Celtics Starters: Gerald Henderson, Dennis Johnson, Larry Bird, Cedric Maxwell and Robert Parish. Jelani Scott. In terms of individual honors, he won the 1979-80 Rookie of the Year title, claimed three MVP crowns, and earned two NBA Finals MVP nods. We are compensated for referring traffic and business to Fanatics.com and other companies linked to on this site. Though just looking at his record can get a bit confusing. Tree had famously bit Danny Ainge in a playoff fight three seasons prior. Larry Bird was one of the most polished rookies to enter the league and was great for the Celtics right from game one. more information Accept. The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. From a statistical perspective, he also averaged 24.3 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 6.3 assists across his career. This was Birds last finals appearance, meaning that he went to five NBA finals overall, winning 3. J Erving, Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. This was Birds last season with Indiana State as he had been drafted by the Celtics in 1978, but chose to play out one final year with his college instead of going straight to the NBA. The 1984 NBA Finals is considered one of the most epic series in league history. Which NBA Team had the Most Hall of Famers for one Season. Featured Image Photo Credit: Adapted from:Bernard Cardinal Law, Larry Bird and Mayor Raymond L. FlynnbyBoston City Archivesis licensed underCC BY 2.0. Among his accomplishments, Bird set the new single-game franchise record for points. Larry Bird is 6-9. Tatum and the rest of his team are eager to avenge the loss in the Finals . Sample Searches for learning more about the power and flexibility of Stathead. Bird also won Finals MVP in 1986 when he scored 24 points, grabbed 10 rebounds, dished out 10 assists and had 2.7 steals per game. The Cs took game 5 at home behind Larry Birds 34 points and 17 boards. BIrd averaged 27.4 points, 10.0 rebounds and 6.0 assist per game for the series. more information Accept. This Rockets team still had Robert Reid but now also featured Rodney McCray. (the Lakers) learned a valuable lesson. The 86 Celtics are in the conversation for best team ever with Bill Walton joining Bird, Robert Parish and. In the Celtics 1981 Championship, Bird did not win Finals MVP. Simmons says that he got the idea from watching basketball and looking at player statistics. Milwaukee Bucks 4-0, 1986 NBA Finals: Celtics def. In his career, Larry Bird won three NBA regular season MVP awards. However, despite sweeping the Bulls in the first round again, they had serious issues the next few. However, this was not the case. In his last season as the teams head coach, Birds Pacers were the number one seed in the east and were not really tested throughout the first three rounds of the playoffs. He tied it up with two free throws with 3 minutes to go. He was one member of the greatest rivalry in the leagues history between himself and Los Angeles Lakers superstar Magic Johnson. Larry Bird's NBA Finals record is 3-2. Your email address will not be published. Head to Head: Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson. Bird won three titles with the Celtics in 1981, 1984 and 1986, earning Finals MVP honors in the latter two. In his first trip to the NBA Finals, Tatum averaged 21.5 points, seven assists and 6.8 rebounds, but the Celtics came up short. Boston's most crucial addition was Dennis Johnson, whom they acquired from the Phoenix Suns in the offseason in hopes of addressing their porous back-court defense. Michael Jordans First Championship: An Epic Run! Answer (1 of 2): Larry Bird has been in the NBA Finals 5 times as a player, all while playing with the Boston Celtics. In 1974, Bird received a scholarship to play basketball at Indiana University but struggled to adapt to the large student population. And after watching the Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers twice during the 1982 and 1983 Finals, they were determined to win in 84. The series was not a close one: the Cs took a 3-0 lead before Milwaukee won their second home game to stay alive. . Two-time National Basketball Association champion Cedric "Cornbread" Maxwell points to the pillars of the game when it comes to the question, "Who is the greatest NBA player of all time?" "I measure it by those who changed the game," said the former Boston Celtics standout on Sunday afternoon while taking part in the Legends & Stars Sports Expo at Batavia Downs Gaming. In Game 6, the Lakers evened the series with a 119-108 victory. His first MVP award was in 1984. What are the abbreviations on the NBA table. In the game, the Lakers rallied to cut a 14-point-deficit to three with one minute remaining when Cedric Maxwell knocked the ball away from Magic Johnson. The top 31 players and coaches, The Bulls featured Reggie Theus and Artis Gilmore (. Or write about sports? Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. Larry Bird starred at Indiana State University before joining the NBA's Boston Celtics in 1979. . Larry Birds First NBA Championship 1981. The Bucks swept the Nets in the first round then took seven games to get by a tough Sixers squad starring a young. Donovan Mitchell and Jayson Tatum were carrying their teams on the offensive [] After . Who Did Larry Bird Lose To In the NBA Finals? At the risk of boring you with a list of his all-time accomplishments, well run through an abbreviated version of Birds body of work. I have been a Boston sports fan for more than forty years. . They easily won their first round series against the Washington Bullets as they were named at that time, then advanced and knocked off the New York Knicks in a seven-game series. Birds Pacers swept the Bucks and the Sixers in the first two rounds of the playoffs and looked likely to make it to the finals as they came up against the eight seed New York Knicks in the conference finals. Between 1980 and 1989, there were only two seasons that ended with someone other than Johnson or Bird winning the title. The Lakers destroyed the Cs in their first home game 137-104 in game 3. Larry Bird would go after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar later on in the third quarter, and 1981 Finals MVP Cedric Maxwell further antagonized the Lakers by following a missed James Worthy free throw by crossing the lane with his hands around his own neck, symbolizing that Worthy was "choking" under pressure. The Bulls lost Michael Jordan for most of this season to a foot injury and they were mostly terrible, finishing 4th in the Central Division. [1] The Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeated the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers in seven games. Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and executive in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA or its clubs. Larry Bird had a winning record in NBA Finals games and series. Hakeem was no slouch, averaging the most points and rebounds in the NBA playoffs. At 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 metres), Erving played forward and was noted for his fast breaks, balletic leaps toward the basket . It did not slow Bird down as he won a title the next season with the now legendary 86 Celtics. Whether he makes an All-Defense team this season remains to be seen, but few wings in the association deserve more recognition than McDaniels this campaign. Larry Bird won three NBA championships in his basketball career. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. That's the first time the (80's) Lakers ever encountered that, someone stronger minded. If you remember, there was Kevin McHales hit on Kurt Rambis, and there was Larry Bird bumping Michael Cooper out of bounds. The Pacers had two pretty comfortable series to begin the 1998 post season with wins over the Cavaliers and the Knicks. The Cs won in a blowout in game 3 in Houston before Houston tied it up with a tight win in game 4. Noise Group Limited is a UK registered company. Johnson had the winning record in the regular season and playoffs, and he took down Bird twice in their three Finals showdowns although Johnson having the better team had something to do with that. The Bucks won a five-game series over the Hawks to start the playoffs and got by Darryl Dawkins and his NJ Nets in round 2. We have seen some teams lose in the NBA Finals off of some injuries and other situations leading up to it that the box score doesnt show, so lets dive into Birds record. The Celtics had lost to the Lakers in the finals the previous year, but this time their opposition was the Houston Rockets. The first happened in 1985, a year after the Celtics had defeated the Lakers in the finals. Nevertheless, it is rare to see a player dominate in so many areas of the game, theres no wonder why the Celtics made multiple deep playoff runs. Larry Bird Reacts to Eastern Conference Finals MVP Trophy Named After Him. Birds Celtics also defeated a very different Rockets team in 1981. Atlanta Hawks 4-1, 1986 Eastern Conference Final: Celtics def. When discussing his legacy with Brian Mahoney of the Associated Press (h/t the Daily Hampshire Gazette), Bird didnt take much time to sing his own praises. Carr as he left the floor, causing him to label the series "all-out-war.". Bird does not have any titles outside of the NBA, despite making the NCAA tournament final in 1979. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? Regular Season Record: 62-20 (The Celtics tied with 76ers for 1st in the Atlantic Division, Eastern Conference and the NBA but the Cs got the #1 seed in a tiebreaker by winning the last game of the season vs the Sixers). The games were closer than youd expect for a 1 seed vs 8 seed series. The Pacers got their revenge on the Knicks, winning the eastern conference finals in six games to go up against the Lakers. Larry Bird. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this. MUMBAI, India Twenty-seven years after Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan and the "Dream Team" made the world fall in love with the game of basketball in 1992, India showed its adoration for the Boston Celtics great during the first NBA India Games last week. Larry Bird went 3-2 in his five NBA Finals appearances. Larry averaged 27-10-7 and led the Celtics with 36 points in a game-five win that saw the Celtics beat the Hawks by 33 points. The American greatest basketball still worked as a coach and executive in the NBA, which had indeed led him to get over the low . The Celtics did not warm up with their sweat pants on because of extreme heat, and an oxygen tank was provided to give air to an aging Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Former Celtics player M.L. Michael Cooper Backs Larry Bird and Blasts JJ Redick, Calling Him a Poor Mans Danny Ainge. 2022-23 Season Schedule; Larry Birds finals record was 3-2. Larry Bird was a star. Seriously, check out his Basketball Reference page. Of the subsequent finals, Basketbawful writes, "the Lakers played great and the Boston bench sucked. I have been a Boston sports fan for more than forty years. Bird's Pacers fell in the East finals in '98 and '99, then came up short in the NBA Finals in 2000 against the Los Angeles Lakers. . Dominique was an offensive force, but, unlike MJ, he was not noted for doing much else . How many games did Larry Bird field goal miss a season due to injury? The Cs won a couple home games to start the series then lost a close one on the road.

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