‘The Greatest’

I never saw Muhammad Ali fight. I never witnessed him transcend sports and become a global symbol of reconciliation and peace. Unfortunately, almost everything I know about “The Greatest” comes from what I’ve read.

In the wake of Ali’s death on Friday, here’s what I believe are some of the best stories ever written about a man who will be remembered for far more than his life inside the ring.

“The Champ and the Chump” by Murray Kempton

Kempton elegantly described the first meeting between Ali, then known as Cassius Clay, and Sonny Liston in 1964.

“Muhammad Ali Then and Now” by Dick Schaap

As the sports editor at Newsweek, Schaap first met Ali in 1960. In this piece from 1971, Schaap detailed Ali’s transformation during the 1960s and how he was still the same kid he met 11 years before, even after becoming a household name.

‘Lawdy, Lawdy, He’s Great’ by Mark Kram

Kram recounts the “The Thrilla in Manila” and the aftermath in this piece that ran in Sports Illustrated in 1975.

“My Dinner with Ali” by Davis Miller

In this first-person narrative, Miller reveals his transformative experience after spending a day with Ali at his mother’s home in Louisville.

Lastly, among all of the articles published over the past couple of hours, ESPN put together this incredible Ali package filled with tons of content.