The Best Larry Bird vs Michael Jordan Story Ever Told

NBA Hall of Famer James Worthy who played against both Michael Jordan and Larry Bird said I'd much rather play against Michael Jordan than Larry Bird Jordan made you look slow but bird made you look stupid look I'm not here to convince you that Larry Bird is better than Michael Jordan I'll just present to you the facts and let the NBA legends who actually played against both of them tell you what they think people always ask me who's the hardest player I've ever had to guard and there was Michael Jordan George Gervin the late great Mike Mitchell I mean so many players I always say Larry Bird and I say this for the reason because when Michael passed a basketball he kind of hung on his shorts and he set off to the side with Larry when he passed the basketball is when he became more dangerous he was either setting the pick coming off a pick catching the ball passing the ball so he was the one you always had to stay attentive to the whole 24 seconds of that offensive play for the Celtics and you know what oh he's gonna get offensive rebounds he was going to do something to help his team uh have the best chance of scoring at that point so I always say as him he didn't need the basketball to affect the game to the untrained I Michael Jordan was light years better than Larry Bird simply because his scoring numbers were better but in actuality it was much closer than that because bird affected the game in so many ways I saw Larry Bird one night in Phoenix they were losing big time at the head and they come out in the third quarter and Larry did not take a shot but dominated the game he had seven assists in the third quarter and they came back and won the game he could affect the game without taking a shot who else can you say that about to that degree nobody Michael could never do that never Michael had to have the ball here's a 1986 magazine on the NBA and remember this is a league with Michael Jordan Magic Johnson Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Charles Barkley Isaiah Thomas Hakeem Olajuwon Moses Malone and Dr J and in the league with all of these all-time great players everyone agreed that Larry Bird was the best because in 1984 1985 and 1986 Larry Bird won MVP back to back to back and in the 1986 playoffs Larry Bird finally faced Michael Jordan Head to Head and in game one Michael dropped a spectacular 49 points but Larry Bird had an all-around game with 30 points eight assists six rebounds and three steals to lead the Celtics to a victory by game two MJ had a revelation [Music] Celtics will try to make it two in a row over the bowl we really have to play a complete basketball game I don't think one man could beat the Boston Celtics I don't think one man could beat the Boston Celtics but he sure did try because Jordan turned on God mode and broke the record for the most points ever scored in a playoff game in the first half of the game against the Celtics Thursday Jordan trying to think bird can't do it it's a jumper but bird played pretty well defensively against Jordan I know we started Dennis Johnson out on him and then we went with uh Danny Ames myself with uh then Bill Walton and we was trying to run him to help all the time but he had his outside shot going so well that he really didn't need to penetrate that much Jordan hits it 56 for Jordan and that ties the Chicago Bulls all-time leader pardon with eight on the clock Jordan highs the game 63 points and you're looking at an all-time record oh boy Michael Jordan but it was an incredible incredible playoff performance I've never seen it before and I had never seen it after that wasn't Michael Jordan that was God disguised as Michael Jordan but Larry Bird left with the most important statistic of all the W 10 on the clock bird pick and roll Parish victory for the Boston Celtics to take a two to nothing lead over Chicago in their best of five Michael Jordan didn't beat Larry Bird you showed Michael Jordan going between his legs one times in the highlights you know against Larry Bird and that was the game he got 60. that's when he dropped 63 on bird yes memory serves me correct they got he lost hept no not not lost they got swept okay even though he dropped 63 we stepped all in his ass did we not I rent my case Larry Bird went on to win his third Championship that year and the following year when Larry faced MJ in the playoffs it happened again inside Larry Bird against Banks rubs him around a Perry stream drives it down the lane and lays it in with a right hand Michael Jordan with 30 points in this game so he was 30 or better in all three playoff games Birds got 31 in the game and 14 in the fourth quarter bullseye Boston has kept it in good hands in the fourth quarter it's been bird and that's about it final score in Chicago Stadium the Boston Celtics sweep the Bulls Out 105-94. too much Celtic Talent too much Celtic experience for a Bulls team lacking in both areas yes Larry Bird in back to back years swept Michael Jordan in the playoffs so if Michael Jordan is the greatest of all time but Michael Jordan never beat Larry Bird then what does that make Larry Bird now to be fair at that point Michael Jordan didn't have his best teammate ever Scottie Pippen yet when Scottie Pippen arrived the battles were closer and more intense and later in the video I'll let you see exactly what happened when Larry Bird faced a prime Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen because Larry Bird did something so miraculously impressive no other man in the history of basketball can say they've done but after Birds swept Jordan back to back years in the playoffs that very next year in 1988 Michael Jordan had statistically the best season ever where he won the scoring title at 35 points per game the Steele's title the MVP the defensive player of the year the All-Star game MVP and the dunk contest he faced Larry Bird four times that year and this is how it went game one tough battle bird wins game two MJ has a historic 50-point game to win by 10. game three Larry's Revenge after that previous loss I'm sure Larry Bird had that rematch circled on his calendar because he ended up with 33 8-7 and blue MJ out by 30 points game four MJ had an impressive performance with 39 points and eight assists but Larry Legend had 44 points and 10 rebounds but most importantly a win versus Michael Jordan in his statistically best season ever and though Michael Jordan didn't face bird again that year in the playoffs Jordan did face Isaiah Thomas in the Detroit Pistons and I'll let Isaiah Thomas tell you exactly how he recalls that year and the rest of the 80s so Michael Jordan in the 80s the best year that he had was he was the MVP of the league and the defensive player of the year I believe that was in 88. we needed them for we beat them four to one I'm gonna say that again four to one they won one yeah and he never beat Larry Bird he never beat magic and Kareem he never won and all I'm saying is in the 80s what I remember in the 80s it was Philadelphia with Dr J magic Kareem Bert Michael Jordan he he was a non-factor a non-factor is this your goat but after Isaiah Thomas swept MJ he did go on to beat Larry Bird in six games and many people touted the Detroit defense for holding Larry Bird to under 20 points per game but what many don't include in that story is that Larry Bird was noticeably injured with painful bone spurs in both feet so only because of injuries for the first time in Five Seasons Larry Bird would not make the NBA finals starting the following year Larry Bird had season ending surgery on both feet after playing only six games but sadly it only got worse because that following off-season Larry Bird broke his back and was never the same again but even as Larry Bird's entire body betrayed him for some reason he always played well against Michael Jordan almost like he had a personal Vendetta against Jordan and I think I know why when Michael Jordan was in college he actually played an exhibition game against Larry Bird Jordan and a bunch of college players while preparing for the 1984 Olympics based Larry Bird in a bunch of NBA stars the goal was to toughen the college kids up before they headed to the Olympics so during pregame warm-ups when Jordan chased the loose ball to the other end of the Court Larry Bird picked the ball up but instead of handing it the Jordan bird kicked the ball over Jordan's head to the opposite end of the Court and I guess you could say Michael Jordan took that personally yeah look at myself really oh so that's how you're gonna play it you gonna do this okay fine that's all I needed that's all I needed for him to do that and it it became personal with me Michael Jordan dominated that game a young Michael Jordan actually carried a team full of college players past the primary bird and a bunch of NBA players Michael Jordan won the battle but Larry Bird won the war I think Larry Bird took that loss personally because Jordan never really got the best of Larry Bird ever again when Larry Bird finally returned to the court after missing basically an entire season with foot surgery and a back injury he faced Prime Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen in a regular season game the teams went back and forth Bagley against Paxton telling the shot clock Jordan on bird quick feed into Jim Paxton for the layup Larry Bird as kale the Reed Trail Scottie Pippen ahead to Jordan Michael bird against Pippin bird working on Pippin one on one hits the fade away and with 10 seconds to go it was a tag game the Celtics had the ball and the Bulls put their two best defenders Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen both on Larry Bird because everyone knows who the ball is going to and then this happened let's see if they win all the way down third low you can't double yet now you can quickly first jumper good 3.6 seconds left Larry Bird gives the Boston Celtics a two-point lead everybody in this building had to know what's going on Michael came over to help out Celtics lead with 3.6 seconds here 102-100 a game-winning shot while being double teamed by both Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen two of the best defenders of all time somehow the word clutch doesn't even begin to describe the greatness of Larry Bird when the game was on the line but maybe a quote from NBA Hall of Fame coach executive and former player Pat Riley can explain in an interview when comparing Larry Bird and Michael Jordan's clutchness Pat Riley said this iconic quote if I had to choose a player to take a shot to save a game I choose Michael Jordan if I had to choose a player to take a shot to save my life I'd take Larry Bird as Larry Bird was on his last legs and Michael Jordan was starting his dynasty in 1991. Larry Bird mustered up enough strength to battle MJ again in one of the last great duels between the two gamble came up with a steal here's bird yes he was fed on a switch by Jordan 69 Chicago 67. Jordan eluding a triple team Reggie Lewis [Applause] this battle between two all-time greats came down to the wire in overtime it was a tie game with 0.4 seconds on the clock and the Chicago Bulls had the ball now I want to throw in four tenths of a second and here it is Jordan yes but it's ways off will not count Michael said no did not beat the clock oh he almost had it after Jordan's possible game winner was waived off Larry Bird on four straight possessions in double overtime did this Jordan it's great to hear all his coaches talk about they're really concerned as bird gets a little Fade Away you're really concerned about the minutes building up they want to be fresh going into the playoffs over time number two Larry Bird hitting it out to go the second overtime heard but the fake through the foul and hits 25 to go in the second overtime Howard fires yes the crowd couldn't help but chant the name of the greatest player of all time chicken head and said this guy's too much [Music] [Applause] [Music] and the second overtime and that will do it but Boston Celtics in double overtime at the feet of the Chicago Bulls won 35-132 in a wild one the Celtics held on to win that game but that year Michael Jordan won his first championship versus Magic Johnson in the finals in his dynasty had officially begun Larry and I were talking and Michael walks in and he says it's a new sheriff in town and we both hit each other like well he's not lying Larry Bird retired after that next season but not before he took the court with Michael Jordan one last time except this time it would be on the same team in what many would call the greatest team ever assembled the 1992 dream team Everybody by Jordan Perez may have realized that that may be his best opportunity to get over the look in transition Patrick with the pass that misfire Jordan yes and you just knew that Larry Bird was not going to miss that shot after the great save by Michael Jordan he's retiring thank goodness I'm glad I'm tired of seeing your face with a lot of sad memories to me but you know I enjoyed you tremendously I wish you a lot of luck and I think you had a very wonderful career even though you probably ruined a lot of my successful games against the Boston Celtics and I see you somewhere along the road somewhere playing golf even though he dropped 63 we stepped all in his ass did we not I rest my case

Channel: Prime Larry Bird

Views: 2,748,441

Keywords: NBA, NBA History, Larry Bird, NBA Legends, GOAT

Id: kXNLtXUTRYY

Length: 18min 35sec (1115 seconds)

Published: Fri Dec 09 2022