Added: 3 years ago
From: ginoongkamote
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  • I wonder if Brown didn't trade (3) 1st rounders for Mcadoo, would Auerbach have used maybe (2) in setting up for the #1 pick in 1979, Magic Johnson?

  • you say zidane i say larry bird

    you say pele i say michael jordan

    you say ronaldinho i say magic johnson

    looks pretty retard from a guy who understand basketball but my opinion :)

  • he is a beast

  • a.k.a the arrival of Jesus

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  • Who really loves basketball and understands basketball knows that Larry Bird is the best player.

  • @mhjb0034 MJ had better numbers, more championships, more success, and all without a dominant big man. Sure the Celtics owned the Bulls in MJ's early years, but MJ was still very young and the Bulls team wasn't at its peak until the 90's. MJ was a much better defensive player and was as, if not more, clutch than Bird. I don't know how you can argue that Bird was better than MJ.

  • I love how the video ends with "everybody stop"

  • So much for the theory that Blacks can play sports better than Whites.

  • @MrBEB123 Well most of them can lol. Put Larry Bird's mind in a more athletic body and he would be twice as good as MJ.

  • magic n laker n mich st cheated to beat bird, massive homecourt bullshit, and magic helped pussify the nba bitchign about calls

  • 4:55 EVERYBODY STOP O_O

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  • The Celtics trading for Bob McAdoo was not a horrible move, contrary to what this video had indicated..this video made him out to be a malingerer and malcontent..that just wasn't the truth. It just so happened that he didn't fit in with Boston in that '77-'78 season..it was proven that McAdoo could infact be a huge component on a world championship team, when the Lakers signed him as a FA on Christmas Eve 1981. He played a major role in the L.A. taking the title that June..

  • @LuigiLaker Oh come on. McAdoo was just a shooter and was not a major part of the Lakers success. Magic, Kareem, NIxon, Wilkes, Cooper? They were the major roles. McAdoo was good for scoring and that 's about it.

  • @trha2222 Bullshit..so you're saying that McAdoo ( A hall of famer) didn't contribute AT ALL to the Lakers? Simpleton..he was a GREAT player..

  • @LuigiLaker I didn't say he wasn't a contributor but they would have won their titles without him. His best years were long past when he joined the Lakers and he was good for one thing, which was shooting the ball every chance he got. Not a good defender, not a good passer, not a good rebounder, but he was tall and had a decent midrange shot hard to block and that was his game.

  • @trha2222 He's in the Hall Of Fame for a reason..sure, his days in Buffalo were far and away his best, but he played a critical role in the Lakers winning two crowns in '82 and '85. Magic even stated that after his performance in the 1982 Finals against Philadelphia..yes, initially, the leaders of the Lakers did NOT want McAdoo, believing that he would ruin the chemistry of the team they had, an all-time great roster..Riley and West however, knew that he would be a great addition, and he was.

  • @LuigiLaker Yeah, I know that and there are plenty of players who are one dimensional in the HOF. He did NOT play a critical role for the Lakers. I watched them every game they played. He was a scorer but they had lots of scorers on the Lakers. Scoring was never their problem. He was tall and had a high release and he was good for points. Nothing more.

  • @trha2222 I beg to differ..he was a more than capable shot-blocker..had more than his share. Scoring was his forte, but he was able to do more..not a terrible rebounder, could run the break, an EXCELLENT pull-up shooter..he had a hand in the Lakers success..you can't argue that, man..

  • larry bird the magician.

  • Larry Bird put up stats that are pretty comparable to LeBron James'. stats. If Larry Bird had LeBron's athleticism or even Magic's Athleticism, he would be no doubt the greatest player that ever lived. Greatest basketball mind there ever was.

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  • @JTHunterPJ Haha good try. Definitely not the strongest or toughest. A really tough player but that's not how he got his points. Watch Larry Bird highlights and come tell me he scored primarily by being strong and tough.

  • @lasoogneypubes I don't have to watch Larry BIrd's Highlights, I've seen hundreds of his complete games.

    He got alot of his points by posting up smaller SF or PFs. In otherwords using his strength and leverage over them. He also got alot of his points off the offensive board, where he would put it back or get fouled and shoot free throws. That takes strength and determination. He's going in there on 7' footers and coming out the victor.

  • Then the remaining amount of his points were in then flow with him shooting a high %...

    But that's just points.. If Bird didn't score an entire point in a game he could still control the game and cause his team to win... With his Outstanding defense, and defensive rebounding. Also the attention he draws under the basket helps his team mates tremendously. Then you have his great passing and unselfish approach.

  • He was definitely one of the strongest players ever. certainly for a 6'9 player. He wanted to fight Kareem who is a good 7 inches taller than him..

  • @JTHunterPJ You dodged my challenge. Go watch Larry Bird highlight videos and then tell me he scored because he was strong.

  • Bird is one of the greatest basketball athletes ever. Sure, he couldn't run fast or jump high but he had incredible hand eye coordination, an incredibly soft shooting touch, and seemingly had eyes in the back of his head. Add to that an amazing ability to see plays before they happened which enabled him to make plays for himself and teammates that were mind blowing. How many people who stand 6'9" could combine all that and deliver in the clutch? That's a great athlete in my book.

  • @hooperqi yeah, but Bird actually did run pretty fast and jump rather high in his prime. It's just that he was so great at other things people don't recognize it... I'll bet if you lined up all the 6'9 players back then and had a foot race Bird would place 10th out of maybe 100... Also if you tested their vertical leap, I'll bet that Bird jumped higher than 70-80% of the Pf's in the league. It's just that there are sterotypes, like people think that all blacks have a 40 inch vertical

  • 40 inch vertical just because one of them does... Sorry but not all blacks have a 40 inch vertical or even a 20 inch vertical. Not all blacks are the same.

  • @JTHunterPJ What are you talking about? I never mentioned blacks or verticals. You assume I'm comparing Larry to black athletes. There have been some amazing white athletes too. For example, Tom Chambers and Billy Cunningham come to mind - both could jump outa the gym. My point is that there is a lot more to being a great basketball athlete than speed and vertical jumping ability and Larry is the ultimate example of that.

  • @hooperqi I know there's more to basketball than just a few things. However, I'd say that most all of the players in the NBA are athletic. I would say Bird as athletic but it wasn't noticed because he was so great at other things.

  • If Red Auerbach didn't pick Indiana State's junior Larry Bird (in 1978) he probably would've been picked in 1979 after Michigan State's Earvin "Magic" Johnson meaning that the Chicago Bulls would've picked Bird instead of David Greenwood of UCLA. If this would've been the case, Chicago probably would've been a better team in the early 1980s. This means no Michael Jordan. Chicago Bulls got Jordan because they weren't a playoff team. Boston thanks Red for a wise 1978 draft pick.

  • when i played in baseball leagues back in college i played against tough assed, shit talking white guys. after ya'll saw each other enough times you might have a beer with them, or not. why is that people were shocked to see bird be tough on the basketball court? all those good white ballers i played basketball against in high school, what happened to them? the white guys i see in the nba do not represent them at all.

  • Damn I miss him!

  • I don't want to hear these comparisons of Dirk to Bird. Bird's allaround game (and he even has a higher scoring average) is supreme to Dirk's

  • @MrClipper23 people just compare them because both are white, if dirk was black people wouldnt compare him to bird. playerwise they have nothing in common.

  • @alluvialedaempfer umm shooting wise? both are terrific "slow paced" shooters. but yea thats about it. an they look somewhat similar

  • @jrdgzmn1 As did most of them during that time and to date. Players talked shit before them too. It's the nature of the game. Today you say something and you get a technical foul. Too many damn rules in the game for me. Well, the wrong rules.

  • @epics7 Oh and Bird is 84th all time defensive rating to Kobe is 241st...all defense in a non defensive league where you CANNOT use your body at all...you cant know how good a Defensive player really is. More steals and blocks per game to Bird....Who would you draft first Bird or Kobe??? Me its Bird ALL DAY.

  • you 12 yr old kobe fanboys can say kobe is better than bird in ? or in ?. kobe's basketball I.Q can never be compared to Larry's I.Q, larry is in his own league when it comes to smarts about the game.

  • @BlaZiiNxIIxGuNn3R Deny it or not. But Kobe's game high I.Q. Jerry West doesn't go out of his way unless he knows. is there. Kobe's game is similar to Jordan and we seen what M.J. had done to the Celtics when Bird played. But yes, Bird has a high I.Q. of the game as well as Magic John. But comparing Kobe to Bird is like apples to oranges. Or Julius Erving to Magic. Different style of playing, but they all understand the game very well.

  • @epics7 the only thing we have to remember is that the offenses now are easier to run, defenses are easier to get around now...Kobe's coach said the MJ would average 55 a game....Bird was closer to MJ in terms of skill Kobe shoots career 45% to Bird's 50% and Kobe only has 1.2ppg more with bird being the better passer and rebounder....Bird isn't just a little bit better he is WAY better than kobe. Every % 3pt,FT,FG all Bird...hes top 5...Kobe is top 15. I mean D. Wilkins has Kobe's numbers.

  • @BlaZiiNxIIxGuNn3R Don't forget Pete Maravich.

  • He did something that Wilt, Jordan, Kareem, Oscar, and Bill couldn't do. Eliminate the quotas.

  • Red Auerbach at 2:40 of this wonderful video. "Everything's starting to fall in place, We've got Larry .. one or two little moves, and we're ready to go." The GIGANTIC little move that he probably already had in mind was trading draft rights for Joe Barry Carroll (who?) to Golden State for a young, awkward center named Robert Parish ("CHIEF!!!") and a number one pick that Red used to draft .... the forward that was recently voted as having the best inside moves ever, Kevin McHale!! Both in HOF!

  • One of my fondest memories of Bird was during Game 7 of the1984 Finals, when the Celts went on a crucial 7-0 run at the end of the 3rd period that provided Boston with what turned out to be an insurmountable lead (although LA almost won it at the end). Bird was not even on the court, but when McHale and Ainge and others scored key points while holding LA scoreless, there was Larry at the Celtic bench, incredibly happy and waving a white towel like the Hick from French Lick that he really is!!

  • There is one thing about Bird's skills that I would have liked to have seen more of in this video was Larry's inhuman passing skills. It is amazing that two of the top five passers of all time played at the same time (Magic). Maybe Bob Cousy was in there, too.What Celtic fans adored about Larry was fact that once he had a game vs Portland (?), in which he scored only 14 points or so. He called it one of his best games ever because he had a ton of assists, rebounds, and played tough defense.

  • What Bird and Magic and to a lesser extent Michael Jordan and yes, even Kobe Bryant possess -- and especially my favorite player of all time, all by himself, Bill Russell -- is the ability to make his teammates better. I do not pretend to have included all the best NBA players of all time here, but these guys stand out as unquestionable superstars because of that one quality. Bobby Orr had it in hockey, as did Gordie Howe. Probably Gretzky, too, but definitely Mark Messier.

  • In an interview Tiny Archibald summed up Bird's shortcomings -- apparent shortcomings -- fairly accurately. Bird couldn't jump, couldn't run, had very little speed or quickness. Well, Tiny was wrong in a way about that last item. Bird had a lot of quickness, even though he could not run fast. There is a big difference between the two. A lot of quickness has to do with reaction time, and Bird was "off the charts" in that category he was so quick, especially with his hands. 100th percentile!!

  • At 1:10 of this video, the narrator describes how Red Auerbach came within an eyelash of leaving our beloved Celtics. I was living in Boston in late 1977-79, and after disaster was averted, Red admitted that a key thing that persuaded him to wait to see if John Y. (as in "WHY US??!!) Brown would leave was the fact that Red had received an avalanche of letters from mothers and grandmothers begging him to stay!! I am certain of this.So older women of New England were key to later Celtic crowns!

  • First of all, let me say that the Lakers of the 1980s were the same way. They did not care if Magic or Worthy or Kareem scored all the points, all they cared about was winning. Perhaps the Laker that I admired most was Michael Cooper! I used to bitch and moan at him, and thought that he sometimes got away with fouls on Bird, but in my calmer moments I had to admit that I hated him because he was a typical Celtic, only he played for L.A.!! Probably the best defensive guard/small forward all time

  • @ ginoong etc. THANK YOU VERY MUCH!!! I wish I could give you 1000 stars for this superb video. I just know that I am going to make several comments now. What made Bird and Parish and McHale and Maxwell and Tiny Archibald and later on Dennis Johnson and ... heck ... ALL of the Celtic players from the early and mid-80s so terrific was that they didn't care who scored the points or got rebounds or made assists or -- MOST IMPORTANTLY -- played terrific defense, it was how the team did that counted

  • look im a celts fanb and appreciate bird.. but im also a realist.. converse really??? how many nba players wear converse these days?? and how many wear jordans?? where are his commercials these days?? i just saw mj 5 minutes ago on a hanes commercial.. seriously the world recognizes mj as number and thats a fact.. u can think what u want.. but really converse HAHAHAHAHHA!!!! the majority of the nba wears jordans.. converse was popular 30 years ago.. u must be mad old livin in the "glory days" ha

  • Larry bird with these celtics now would've dominated the 90's. No rings for MJ guaranteed.

  • @usnate1 hahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha ur funny son... ur guarantee is worthless.. mj was number 1 and had a 72-10 season.. still and untouched record... that must be some bomb bud ur smokin if u think mj wouldnt have a ring

  • @KicoNKica Just like Mj didn't have a ring 7 YEARS into his career, b/c of monster 80's teams. If he had a team maybe. Rodman said, "We would not have had 70 wins against the teams in the 80's." He played on the 80's pistons AND the 90's Bulls....Son. And "son" would imply that you've seen 80's basketball. Which I know you haven't cuz it wouldn't be that unbelievable of a concept, "Son". And I can't afford to smoke; got a 'real' job "na sayin' " Slimmy?

  • @usnate1 haha ok pussy cuz u have any idea what i do for work.. and u assume im mad young.. ur dumb.. too bad ur "guarentee will never be proven.. larry is number 2 and will always be number 2 so hop off his dick.. wheres his shoe deal?? where are his commercials?? no where cuz he isnt recognized as number 1.. news flash the celts played in the 90s and so did the pistons.. isiah and lambeer and dumars played in the 90s.. ur argument is still invalid.. watch another sport and grab some facts

  • @KicoNKica Injured and or geriatric magic and larry are not the same thing as an 80's magic and larry. Secondly their shoe deals were CONVERSE remember? Probably not. Ready for another shocker?? THEY HAD COMMERCIALS WITH THEIR ENDORSEMENTS .Converse was the only one doing shoe deals at that time.TV didn't become the MAIN source of marketing in this country until 1987. You're an intellectual giant, I'm going to bow out before you crush me with your witty quips while sitting on your moms couch.

  • @usnate1 oha and ur still a pussy by the way hahahahahaha

  • @KicoNKica Right....You're one of those who has such low self esteem that you think you could actually insult someone over the internet. You're that insecure ? Pathetic and sad...good luck finding your biological father..

  • @usnate1 hahaha ur funny and a hipocrite.. talkin about insultin over the internet and i must be insecure for doin it but u tell me good luck finding my father?? sounds like someone didnt have a father figure of there own in their life and is insecure about it lol... thats probably why ur a pussy with no sense sports

  • @KicoNKica look bro, obviously converse was popular thirty years ago and jordans are still relevant because michael jordan was the greatest of all time. jordan's are its own brand. bird just wore converse, he didnt have his own brand. i mean i really dont know where you were going with that argument, by the way your grammar is fucking atrocious.

  • Most people have no idea how good Larry Bird was.

    YouTube v=pNDYB7saGlM

  • i think without larry bird the celtics will not be the boston celtics that it is now.. & red will go to new york bird saves the celtics franchise

  • 4:40 learn how to spell Larry clowns

  • Too bad for bird brain and the rest of the bastan celtics that there was a Magic & Kareem that stood in their way. Ha, ha, ha!!!!

  • @ImOfNope not to mention the FAR superior eastern conference!

  • @mikallink Yes, that's right. With Detroit and Philadelphia to.

  • @mikallink i meant birds team was dealing with more talent moron. not the L-GAY Fakers who had to play phoenix and every weak western team!birdhad to face rough physical play unlike TRAGIC and the fakers!LOL!

  • @ImOfNope Lakers were better teams pound for pound. But larry had a more complete game than magic. Every stat except assists.

  • Larry Legend

  • if bird had jordans athleticism then maybe there would be a huuge debate on who is the best..however too bad he was white..but still man i would put bird top 3 or top 5 all time...and probably the only white guy in the top 5...you may include jerry west in top 10 but top 5 theres gotta be larry..still jordans the best ever...

  • @mike170tube Keep this in mind, though: Bird transformed a 29-win team to a 61-win team during his rookie year! Jordan did not transform the Bulls overnight like that.

  • @MrClipper23 bird was better when he entered the league than jordan was....bird had the legs when he was 20-23...he lost a step in 1984..wow only after 4 years -_- white ppl...-__-

    :)

  • @mike170tube I give Jordan all the props due him, he was an amazing player that could score from any angle. That said, I still believe that Bird was a better player than Jordan was. Bird was a better passer and play-maker. He made a concerted effort to get the other guys in the game. He would give up shots for himself when he saw a better opening elswhere. Bird was the best all around player in NBA history (my opinion) while Jordan was by far the best scorer.

  • @nightowlhunter2  my opinion...jordan was the greatest all time..BUT my favorite player is still bird..why ?? because of everything you just mentinoed...TOO BAD...he had shitty athelicsm...otherwise...i do think that he might just be #1..if bird had this atheticm- he would have been as good a scorere as jordan

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  • What is your definition of athleticism? Jumping? Flying though the air like Jordan does with a leap and a bound just as Superman did? Then yes, Bird does not have your (and may other peoples) description of athleticism...................­.....

    .........................

    (continued) next reply

  • @nightowlhunter2 Bird had a 28'' vertical which is the average vertical in TODAY's nba. And no man leads the break 9 out of 10 times, and snags 10 rebounds a game while being UNATHLETIC. He was less athletic than an average SUPERSTAR, but not everyone else.

  • @mike170tube I say Bird DID have the athletics that people don't give him credit for. Watch some of the video's on here and you will see Bird dive after balls that Jordan never would do, how he would slide his body all over the floor just to save a ball going out of court, how he would fight two, three or four people in the paint to get a shot off (usually successful too). Yes he could not "fly" like Jordan but who could??? Nobody but Jordan, even to this day he owns the sky.

  • @nightowlhunter2 Anyhow,,,,, Bird/Jordan or Jordan/Bird it does not matter, why? Because we got to watch the greatest era in all of basketball back in the 80's and mid 90's. Both were simply amazing players that even today I do not believe that anybody could touch. I will agree with anybody who thinks Jordan is the best because their arguments are all true and yet I will agree with anybody saying Bird is the best (my opinion as you know) because those arguments are all true too.

  • @mike170tube MJ averaged 8 Free throws attempts a game to Bird's 4 a game. Mostly because of jordan's infamous gimme calls with the touch fouls invented in the 90's. Theres your 6ppg more in jordan's favor. Not MJ's fault, but still a cold fact. And MJ had a 32% 3P% career against LB's 38%. Bird's FT% was 89% to jordan's 84%. Rebounds & assists go to bird. Blocks their even, but steals go to MJ. Its give and take...?

  • @usnate1 Bird also shot a higher 3p% with MORE attempts which is very impressive.

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  • Yep, I can see your point and I am not trying to convince you otherwise, I just look at Bird's, scoring, passing skills (which IS the best ever, IMO), defence, his leadership and his ability to, as Magic once said, "frighten" other players,,,,, that the whole is greater than just scoring. Nobody will ever say who is the best because these two players, Bird, Jordan, are just insanely good. It comes down to what you prefer, do you like an amazing scorer or a all around player.

  • @nightowlhunter2 no dude....you dont get my point....larry would be AS GOOD AS MIKE or EVEN BETTER....if he was black....just imagine how much better of a scorer bird would have been (if he already aint) if he could jump as high as jordan..and imagine if jordan would have had the same scoring ability if he was white and couldnt jump...yes bird is a better passer...bird is most probabaly the smartest bball player ever....and he passes more than he shoots...we just cant compare them..

  • @mike170tube You've been brainwashed. Culture plays a huge role in any sport. If you look at history, you'll see that baseball at the turn of the century was 75% jewish. Yeah Jewish baseball players. The irish had boxing and basketball. Football was italian, black, irish. This was back when whites had different sub-cultures and weren't a cumulative mass in the eyes of statistics. Whites don't play with blacks in basketball growing up in the u.s.

  • @mike170tube "Athleticism is more than just running and jumping. Its stamina, agility, timing; which is why ball players like Rodman and Bird do so well." Phil Jackson "If I had to choose a player to take a shot to win a game, I'd choose Jordan. If I needed a shooter to save my life...I'd choose Larry Bird." Pat Riley .Jordan was asked in an interview, "Who would you pick to take the last shot other than yourself." And before the question was finished..MJ said "Bird." Without hesitation.

  • @nightowlhunter2 it is sad to see players have athleticism as an advantage...but then black ppl do....given a normal person (scrap the height) ..brid IS the best of all time...amazing how he puts up 22ppg when he cant even run or jump....and i think hes a better passer than Magic....the best passer ever actually...and hes he does frighten others....somehow...and in a team with barely any athleticism, he does a good job leading....jordan doesnt need to lead...he just needs to put up 50 to win.

  • @mike170tube Plenty of whites could jump, but they just dont jump. Basketball is not typically a white american sport. I'm white 6'3'' I play ball and the only way I could play growing up was with the black kids because they were the only ones playing. I have a 38'' vert. Thats pretty good.

  • @usnate1 i agree there are a lot of whites that can jump but for every 1 white jumper there are around 8-9 black jumpers....

  • @mike170tube Thats why the long jump olympic gold medal winners of the past 7 years have been all white american and europeans. Its cultural not natural; psychological presuppositioning causes people to act and do certain things. If people don't jump they will never develop muscles to jump higher. In the U.S. theres prob 1 white to every 8 black americans who practice for more than 8 hours a day.

  • @usnate1 LAWL i dont know how we got here....

  • @mike170tube Another reason why you don't see many blacks in hockey, tennis, all of the winter sports, swimming...and numerous other sports is cultural and economical. On the whole per capita the average black american family makes below the average white family per child. Certain sports take funding to fulfill a given talents' needs. If you're in the MLB and if you're white usually come from midddle class white american family. NBA, NFL almost all come from below average incomes and communities

  • @usnate1 yea agreed....tennis golf and hockey are sports for relatively "richer" ppl...u dont need much to play ball or base or foot- but one question ....dont u need to have technique to win at long or high jump? i mean u dont need to have technique to dunk...if u can jump it u can dunk it

  • @mike170tube Yes, but we're not talking about technique, we're talking about raw natural athletic ability. Long jumpers jump even more than basketball players. You have to have jumping ability for the long jump as well regardless.

  • @usnate1 yea dude they can jump further than basketball players but then my question is (just wanna know ur opinion as always) they practice that jumping motion their whole lives- i dont think basketball players do that...so yea... but they DO practice their vertical leap which is the one thing that i question....white high jumpers keep on jumping and so do black ball playrs- so it is NOT genetics right? it does all come down to muscle i think...black or white..

    then again ....

  • @mike170tube If athleticism in basketball is more important than skill; then Nance, Wilkins, Dr. J would be better than MJ and BIrd. Which they aren't. Shannon Brown is gonna be a HOFer by that logic? Right? Bird schooled worthy, cooper, Dr.j and Nique on a nightly basis. And MJ got burned in the '87'86,'85 playoffs by bird. Scottie wasn't doing a great job so they put Mike on the double team and sometimes mike by himself..didn't work AT ALL. MJ was great, but you gotta give bird a top 5 spot

  • He was the 6th pick I bet the other 6teams feel bad they didn't get him

  • @ELrabadi Not the Lakers. They won 5 championships with Magic.

  • Red was a genious every player he went after was a stud, nba needs more players like Larry

  • @Airman32292 and more managers like Red!!!

  • Larry Bird is definitely one of the greatest players ever. I will not say he's greater than Jordan though. True he did have the ability to play with at the level or above most guys with great abilities. He could do it all, but then again so could Jordan. Larry used what most players now lack, fundamental basketball skills.

  • @DaCreapa na man larry used his brain

  • A true team player and the ONE and ONLY GREATEST player ever played Basketball. It took him two years to get a championship.

    There are Jordan fans out here.....It took him 7 years for a ring.

    Bird came in with no help, but he mold the rookies that came by unlike the other guy who has a brand of his own shoe.

    Ball Hug

  • @Mgear1217

    "with no help"? McHale, Parish... Jordan had no help for a long time.

  • McHale, Parrish, Johnson, and others came in after Bird....

    Jordan is one heck of a player, but he is overrated. Sterns loves him and so does the referees. Without Jordan (in those time after Bird and Magic retired) NBA will be nowhere.

    I have all MJ's dvd and history. If you pay attention, he decided to have help and realize that it is a team system during his six year.

    Kobe is doing the same path as Jordan did. He plays low post and shoot around these days.

  • @Mgear1217 Dude, I love Bird and I love his game. But he himself would probably the first to admit that Jordan was his superior. Jordan was probably more competitive and driven than Bird, some say pathologically so, he was a more prolific scorer and a way, way better defender. And he won more titles with what was an inferior supporting cast than Bird had. And the last time I checked the number of years it takes a player to get a ring is not a criteria to measure greatness.

  • @omnivorous65 Yes, Bird had mentioned Jordan is God. But its not like he cant beat him. Bird was simply complimenting Jordan in a high level of respect. And in that time, Bird was old. He is just merely passing the torch to someone else. Jordan is great and no doubt on that. What I am not impress with Jordan was, he is not a team player like Bird and Magic. People forget that basketball is a team played sports. NBA flourish Jordan so much to gain popularity which is good for the NBA.

  • @Mgear1217 Celtics swept the bulls twice in brid's prime. That was also when MJ scored his 63pt game. They lost, so what good is 63 pts?

  • @omnivorous65 When mj retired the bulls went -2 in the wins column and still made the playoffs. When Magic retired the lakers that following season went -13 wins made it to the 2nd round of the playoffs. When larry left the celts went for -15 wins and getting knocked out in the 1st round of the playoffs, with mchale and parish. Just to counter the idea that MJ had the most impact on the court and that the bulls were such an inferior team.

  • And championships are a result of era, competition, and teams not individuals. Oscar Robertson was a supremely talented player with only 1 ring and the same with Dr. J. Jordan's dominance was partly his doing, however it can't be ignored that the '80s boasted 7 of the winningnest teams in nba history. Tougher era will always mean fewer championships and fewer accolades for the star players. 

  • @omnivorous65 And bird had mj in every category except scoring wherein MJ attempted 8 FT's a game as opposed to Bird's 4 FT attempts a game. There's your 6 ppg in jordan's favor right there. MJ was notorious for getting gimme calls in an era where he sold the most tickets. Jordan inflated his scoring at the stripe Not his fault, but sadly true. MJ was the first truely marketed b-ball star. He was exciting, but substance and skill could go either way.

  • wish he didn't push it when his back was bad. We could have enjoyed him and won a few more years.

    God Bless him!

  • The Hick from French Lick

    Cant run cant jump not quick

    Simply the best!

    So relatable

  • Kobe is a great player and he will have great stats but the thing that Bird has is you can relate to him almost like a regular guy. If you could jump like Kobe or have hang time like a super human then you should be able to do the things you do. Bird on the other hand doesn't have all of those physical attributes yet competed and won over those who did. That is what we love about the guy... you would never expect him to be a brash, trash talking, in your face guy but he is! gotta love it.

  • @johnshin23 I am not too convinced about that line of thinking. Bird might not have a naturally gifted athlete than others, but he had great size, superb hand-eye coordination, a natural shooting ability, mental strength, intelligence. His mind processed things differently than the ordinary player. That is a gift too. He was given lots of tools and focussing too narrowly on athletism misses the complexity of basketball and what it takes too be a succesful player.

  • @omnivorous65 I wouldn't say a gift. But what Magic and Bird had done was changed the way that the big man played. These players adopted the small guards style of playing. Just look at your Isiah Thomas and other small players with similar games before you started seeing big players do that. James Worthy another. Him and Hakeem admitted to that. Ralph Sampson was another. Despite his injuries, no center to this date could bring the ball down the court, passing game etc. like him.

  • @omnivorous65 I completely agree with you on the mental aspect of the game. If it were up to the physical only then Shawn Kemp is just out of this world (6'10" and cat quick) but he could never get that mental edge and that is why he is what he is... But I completely agree with you and loved watching him destroy opponents cause he gets the game

  • @johnshin23 That's not a good comparison. For starters, and this surprised me because I watched those games during those years. Bird has a similar game to Magic but not as smooth. Kobe's game is more like Michael J. People relate to him as they do Kobe. I do see your point, but they both have that competitive game hence why Kobe is where he is to date. What I don't like about Kobe over the years is his lack of team playing. But that has been in the NBA since the 1970's. See video above.^

  • top great nba players, magic, bird, jordan, russell, chamberlain, west, and lydell.

  • Bird is the word

  • Surfin Bird!!!

  • I'm sometimes inclined to just go with the crowd and say Jordan was better, but I keep coming back to what he did at Indiana State, carrying a team that had never been to the tournament to the finals. Since he left, I believe they made the tournament once. I think Bird s the greatest.

  • lol, jordan would kill bird.

  • LOL@ bballcard!! Yeah . . . 'cept he never did. "Bwaa-haa-haa-haa!"

  • you're right. but he did drop 63 in a playoff game loss to the celtics in his second year.

  • Damn but I miss them and Magic...Kobe is great, but doesn't cut it for me. Kobe makes Kobe better. Larry, MJ, and Magic made their teammates better. Ahhh, I'm just some old guy ranting. Spin up "Glory Days." LOL!

  • yes, you are correct... you are an old guy ranting...but the proof is in the pudding, Kobe makes his teammates better too, as do all the greats....but if you're a true basketball fan, how can Kobe "not cut it for you?" it's like saying you're a wine connoisseur, but French wine doesn't "cut it for you"... or, i'm a cigar aficionado but Cuban cigars don't "cut it for me"...do you catch my drift? you're not a real b-ball fan cus you make your little opinions bigger than the game...

  • Kobe IS a great player, but last night he shot 14 for 37. 37 shots?? One guy??

    Kobe Bryant: 4.7 assists per game

    Larry Bird 6.3 assists per game

    Case closed.

  • you said it... "Kobe is a great player"..case closed...stop trying to be a basketball expert, cus you're not...and stop the over analyzing thing...

  • Yeah, you're a basketball savant. Obviously, shooting percentage and career assists mean nothing, so I expect the NBA to forego stats and stop "over-analyzing" too. Enjoy your blinders.

  • ok you stat whore, how bout this for stats? Kobe Bryant's 4 titles to Larry Bird's 3? or the youngest player to reach 24,000 points? how bout 81 points in a game? and Bird and Jordan never took 37 shots in a game? come on bulklover get your head out of your ass...you said it yourself, "Kobe is a great player"... leave it at that and stop trying to over analyze the game,and just appreciate what Kobe gives to the sport... you haters will use any means necessary to bring him down...

  • Ahh, I love emotional whining when those pesky little facts get in the way. "Stat whore"? "Head out of your ass"? "Haters"?  Sorry, that line of argument is a FAIL.

    Try this: Bird own's Kobe in EVERY statistical category except points per game...and THERE Kobe has Bird by one whole career point per game. Bird owns him in shooting %, 3 pt. %, assists/game, rebounds AND Kobe won HIS titles in a watered down 30 team league. In the 80s, Kobe's Lakers never make it out of the Western semis. Ha!

  • when Kobe decides to hand em up and his career is all said and done, i promise you that he'll go down as a better player than Bird... that i promise you...even if that "doesn't cut it for you"

  • You kind of remind me of Rush Limbaugh or the Spanish Inquisition; you're so emotionally invested in your "religion" that facts don't matter. But that's okay, because Kobe's career isn't over and he may indeed be ranked higher than Bird when it's all done, but he isn't right now. The NBA has changed from a team game to a cult of personality and Kobe's game fits that paradigm perfectly; in THIS culture is IS by far the greatest ever, but those old stats, still can't avoid 'em. Bird is the word!

  • you've been using that rush limbaugh analogy for decades now, haven't you... nonetheless, you're apparently unable to get over the "good ole days", so regardless of whether my arguments do or don't make sense to you, you'll hold on to your position as tight as Bird holds on to his money... yeah, Bird was and probably still is the worst tipper in history... he was notorious for refusing to tip waiters and all people in the service industry... remarkable for an individual who made tens of millions

  • Ooooo, Bird's lousy tipper! Ye Gods! What a criminal!! Off with his head!!! Maybe because he grew up dirt poor, and did not lead a life of privilege like Kobe, he actually understands the meaning of a dollar. And as long as we're bringing in irrelevant facts, Bird hasn't scarified his body with tats and hasn't been arrested for rape and hasn't had to make public apologies for philandering...plus, he STILL leads in all statistical categories except for that measly ppg avg. Conni= Epic Fail

  • so by "understanding the meaning of a dollar" justifies an individual being a cheap ass? i never heard that one before...you would think growing up "dirt poor" that he would have some sensitivity for people who make their living off of tips...people who's lively hood and ability to feed their families is predicated on the common sense and good will of the paying customer...but not the case with Larry "bad tippin" Legend..he chooses to fuck people over in that department...

  • You rose to the bait of irrelevant facts and are disregarding the statistical reality. Heehee! EPIC FAIL! :D

    So what if Bird's a drunk (you would be too if you came from French Lick, IN)? So what if Kobe's a philanderer? So what if Bird is a lousy tipper? So what if Kobe has tats?

    Assists p/game; shooting %; 3 pt %; rebounds p/game. End of story.

    Oh wait! Kobe has him in career scoring (because he has no conscience)...by one whole ppg. Heehee!

    Kobe Fail. Bird Rule.

  • epic fail? epic fail? that's something you're probably all too familiar with in your "epic failure" of a life...listen, you love Bird because you identify with him... white, middle aged drunk who kicked the black man's ass... he represents everything you wish you were... but your harping on stats that aren't final yet, as Kobe has another 4 to 5 highly productive years left, barring injuries... as i stated before, when Kobe decides to hand em up his stats and legacy will supersede Bird's...

  • Conni's Epic Fail To Do List:

    1. ignore facts - check

    2. resort to personal insults - check

    3. insert irrelevant info that cannot be confirmed - check

    4. pull race card - check

    5. raise white flag - check

    6. kiss Bird's puckered arse - "Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"

  • @conni70 Kobe 42 FG% to bird's 49%. Rebounds bird by 5 a game. Assist 2 more a game to bird. Bird scored 2pts less per game career than kobe while boasting a much higher FG%. FT%If championships is your arguement then you don't know b-ball history. Rings are a result of teams, era, and competition. Bird has been compared to the best, not the best white players, he wasn't compared to cowens or laimbeer. MJ marks bird very high. You can't argue individual player skill b/c numbers dont lie.

  • @usnate1....and yes, you're partly correct in your statement that "Rings are a result of teams, era, and competition"....

    teams? Kobe is/ was part of the greatest teams of this past decade... era? Kobe is without question, the best player of his era (and don't give me the Tim Duncan argument)... competition? in the Magic/ Bird era, their respective teams were the toast of the league, as it was basically the Lakers-Celtics every year...were as in Kobe's era, there is more parity in the league.

  • @conni70 When did I ever say kobe wasn't good? I only think that kobe is overrated people forget easily how good larry, magic, MJ really were. Kobe is the best of his era, but lebron in terms of skill is closer to the other 3 I just mentioned. Stats are individualistic. Lebron's , larry, MJ, and magic's are better. Championships are team accomplishments.

  • so tattoos make an individual bad, according to you...that's a real shallow perspective on life... and the Kobe rape charge is over, it was settled out of court...the girl had a documented history of clinical mental problems and promiscuity issues... the prosecution knew they had no case, so they settled...and why the attempts to portray Bird as some sort of moral figure? what did he ever give back to society? he's not know for being a philanthropist, is he...he's actually a raging alcoholic..

  • amen brother

    kobe has nothing on bird

    the fact of the matter is that kobe will go down in history as another name in NBA legendism but Bird has gone down in history as a player who actually changed the game of basketball.with his initiative and savvy alone along with another great player,Magic Johnson. Kobe can never have that effect he's only along for the ride.

  • @conni70 No one denies that bryant is good, I'm only conceding to the fact that he isn't better than bird. And neither does the rest of the basketball world who isn't trying to sell tickets. But you're correct, kobe's career isn't over so we'll see.

  • @usnate1....in basketball, more than any other team sport, individual greatness is defined by how many championships you win...talk to any NBA historian and insider, and they'll tell you the same...

    but you said that Bryant is "good"?.... "good" is an insult..."good" players don't score 81 points in a game (second most in history)... and "good" players don't win consecutive finals MVP's... no, you see, Kobe is a GREAT player, not good...

  • @conni70 So then Bill Russell is better than michael jordan because he has more rings than MJ and Magic combined?NO. th81 point game was against the raptors, the 39th team in the league on defense, and there is no denying with the rule changes and the touch fouls jordan and bird 60pt games were more impressive. Also, 7 of the winningnest teams in the history of the nba played in the 80's. 5 out of the 90's and 2 out of the 2000's era. So the parody argumenet wont work. LB wins in stats correct?

  • @usnate1...but no one is denying the greatness of Larry Legend, he's certainly one of the top 5 in NBA history, at his position... but given Kobe's accomplishments up to this point, and the fact that he's got a lot of productive basketball left, with the perspective of time, he will deserve to be in the discussion as one of the all time greats when he decides to hang them up...

  • Fuck I love Larry Bird.

  • The great white hope!!! We miss you, Larry!!

  • 4:36 I can't believe they mis-spelled his name!

  • One of the top 10 of all time, no doubt.

  • larry bird was an awsome player did he play small forward or power forward

  • Larry BIrd's Main position was Small Foward. But at 6'9, he could Play Shooting, Small or Power. He could actually play any position with his career average 10 rebounds.

  • actually he was a point forward

  • small foward

  • One of the greatest of all time, both college and pro! Larry Legend!

  • Great stuff! Bird was awesome!

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