Basketball Time Machine: 'NBA Legends Explain How Larry Bird Destroyed Everyone'

Source:Basketball Time Machine- Los Angeles Lakers defender Michael Cooper, talking about the great Larry Bird.

"In this Video NBA Legends explain why Larry Bird was Better than everybody

Larry Bird, larry Bird highlights, larry Bird Boston Celtics, Larry Bird Trash Talk,

Larry Bird funny Moments, 

Larry Bird 2022, nba legends on larry Bird, Larry Bird open court, michael jordan Larry Bird, Larry Bird Clutch Moments, NBA Legends explain Larry Bird, Larry Bird Full Game, Larry Bird documentary, Larry Bird dennis rodman,

NBA, Lebron James Michael Jordan, Kevin Mchale, Boston Gardon, NBA, Old School Nba." 

From Basketball Time Machine

I think Michael Jordan has the best quote that I've ever heard about Larry Bird. He said that he played against Larry Bird for 8 seasons and still to this day, doesn't know what position that Bird played, because Bird made so many plays and so many key plays. Bird would make the long range jump shot, get the key drive to the basket, get the key bucket in the post, make the great assist, lead and run the fast break, key rebound, key steal, etc. He would make all the plays that a point guard, off-guard, small forward, power forward, and center would make. So what position did Larry Bird play? And he could defend all 3 positions up front as well. 

For the sake of this post, I got Larry Bird down as the greatest forward of all-time and I also believe that. To me, Larry Bird and Julius Erving are the two greatest NBA forwards ever. If I had to put an all-time NBA team together, they would be my two starting forwards. But why is Bird the greatest forward and arguably the greatest player in NBA history? He wasn't fast, didn't jump very well, not overly bulky, but certainly strong. 

I think the best way to look at Larry Bird, is to look at him the way you would look at Wayne Gretzky in hockey or John Unitas in football. And if you don't know who those two other players are, this post is not going to help you that much and I'm not going to tell you who they are. Bird, Gretzky, and Unitas, all have the ability to see things happening that have haven't happened yet, simply by paying attention to the entire game and what's going on. 

The perfect example for Bird, is that great defensive play that he made against Isiah Thomas and the Detroit Pistons during game 5 of the 1987 Eastern Conference Finals. If Isiah just calls timeout or waits a second and passes the ball to his center Bill Laimbeer, game over and the Pistons win. They're already up 1 and either the time runs out or Laimbeer goes to the other side of the court and shoots 2 three throws even if he misses both of them, not enough time for the Celtics, even with Larry Bird, to come back and win the game. But as always, Bird can see exactly what was going on. 

All the Pistons had to do here was to successfully inbound the ball and the game is probably over. So Bird completely paying attention to what Isiah is doing and Isiah gives Bird a gift not even knowing that Bird is even in play, because he's rushing when he didn't need to and throws a lazy pass, that Bird picks off, Dennis Johnson is following the whole play the whole time as well, cuts to the basket, where Bird hits him with perfect pass, after making the perfect steal and the Celtics win the game. 

I think the greatest play that Larry Bird ever made, at least in the postseason, was a defensive play. And it wasn't even a great athletic play, Bird was simply completely aware of what was going on, could see what was developing, and had the perfect reaction and execution to what was going on. And was a play that I believe no other player whose ever played professional basketball before, could've made, certainly in that position and under those conditions.

I might be in the minority on this, but I think what separates Larry Bird and Magic Johnson, even from Michael Jordan, is that Legend and Magic could dominate the game, win the game, be the best player in the game, by not scoring, because they could do so many other things both offensively and defensively. And if you don't believe me, just a solid highlight package of all three of those great players will make my point for me. 

A typical highlight package of Larry Bird, you'll see a lot of great baskets, but also a lot of great rebounds, assists, and steals. Same thing with Earvin Johnson. With Michael Jordan, most of his highlights will be great baskets, with a lot of great athletic ability involved with those baskets. Larry Bird dominated by the NBA by doing everything and he did that by being smarter than everyone else on the court and whose ever played basketball.

You can also see this post on WordPress.

You can also see this follow piece to this post, on The New Democrat.