 12,120 rushing yards in his career, Harris is one of the all-time leaders in this regard and is a worthy hall of famer, not just for New Jersey, but for the sport of football as a whole.
Overall, this is a short sample of many icons throughout the world of sports who lived or were born in New Jersey. The reason we all love sports so much is because of these icons, that shaped the sports they played and shaped us as fans.
