The Day Larry Bird Showed Michael Jordan Who Is The Boss

beat you right there you got to keep them under control time out with 3 seconds being on the throne is not just about being the king it's about being the Rival to beat and you also got to be willing to prove your superiority to any opponent who aspires to kingship and that was exactly the situation for Larry Bird in 1986 I'd much rather guard Michael Jordan than Larry Bird because you have to play the game as a thinker when you're playing him the Celtics forward was not only coming off one of the most successful individual seasons in league history winning his third consecutive regular season MVP and hoisting the Larry O'Brien while earning his second Finals MVP I'm really proud to to receive this award for the third time bird was changing the game the whole conception of the small forward was different after his time in the NBA but just when he looked like he was the Undisputed King a new lion was coming to the pride a young Michael Jordan came into the the league making a difference right from the start and from the very first moment he made it clear to Larry that he wasn't afraid of him at all the Celtics were still the better team but MJ put on one of the greatest performances in playoff history against Boston in 1986 making a statement about who was the better player on the hardwood and from then on the Rivalry burned hotter than ever see Larry Bird had a mission for his entire career he had been the Undisputed best player in the NBA but now 23-year-old kid who was averaging 37 points per game was challenging him for the reign of the king of World Basketball the bird had already proved it all his legacy was unmatched but his honor was in Jeopardy and that was something that he wouldn't allow the reason was simple bird was bidding to become the goat of basketball the forward had been breaking every barrier in existence since arriving to the NBA in 1979 bird signed a contract with the Celtics to become the highest paid rookie in league history at $650,000 per year but as soon as he arrived in the NBA Larry red Havoc he finished fourth in the MVP race during his rookie year during the next three seasons not only did he win the NBA ring for the first time in 1981 but he also finished second in the MVP race three times and his averages during this stint 22.6 points 10.9 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game but something happened during the summer of 1983 bird went from being the second best player in the League to a completely Legendary player and absolutely Superior to his eternal rival Magic Johnson thus began his incredible three-year stint in which he became one of the greatest players of all time from 1983 to 1986 bird achieved three NBA MVPs after winning the 1984 championship and being for the first time in his career MVP of the finals bird ascended in the NBA Olympus and wrote his name in the history books forever during those three seasons Larry averaged 26.2 points 10.1 rebounds and 6.7 assists per game while continuing to be an elite Defender by the way this was his status just prior to the start of the 1986 playoffs a versatile forward who was capable of doing everything on the court there had never been a big man who had the skills of a perimeter player in traditional basketball until he came along and not just because of his iconic three shot becoming one of the first small forwards that played the power forward position to be able to stretch the floor his incredible passing ability allowed him to become a true leader for those Celtics both on offense and defense but in order to win his third ring in 1986 he first had to get past the team with a major stud that was starting to make some noise and just less than a full year later it was March 27th 1987 the Celtics with a record of 51 wins and 19 losses were coming off a backtack to face a Bulls team with a record of 35 wins and 35 losses that by the way was also coming off a game the night before bird was having a pretty good season with averages of 28 points nine rebounds and almost eight assists per game that allowed him to finish third in the MVP race while Jordan who would end up finishing second was averaging an absurd 37 points per game the Celtics came out with an unusual starting five due to the absence of Dennis Johnson who was replaced by Jerry sitching and playing away from home they knew it would be a tough game but right from the first plays of the game bird showed what kind of night he was going to have his off ball movement was Elite basically because of his enormous basketball IQ his fakes I mean this was one of the most dangerous men in basketball without the ball in his hands that coupled with the gravity he generated from his mid-range and longrange shooting was Lethal plus he was a typical player who was blessed by the Divine Touch okay but once again his Arsenal from the low post was unpredictable it's easy to find samples of his off ball ability and gravity as it was often his easiest way to score but on this day his mid-range shot was touched by a magic wand he just couldn't miss and he was able to abuse it again and again and again meanwhile Jordan began to realize the enormous attention he was getting from the Celtics defense which every time he attempted a drive sent multiple bodies to stop him but far from getting advantage es only without the ball in his hands Larry was also able to score in isos from the low post a move that decades later Mavs Legend Dirk ninski patented and made his own so the Bulls realized they had no choice but to do what the Celtics did with Jordan a virtually continuous two onone when he had the ball in his hands so bird basically said you know what I'm going to hurt them in transition thus came the end of the first quarter in which somehow the Bulls managed to stay close on the scoreboard trailing by only one point 36 to 35 bird had a spectacular first quarter in scoring 20 points nothing more nothing less so he began to take advantage of that extra attention to test his versatility he was able to transform garbage into gold case in point this loose ball which he turns into a great assist and if there's one thing you don't want it's for the guy who's destroying you from mid-range to start showing signs of his playmaking ability bird was Unleashed and players like mcale appreciated even when they didn't count Larry's passes were simply spectacular no he really didn't even need to score to be the most impactful player in the game in some cases MJ had to defend the Celtic star too and the size difference played a key role in these situations but knowing that the half court offense was very difficult with two Defenders on top of them berd continued to make use of scoring in transition and what was more shocking a player of his size dropping threes like it's nothing but incredibly despite Bird's 33 points in the first half the Bulls managed to go into halftime trailing by only three points thanks in part to the 16 points MJ had scored during the first two quarters of course when the third quarter began Larry kind of relaxed offensively he decided to use his gravity to try to find better options for his teammates as he knew he would need one more offensive threat to take the game easily and stepping up on defense the Celtics got stops on Jordan that allowed the them to get easy baskets on the other end of the court but bir continued his playmaker role for most of the rest of the game as he led his team on defense with actions like this one he was certainly a player who had no problem getting his hands dirty either but when Larry attempted a shot during the second half it was to score and he kept sending occasional reminders to the Bulls defense reminders that one player was not going to be enough to guard him in front of a United Center packed with more than 18,000 fans the forward was having a Legendary game the Celtics allowed just 22 points in the third quarter by the way and managed to head into the final quarter with a ninepoint lead and after resting for a couple of minutes Larry continued to do whatever his team needed to do to get the win these Celtics were good I mean like really good bird was that piece of the puzzle that served as a wild card too that player you could put in any role in any part of the court in any situation and who was going to be able to generate advantages on his own and during the last quarter the tone did not change bird continued to abuse from long distance as he had been doing all game he continued to play the simplest yet most dominant basketball anyone had ever seen but one of the virtues of Genius is to make what seems complicated really easy you know and despite the Bull's final scare who managed to cut the deficit from 11 points to four the Celtics defense stepped up to close the game bird did it months after MJ scored 6 63 the forward only had to play 100% for one half to show him that if he wanted to he could do it too 33 points in the first half 41 in the game that went down in history as one of the greatest displays of ego any player in the league could perform the difference is that Larry's ego also made his teammates better Weeks Later the Celtics met the Bulls again in the first round of the playoffs and the result was the same as last year Boston managed to advance by a score of three wins to zero yeah so 6 and0 in playoff games against Jordan's Bulls that's the record that is stuck in history when they met Larry Celtics were always better so good that not even a superhero performance could stop them and so Larry Bird along with the Pistons of Isaiah Thomas and Bill lambir became the thorn in MJ's side that he really could never get rid of bird did not win the ring that season Magic Johnson's Lakers did the other side of the three-headed monster that dominated basketball worldwide but even if he didn't win the championship Larry did World Basketball a favor he taught Jordan that he still had a long way to reach his full potential he taught him that scoring isn't always enough and that he needed to become a leader capable of bringing out the best in his teammates and without the lesson that the greatest player in Boston Celtics history with Bill Russell's permission taught MJ it is likely that basketball history would have been completely different and Jordan and Bird's rivalry continued to cause a stir in the league but they never met again in the playoffs Larry would go on to post a 17 and 11 record against Michaels Bulls during his career until a serious heel injury followed by back problems greatly shortened his career injuries that not only brought about the end of the Boston Celtics Dynasty but also sent them into a sinkhole from which they could not climb out of until 20 years later and we all know that history is written by the winners and very few people have won more than Jordan and Larry Bird has kind of gone down in history is underrated compared to Jordan but he was a forward who changed the traditional definition of basketball and who starred in one of the most competitive eras ever and let's not forget that from 1983 to 1986 there was not a single player on the planet able to face him no one all right that's it for this one thanks for watching let us know what you thought down in the comments and we'll see you in the next one

Channel: Players Unlimited - Basketball

Views: 676,958

Keywords: Players Unlimited - Basketball, Larry Bird, Boston Celtics

Id: 4Z5Fekz-dqs

Length: 11min 25sec (685 seconds)

Published: Sat Mar 02 2024