Some folks have argued it's curious that Court is largely absent from the greatest-of-all-time discussions, but the explanation is easy: As great an athlete as Court was for her time -- she stood 5-foot-9 and had such a terrific serve that her nickname on tour was "The Arm" -- Williams beats Court and just about every other contender for best ever when it comes to the eyeball test.
That -- even more than stats or her realistic shot of winning even more Slam titles -- is why Williams' best-ever candidacy is so strong.
Serena is more powerful than Graf, more athletic than Evert, and she has been able to sustain the No. 1 ranking and individual excellence at the majors at a later age than Navratilova, although Navratilova played singles to age 38 and held the top ranking over 100 weeks more than Williams has so far.
Graf's candidacy for best ever is also colored by the fact that her reign coincided with a time on the tour when Monica Seles, her most dangerous rival, was stabbed by a fan and left.
Serena, in contrast, has had to outlast or overcome challenges from myriad flanks: Her sister Venus,
Martina Hingis,
Justine Henin,
Kim Clijsters,
Lindsay Davenportand Jennifer Capriati -- all of whom won multiple Grand Slam titles -- and now, today's generation of rising stars.
Former world No. 1 Tracy Austin says, "I can't think of anybody -- even
Roger Federer -- who holds the outcome on their racket more in every match than Serena."
"I look at Graf's numbers and I look at what happened to Seles, and I think, 'Wow, Steffi is great. But that [Seles' disappearance] is what padded her 22,'" says ESPN analyst Pam Shriver, a former US Open singles finalist herself who won 21 Grand Slam doubles titles with Navratilova.
Just looking at one number devalues the dominance that people like Serena and Tiger have displayed for quite some time. 
you gotta ask them.
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