Watched Larry during his prime years. After he made about 7 "impossible" game winning shots in a row I was flabbergasted. I played many different sports so I knew how difficult it was to be a clutch player who almost never fails when games are on the line. Larry is the best clutch player I've ever seen or hope to see. I'm still shaking my head in bewilderment at Larry's skill on the basketball court. When your piers say you were one of the best of all time, that says it all.
@@robbarker450 You bring up an intriguing "what if" Rob; You could go back, before his double-Achilles tendon surgery at the start of the 1988-89 season, which saw him at the end of the best five-year stretch of ANY small forward to play in the league, becoming the first and consecutive player of the 50-40-90 club; When he returned, virtually all his lateral movement was gone, and his back, initially injured while shoveling rock for a driveway at his Mom's house back home, was deteriorating. He still averaged 25ppg, 10rb and nearly 8 assists that season, but you could tell he wasn't the same player; I was fortunate enough to be born at the right time(1972) to witness in person, and on television, his entire career from 79 till the spring of 92, with one last hurray with the "Dream Team," bringing home the Gold in process. Had he adopted a more robust weight-training program earlier in his career, which he did in 87, and didn't injure his back...I believe he would have at least 30,000 career points, 12,000 rebounds and nearly 10,000 assists. As it stands in the record books now, his numbers still look awfully impressive when you consider he really only had 10.5 years of good health in the league, which a lot of the younger fans of his don't realize...his career was quite brief when you consider Lebron will be entering his 18th season this fall. I just wish people would stop prefacing their appreciation and plaudits with how he's the best "white" player of his era, as it had no bearing on how great a player he truly was, and how respected he's been.
@@Bighjr88 I saw this video yesterday and it is tough to compare either Jordan or James to Jabbar or Wilt, for example. It's like comparing the NFL's Jimmy Brown tp Peyton Manning or linebacker Lawrence Taylor.
The greatness of Larry can be measured not only by his personal ability but his ability to make everyone around him play to their maximum potential = true greatness = LARRY LEGAND
Larry can’t be appreciated by just listing categories. The stories , bets, trick shots and personal challenges he made for himself just give a small idea of the legend himself.
Jing Qi but isn’t it frustrating that people won’t be able to fully appreciate his greatness? I guess the ones that really want to know will dig deep and find out at least.
During the 1980's, and I saw it all...LA vs. Boston was the hottest ticket, and the most cherished and intense rivalry in the NBA; When it was renewed in 2008, it brought back so many memories of battling the "showtime" Lakers and how basketball was truly spectacular to witness. Back then , the slogan on tv was "The NBA, it's Fantastic!" It was...it really, really was.
@@Hopatcong-ri2jn Celtics fan since Larry's rookie season(79-80) and my favorite player in the NBA was actually Bernard King, who became a New York scoring institution before a severe knee injury changed his game; As I'm sure you know, it took Bernard over two seasons to rehabilitate and recover, but he heroically did return to about 85% of what he once was...which was still 'effin scary...and he almost became a Celtic too! Little known story that just prior to the 1987/88 season, the Knick decided King was "damaged goods" and didn't resign him(big mistake) and he became a free-agent. Bernard and Red Auerbach met in person in Boston, along with other Celtics brass and King's agent to propose signing him, making the Celtics an even more intimidating team. McHale was still recovering from off season foot surgery since he'd played the entire 87 playoffs on a broken foot, which was just incredible as he was still dominate...so the Celtics needed help at the forward position. Long story short, King ended up signing with the Washington Bullets and would soon return to All-Star form...but I always wondered...what if King became a Celtic? Move Larry over the to power-forward position, which he would play a lot of in the late stage of his career, and have Bernard at his natural, small-foward position with McHale, once healthy, a sixth man again. A great time to be alive during that era!
Oddly, in watching this story about Larry Bird and how truly good he was at the task of Basketball, I’m reminded of an old man I once worked with who appeared slower than all his co workers but at the end of the day he got nearly twice the work done. So I studied this old guy for awhile and I figured it out. He was smarter and waisted no steps. No back and forth, just every move was money. Many yrs later, I had become that guy lol. Anyway great Vlog!
If Dennis Rodman says he tried his best to guard him but didn't work too well because he got schooled, you know he was that good. That's kinda crazy considering Rodman guarded Shaq and gave him problems.
I remember Bill Simmons saying that Rodman actually guarded Bird very well, but at the same time no one could ever truly lock down Larry Bird. Rodman and Cooper where probably the defenders who gave him the most problems though.
William Koscielniak yea when you think about it maybe that’s how bird gave himself the advantage in trash talking Rodman. Seemed like it worked in the beginning at least.
If Larry Didn't Fall Off His Tractor He Really Would Have Won A Few More And His Numbers Would Have Been More Incredible Than What They Were And They Were Still Great 👊🏽🏀💯
I'd call it an obvious truth, not brutal. Brutal implies it is hard to swallow somehow. Bird did nothing if not torch other teams on a nightly basis for years! There was a reason I hated that guy so much (Laker, Magic fan here). I like him now because how could a basketball fan not like Larry Legend? Three MVP's in a row, right? At the time I thought it was because he was over rated, but now... this is gonna hurt... but if I had to pick between Magic and Bird, and I knew nothing of the other players on my team, I'd take Bird. He works with more configurations, IMHO. Magic was perfect for the Lakers. Of course, I pick Magic over Bird for the Lakers -- but then I know the team. If I want wins, and that's all I want, my team is the New York Knicks, who fits in better -- Magic or Larry? I kinds think Larry fits in better. Anyway, those who grew up in the 80's era were truly blessed by basketball karma. It was an amazing era leading right up into and through MJ's 90's.
No brutality needed. When Larry retired, he was the ONLY player to be in the Top 50 for PPG, APG, *AND* RPG. Ever. He STILL IS (though he's borderline on one of those, right at 50th now almost *30 years later*).
@@bricefleckenstein9666 Amazing stat. Now I know, but I'm not surprised. And he didn't do that with a long extended career. If you factored in number of games played, I wouldn't be surprised if he's too 20-30 all-time in each of those stats.
Michael Cooper sums it up beautifully. Especially unlike other stars/scorers who would relax once they gave up the ball & Larry never did that. He simply continued on by doing something else.
I've said this several times - this is one of the best channels out there on any topic. Period. I grew up watching this era of basketball and completely took it for granted. I was just too young to really appreciate how great it all was. So many great stars, great characters, great rivalries during that time. Too bad they didn't have HD back then. It'd be tempting to watch entire seasons over again to relive it.
A few years ago I was looking at a Celtics-Lakers game on You Tube. My son said "nice highlights!" I said "No, this is the entire game." He took a seat and watched it with me. When the game ended, he said "Now I know why you talk about this." I said they were the Ali vs. Frazier of Basketball.
Hey Sean, great job on the old school NBA. Larry Bird is simply the BEST ALL- AROUND PLAYER EVER!!! He made his teammates better more than anyone. I will take Larry Bird in his prime over anyone even Michael. By the way, the 80's was the best era ever in the NBA!!!
I watched Larry growing up and he was an absolute terror on the court and even more dangerous than the last two or three minutes of a game! That guy was relentless and I don’t think he gets enough credit.
Larry was so clutch that you don’t remember the last second shots he made to win games; you remember the last second shots he missed when his team lost. That's because there aren't that many times he didn't swish his shot to ice the game. He was so clutch and unbothered with the pressure of the situation that you could mistake him for a robot. And he talked shit doing it! He was truly one of a kind. GOAT!
Watched Larry Legend on TV for years, and always wondered why he had so many wide open shot opportunities. In the early-mid 80's, we had a 12 game season ticket package with the Nets in NJ, and you could pay a little extra to make sure you got at least 1 Celtics vs Nets game. There was nobody like Bird. He was perpetual motion, and would just exhaust, humiliate and frustrate whoever was trying to guard him by running them into picks, back-door cutting them, out-working, out-thinking and out-hustling them every minute, every play, up and down the court. His basketball IQ was through the roof. That's why a guy who typically couldn't out-run or out-leap his opponents managed to win rings and MVP awards.
what no one mentions or remembers except us old dogs is that when bird and magic came in the NBA the league was almost dead..... i had been following basketball my whole life and teams were folding, some games looked like nothing more that 10 guys playing one on one, and the NBA image was crap....magic and bird saved the league for all the young guys who came after them.... and BOTH of them MUST be included in any discussion of greatest of all time just for that reason
@J T i loved pete but he should have been in the harlem globetrotters .... amazing player but more of a showman..... had he played with bird or magic in his prime it's hard to say how good he would have been, same with lou hudson, earl monroe....look at what it did for dennis johnson, great great player and shooter but when he got on a team where he did'nt have to do everything he got rings....and lets not forget dr. J ..... god i miss those days.... think fat boy shack would push around bob lanier or wilt ???
And a video of mostly very well known players picking teams - Kevin McHale picks ALL Celtics, and Larry was his first pick (Bill Russell got picked by someone else in the first round though).
Wilt didn't hand out compliments easily, come on he had a 100 points in a game and no 3's, he's the best center and easily on the 1st team of all time.
@@psychicghosty8616 No doubt he could get it done in a playmaker role, in any era.. But the rebounding, deep range and sneaky good defense?.. Wow.. Plus, in an era of aggressive close-outs, his ability to put the ball on the floor and get into the paint ( or pull up from anywhere), and finish or pass to a finisher, woulda been phenomenal.. Bird could do it all..
I grew up in the LA area as a teen and young adult during the ShowTime era. The Celtics were hated and Larry Bird was overrated. Magic was the man. You didn't see anybody wearing green Celtic jerseys around here. It wasn't until social media came around and ShowTime has long been gone that I see how good Larry Bird was. I, now, believe he was better than Magic. Bird is without doubt one of the best to play the game AND in a very different tough era of basketball. The game is played differently now. No touching allowed if you have the ball.
@@riffsthatkill2180 true.... but they both made their respective teams better ....but it's also true that the lakers might have had the edge in talent overall.....
I wasn't a Bird fan when he was playing. But I have realized since how great he truly was in all aspects of the game. He was one of the most fundamentally sound players ever. His willingness to sacrifice his body to win is what sets him apart from the rest.
If Charles is so honest, why couldn’t he just admit Larry was better? He said Larry was a better shooter & that was it. Larry’s also a better passer, better Clutch, better b-ball IQ, better assist, and imo Larry was a decent rebounder too....I’ve not seen anything that shows me Charles is better than Larry in any aspect.
@@irishgrl Charles Barkley isn't even in the Top 10 players list of ALL TIME, and possibly not even in the Top 20 players of all time. Bird beats him in almost every category possible.
@Raymond Sims James...better athlete. Bird...better ALL AROUND BASKETBALL PLAYER. If you can't decifer this...you have no business commenting. So STOP IT, you sound stupid!
I’m watching the 2020 Finals n I’ve seen more fouls where the offensive player dives into the defensive player. Shit, all you have to do is reach out with your hands n it’s a foul! It’s utterly crazy. There was none of that back then! Larry was smarter than all of them. Best shooter ever. Period. 🐐💯💯
Im sixty years old and got spoiled with the Magic-Bird, then Jordan era of basketball...... I cant even watch todays game (even before politics was brought onto the court I became disenchanted with the game... its so soft, with these ridiculous ticky tack fouls, and the no call with all the traveling and palming...... just not near as good a game as back in the day *(in my opinion)
I went to Philly in 84 or85? To watch the Celtics against Dr. J and that awesome team, Bird lit their asses up on fire!!! Bird was the "word". Ya heard!
I remember that picture "I hate when guys watch the ball go out of bounds"...that is a great way to describe Larry's heart and determination to win!!!!
@@cindyknudson2715 Both Larry and Magic are listed as 6'9" on Wikipedia and other websites. but I distinctly remember Magic being listed as 6'8" in his playing days. But Larry was always 6-9
he is very very very close! only Mj was better in his era for a 5 year stretch..Charles had a phenomenal output in his statsheet and incredible highlights..he was the most dominant PF the game has EVER seen period..he managed to bent down huge and quite bad back court line ups like no one else as a PF , even dominate some of the best centers of all times plenty of times..Barkley is an anomaly like Rodman..your view of the game is shallow! Charles was the second bigest star in the Dream Team period..if MJ and LB were healthy and prime still he would have been a superstar also..I dont say he was better than those icons but he definetely has left his own mark in the game BIG time..dont even come back with the rings argument..its boring
@@RB-ye4ri And how many championships for John Stockton or Dan Marino for that matter? Stockton holds the NBA record for two of the five major stats; assists and steals; by a lot. Let's not get hung up on championships because so much of that has to do with the teammates the front office gives you and how good the competition is when you do have a good team. Give Barkley his due; he was an excellent player but his isn't up there when it comes to talking about GOATs.
@@bricefleckenstein9666 I was a huge fan of Barkley, but he couldn't guard a mailbox. Bird was a well above average defender, Barkley well below. But, Barkley really had no position. He was TINY for a large forward, and couldn't possibly guard them, whereas Bird was quite big for a SF. I always thought Barkley would have done better as a SF. Also, he wasn't a much better rebounder. Bird averaged 10 per game, Barkley less than two more. Shooter? No comparison. FT no comparison. Passer, no comparison, intangibles no comparison. Guy you'd want with the ball and the game on the line. No comparison. But, someone who could play one on five for two minutes, and win, that was Barkley. I've never seen a guy take on a whole team and win, but Barkley could for short periods of time. Bird couldn't do that, and Jordan couldn't even think about doing it.
@@TA152H01 Charles wasn't a BAD 1-on-1 defender but not outstanding, while Larry was kind of a weak 1-on-1 defender but an ALL TIME GREAT at "team defense". Larry played PF initially, then moved over to SF after Tiny retired to make room for Kevin at PF - Larry was probably a better "match" for PF than SF, while I agree Charles would have been better off as a SF. Bird and Jordan could AND DID "take on an entire opposing team" more than once - they were at least as capable of that as Charles, just in different ways. Charles just HAD to do a lot more of it as the teams he played on past his early years were pretty weak - but that also applies to MJ in his EARLY years.
Barkley cracks me up, he was trying to make a case for himself... Really?! Bird busted his ass so many times throughout his career, it's not even close!
I saw both live. Charles was "almost" as good as he said that he was, but Larry was another level. Nothing against Charles, he was great, but it was what it was.
I agree. That being said, if it were the 80s and we were talking about a black swimmer, then you may have heard that. "Black Men Can't Swim" is one of my favorite joke movie ideas.
"I'm a better rebounder" sounded a bit tentative there Charles - probably because it was an argument before Larry lost most of a year to double ankle surgery.
Larry had the best work ethic the NBA has ever seen. One example, mentioned in various interviews by several of his teammates from the Dream Team AND by Grant Hill who was at the time on the "college allstar" team they practiced against for a while. They finished a practice, most of the team goes out and hits the beach. When they come back, they hear a noise from the gym, go look, and there is Larry PRACTICING HIS SHOT. THAT is why he "made it look easy" - he put the effort in ahead of time!
@@spactick Well, Larry WAS the stereotype of a Native Hoosier after all - but for Larry it was his LIFE, not just "fun" or a love affair. Even us Hoosiers think he might have been a LITTLE overboard about the game. But just a LITTLE.
Perhaps the most skilled all around player ever and tough as nails I don't understand why kids get so mad when they hear about Bird arguably being better than LeBron as a player or passer
Clyde the Glide #top5SG&top10dunkerever Kids have no sense of perspective nowadays, their guy must be the GOAT, their music is the best, their politics is the only one that counts...fucking hate this generation.
Because Bird's hand eye coordination was better probably tops, Lebron is better physically in the body, stronger and faster, but Lebron has decent hands, but he lacks a lot of ability other greats have, at times Lebron has trouble scoring outside the paint, and he can even fumble the ball or miss layups in pressure situations.
Can't get enough vids about Larry Joe Bird!! Thanks man!! Btw, what's the name of that documentary where Walton and Carlyle are in? Looks pretty recent! i need to watch that ASAP!!
I think its possible, although a lot of people won't accept it, but he really seems to be the " REAL GOAT," not GOAT. One can't judge Larry Bird fully on just his stats, his play and impact on the game goes much beyond the stats that you see, it was the kind of stats that he got, how he got them, and all the other things he did to win the game that don't show up on the stat sheet. Rajon Rondo is a recent example of this amazing style of play, impacting the game without even getting a stat.
Idk if Bird is the GOAT, but he surely easily ranks in the TOP10 of all times. I just get sick of ppl talking about Lebron, because idk, if he is even in that TOP 10. He is surely far beneath a lot of other players, like Bird.
Larry: I’m gonna do a 360 spin mega backflip cartwheel and shoot it from the 3 line and your gonna lose Defender: oh yeah ha funny Larry: “does it” Defender : he can tell the future 😧😧😧 “retires”
I was watching some of the very best when growing up...OSCAR..WEST...RUSSELL..WILT..COOZY...HAVLICHECK..DR.J..EARL THE PEARL....LARRY LEGEND...MAJIC...brother those were the days...
the 3 years before Larry Bird was voted MVP for 3 consecutive years, Larry was runner up for MVP....that is MVP or runner up for 6 years. He didn't shoot many 3's but could do so as he proved by winning 3 straight 3 point contests. He was a team player and did not try to score all the time...he would be right at the basket and pass off to a teammate...I think that gained him respect and strengthened the team.
@@billbradley4878 And the THINKING, which was more James' justification. That was someone else that mentioned Bird's never-ending motor and off-ball work as why THEY hated guarding Bird - Dominique perhaps?
Some studs will take a break on offense, maybe not run the whole court. Kareem did it. Larry never took a break. Was always on the run. Drove the defense crazy. Love Larry Joe.
Bird hit his prime so late in his career, just before his injury. The long shooting game was in its infancy. I imagine an alternate future where he played until the age of 50 and somehow broke the game, shooting like 75-80% from the field and 99-100% from the line.
Larry was all I would have been at 6’9 . We were both born on December 7 , our ydna is similar. Love Larry Bird , like a few that come along once a century , there will never be another Larry Joe Bird
Larry Joe actually averaged more blocks and steals per game than Sir Chuckles. Did Barkley ever have a more important, series changing steal than Bird's game 5 steal against the 87' Piston's?
MVP voting: ‘80 4th place MVP (Rookie of the Year overwhelmingly against Magic) ‘81, ‘82, ‘83 2nd place MVP ‘84, ‘85, ‘86 1st place MVP ‘87 3rd place MVP ‘88 2nd place MVP I’d put those 9 years up against anyone else. The Celtics were a shadow of the team before Bird and after Bird compared to with Bird. Bird was so much more than stats. GOAT for complete basketball player in my book.
Barkley is delusional. For one he was not a better defender than Bird. Bird was actually a well above average defender and Chuck was a poor defender. Barkley was a monster rebounder but Bird was no joke on the boards either. But Bird torches Barkley is an offensive player. His scoring, shooting, and passing are just on another level, and he also had a better work ethic and was one of the clutches players in the history of the game. Barkley is a legend but he often makes excuses when it comes to his teams. He played with KJ for quite a few years along with other very good players on a stacked Suns team and only made it to the finals one time. It's one thing to lose to Jordan and the Bulls but he lost to other western conference teams when on the Suns. Meanwhile, Bird and the Celtics played in one of the most stacked conferences ever and then had to meet the damned Lakers three times in the finals, yet he still wound up with three rings. Barkley is a top 25 player all time but Bird is top 10.
Barkley was a slightly better rebounder that Bird, but not by much. Also for Bird to average 10 rpg while playing with Parish and McHale was remarkable. However, as a passer, shooter, and clutch player, Bird was much better than Sir Charles and I'm a Barkley fan too.
Yo! That intro song "retro Funky" is amazing! Where has that been all my life. I love house music and especially saxophone, what a jam. Thanks for introducing me to an awesome song.
Cooper and Worthy, it was great basketball, this series with Butler and Lebron and Davis is kind of like that so far, good luck guys. M favorite player is Clyde Drexler, Bird sure was tough on the Blazers back then.
Jalan found out first hand just how good Larry was on the first day of Larry coaching him - 2 on 2 against Larry and Carlisle, and being outscored massively by a guy with a bad back who could barely move anymore without great pain.
Top NBA career combined stats per game (pts, reb, ast, stl, blk) additional career fg%,tp%,ft% 1. Jordan 44.7 -50-33-84 2. Lebron 44.4 -51-35-73 3. Bird 43.1 -50-38-89 4. Kareem 42.9 -56-06-72 5. Durant 40.8 -50-38-88 A bunch of guys in the 40’s
He didn't crumble, he couldn't come back from a constant injury to his back which he played as long as he could. He kicked butt, even badly injured. Heaalthy, He would have crushed this baby league today. Better physical condition couldn't hurt a b ball genius.with adrenaline and 3 sets of eyes. He was far from weak or afraid and there would't ever be a player to not respect his greatness. Oh and he didn't palm the ball or walk like Lebron on every play. What a soft league. Anyone decent b ball player can cross someone uip when you can carry the ball. Very weak. Curry may have changed B ball but Larry was doing it under much tougher circumstances and I think Steph is the greatest shooter of all time.
