Larry Bird discussion

[Da_Realist]

Undeniably the best player in the game and arguably playing the best ball in his career, Larry Bird led one of the best teams in history to the championship in 1986. Known as a big game player with the ability to rise in the clutch, he also displayed a versatility that few others could match. His sharp shooting, pin-point passing, court sense, hustle and grit were all on display here in the 1986 Finals -- evidenced by the fact that he almost averaged a triple-double in this six-game series (24pts, 9.5 asts, 9.7 rebs).

Game 1

[ronnymac]

Larry Bird=the most clutch assasin of alltime. he and jordan must have destroyed so many dreams around the league.unfortunatley rockets were one of them.

[Samurai Swoosh]

That man was a friggin monster. And he had SO MUCH swag, it's hilarious. A country white boy, from the 70's / 80's who had SWAG and confidence that he could toy with you and knew he was gonna kill you. Gotta love it. He just knew how to beat people plain and simple on the basketball court. Shame his career didn't last longer. Cut short due to neck and back injuries. With that said he certainly got alot of mileage considering how many times he went deep into the playoffs.

[BIZARRO]

Undeniably the best player in the game and arguably playing the best ball in his career, Larry Bird led one of the best teams in history to the championship in 1986. Known as a big game player with the ability to rise in the clutch, he also displayed a versatility that few others could match. His sharp shooting, pin-point passing, court sense, hustle and grit were all on display here in the 1986 Finals -- evidenced by the fact that he almost averaged a triple-double in this six-game series (24pts, 9.5 asts, 9.7 rebs).

Game 1

Thanks, that was awesome.

Before I was a Jordan fan, I was a huge Bird fan. This brought back a lot of good memories. I remember thinking how I was kind of upset the Rockets made it instead of the Lakers that year because I knew the Celtics had the Lakers beat. They were just so dominant in '86. I know that is stating the obvious, but if you actually didn't see it, then here is more confirmation.
Would've been a good rubber match after the previous two years though. Too bad that came the next year with the spectacular and equally, if not more so, dominant '87 Lakers. Bad news for the Celts and Larry of course, and almost the end of the road as Larry broke down soon after.

Watching this game I was struck by two things:

1. Just how often Bird attacked the player with the ball on the defensive end, and how he always seemed to be in the right place at the right time on D. He stripping, stealing, breaking things up left and right. I always remembered him playing his own idea of defensive basketball and not bending mentally to usual defensive positions and practices like almost every other defensive player I have seen, and he was seemingly everywhere without getting called for anything. He seemed to get his nose dirty in so many defensive possessions and I think that has always been an underrated part of why his teams always were the best in college and the pros. And a big part of why his overall impact on a game is so much greater than, arguably, all but a few players.

2. Just how quick he was to get the ball in the hands of the player on his team in the best position to score. I mean, who thinks to throw the ball full court without seemingly even looking up the court, AT ALL? That extra split second of awareness was a huge thing that made Bird so great, kind of like Wayne Gretzky in hockey. Their minds were often faster than the game itself. Magic, same thing. Once again, seems obvious, but to see it is to truly believe. Every position, his idea was to get it into the Chief or Mchale, or to whoever any way he could as often and varied as possible. It was just demoralizing to the other team as shown in this vid by some of the Rocket's reactions.

We sometimes forget in this era of high flying players that in basketball SO much time is spent in half court sets; moving without the ball, finding the open man, getting the ball to him quickly and in the right place to score as easily as possible.
In the 5 on 5 NBA game, half court "winning" basketball relies mostly on these things, and often negates a lot of what athleticism could hypothetically bring to the table. (That being said athleticism can elevate "winning basketball" i.e. MJ, but Bird had enough to get by in almost any situation in a 5 on 5 game)
Watching this, I am now convinced a Kobe and Lebron, etc. would beat Bird and any player other than MJ, (and maybe even Bird and him as well in a 2 on 2 game), but I am also convinced watching this he was a better "winning" player than either in a 5 on 5 game. He just was like a chess master, who had one objective of making every move pertient to winning and the final score.
Lebron may get there, but Larry Legend was just such a great example of what makes "team" sports so great. He was able to use the other 4 players (and 9 really) like pieces on his chessboard regardless of physical limitations, though his physical limitations were not as limited as some think. His ability to sneak in passing lanes, box out, etc. almost made up for whatever limitations there were though.

I loved watching him (and Magic) then, and now, as their games are so rich and full of life. But for different reasons than why almost all other players are fun to watch.

Larry Legend was a true master of the game. What an incredible figure in basketball history.

#33.

[Da_Realist]

...

GREAT description of Larry's game. Repped.

[RajonKGcelts]

If Larry was black, he would be the GOAT hands down.

[Loki]

My second favorite player of all time. A killer. People who didn't see him have no idea how good this guy was. It's a travesty when people start mentioning guys like Dirk in the same sentence. Bird was one of the only guys in history who could drop 35/15/13 plus the game-winner and you wouldn't be surprised. Complete bad-ass.

[Brunch@Five]

My second favorite player of all time. A killer. People who didn't see him have no idea how good this guy was. It's a travesty when people start mentioning guys like Dirk in the same sentence. Bird was one of the only guys in history who could drop 35/15/13 plus the game-winner and you wouldn't be surprised. Complete bad-ass.

While not as good as Bird, I still think Dirk is the closest to Bird we have right now. That's not saying he is very close to Bird, it just means that Bird really was that special that he really he almost incomparable. The smartest and maybe the most well-rounded player ever. Nothing he couldn't do on the court. And before someone says "wasn't athletic enough to be a great fast-break player", just take a look at Josh Howard and other athletic players in the league, and then watch some Boston games from the 80's. Bird just knew how to run a break, when to pass, when to fake, and also was great at starting a break.

[Da_Realist]

Game 2

[eliteballer]

People who didn't see him have no idea how good this guy was.

Like you?

[miles berg]

My second favorite player of all time. A killer. People who didn't see him have no idea how good this guy was. It's a travesty when people start mentioning guys like Dirk in the same sentence. Bird was one of the only guys in history who could drop 35/15/13 plus the game-winner and you wouldn't be surprised. Complete bad-ass.

Nah, Dirk is right there, he is so underrated by today's fans it is almost comical. As for Bird, ABSOLUTE killer, 4th best player of all time IMO (Jabbar/Jordan/Magic/Bird). And, IMO, the '86 Celtics team was the best team of all time. '87 Lakers, '91 and '96 Bulls, and '00 Lakers fans are going to argue but, again, it is my opinion.

[Loki]

Like you?

I actually knew when I posted that that you'd chime in with such a comment. I expected it yesterday, though -- you're getting old, eliteballer. And no, I meant people who haven't even seen any games of his, not necessarily people who didn't see it live.

Nah, Dirk is right there

No, he's not. Not at all. He's definitely underrated, but he can't see Bird.

Game 2

Unbelievable. Look at the fake and pass at 3:46. Bird wasn't a tremendous athlete, but his hand-eye coordination was elite and his general quickness (on foot fakes, ball fakes, hand-speed, first step etc.) was very good.

[TmacsRockets]

How close or far apart would Lebron, CP3, Duncan be in comparison to Bird?

[worldbefree]

How close or far apart would Lebron, CP3, Duncan be in comparison to Bird?

assuming he is physically on par with current times, then he would be better than all in my humble opinion.

[Loki]

Yes, he would be imo. With Kobe/Lebron not far behind, but clearly behind.