WBC lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson is one of the most skilled technicians boxing has known. However, it turns out the Newark native has a talent for shooting hoops as well. The 27-year-old is coming off a stunning 9th-round knockout win over Josh Padley in February this year. He was originally supposed to square off against Floyd Schofield Jr., but things didn’t quite work out that way. Just days before the fight, Schofield pulled out due to illness, forcing Stevenson to take on Padley instead. Despite the last-minute change, he delivered a brilliant performance against Padley, giving the former plumber a life-changing opportunity in the ring. While there’s no word yet on his next opponent, Stevenson remains focused on securing major fights against the division’s elite.
The likes of WBA lightweight champion Gervonta Davis and IBF lightweight champion Vasyl Lomachenko seem to be on his radar. However, neither fight has come close to becoming a possibility. Making things worse for the Newark native, Lomachenko’s manager seems to prefer a fight against Gervonta Davis for his boxer rather than Stevenson.
On the other hand, Gervonta Davis doesn’t seem to be in the mood to fight Stevenson anytime soon. As for the WBO lightweight champion Keyshawn Davis, Stevenson and ‘The Businessman’ have refused to fight because of their friendship. This makes Stevenson’s future in the division uncertain—besides fighting the handful of contenders, there’s not much action left in the division for Stevenson.
Amid all this, a user shared a clip of Stevenson on X a couple of days ago. It showed Stevenson dribbling the basketball on a court like a seasoned pro. “Nah this move was tuff ngl @ShakurStevenson Best boxing hooper and best boxer ,” the user captioned the post. Stevenson quickly found the clip floating on the social media platform and responded, “I be wilding sometimes .”
I be wilding sometimes https://t.co/kFuWucasXI
— Shakur Stevenson (@ShakurStevenson) March 27, 2025
In the meantime, Stevenson has been advised to be like Floyd Mayweather to help bring up his stock in boxing.
A former world champion tells Shakur Stevenson to keep winning
Shakur Stevenson has often been compared to Floyd Mayweather for his defensive brilliance, but some fans criticize his style as boring. Hall of Famer Tim Bradley has urged Stevenson to ignore the noise and focus on winning instead. “Go into that ring and handle your business. Just keep winning,” Bradley told Fight Hype. “They said the same thing about Floyd Mayweather years ago. ‘He was boring.’”
“You can’t buy into that. Keep boxing the way you’re boxing. Keep using your skills,” he added. Bradley believes social media has shortened fans’ attention spans, making them less patient with defensive fighters. Despite criticism, Stevenson remains undefeated and currently holds the WBC lightweight title. “If I could go back and box like Shakur Stevenson, I would go back and box like him,” Bradley noted.
That being said, it appears that Shakur Stevenson ditches the boxing gloves from time to time to throw some hoops. From the looks of it, he’s not that bad at it either. What did you think about Stevenson’s moves?
The post Not Because of His Boxing Skills, Shakur Stevenson’s Basketball Skills Become Talk of the Town appeared first on EssentiallySports.
