The games were not much closer than the series itself. The game was also marked by Celtic forward Kevin McHale's clothesline take-down of Laker forward Kurt Rambis on a breakaway layup which triggered the physical aspect of the rivalry. Bird's Boston Celtics finished 16-15 in NBA Finals games and 3-2 in NBA Finals series. Subscribe to Stathead Basketball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Basketball Reference Database. Some of the greats Bird defeated in the playoffs include Moses Malone, Julius Dr. Bird averaged 27.2 points, 9.6 boards and 7.0 assists for the series. Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. Larry Bird always showed up at the highest level when the Celtics needed him most. The Cs were heavily favored and had won 10 straight vs the Rockets, but Houston put up more of a fight than expected. The Lakers fell in the Western Conference finals to a new team that sprung up seemingly out of nowhere. Bird's 3 wins came against the Rockets (1981 & 1986) and the Lakers (1984). . This was Birds last finals appearance, meaning that he went to five NBA finals overall, winning 3. It was clear that the Celtics were mentally exhausted after playing that many games in such a short span, which resulted in the Lakers beating Bird and the Celtics in six quick games. Coopers. home/away, monthly, etc More Larry Bird Basketball Reference pages, Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Saturday, March 4, 6:46PM. Nicknamed "the Hick from French Lick" and "Larry Legend", Bird is widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players of all time.He is the only person in NBA history to be named Rookie of the Year, Most Valuable Player, Finals . In his second season with the Celtics, Boston finished first in the East as they had done the previous year. Carr as he left the floor, causing him to label the series "all-out-war.". Indiana took Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls to seven games in the Eastern Conference Finals. Larry Bird averaged 23.1 points, 11.6 rebounds and 6.0 assists in 31 games in the NBA Finals in his career. The 1987 NBA Finals again saw the Los Angeles Lakers up against Birds Celtics. This series was an eye-opener into how good the Celtics were this season. What Was Michael Jordans Playoff Record? 1984: Larry Bird: Boston Celtics: No stats available. Larry Bird reached 5 NBA Finals, wining 3 and losing 2, he played his entire career with the Boston Celtics. Of the subsequent finals, Basketbawful writes, "the Lakers played great and the Boston bench sucked. Former Celtics player M.L. Bird won two finals against very different Houston Rockets teams and one against the Showtime Lakers featuring Kareem and Magic. In 1986, they failed a third straight NBA Finals meeting (it was later accomplished 31 years later by the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Golden State Warriors), as the Lakers were eliminated in the Conference Finals by the Houston Rockets. At the end of the season, Bird was named Coach of the Year. Despite home wins in games three and five, the Pacers lost the series in six games, with Shaq and Kobe just being too much for Indianas stars. Larry Bird. We are compensated for referring traffic and business to Fanatics.com and other companies linked to on this site. Tree had famously bit Danny Ainge in a playoff fight three seasons prior. It's an era thing. Boston Celtics, 1st round (6th pick, 6th overall), 1978 NBA Draft, Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 1998 (Full List), More Larry Bird pages at Sports Reference. The Philadelphia 76ers beat the Lakers in 1983 and the Detroit Pistons snuck by the Lakers in 1989. The Celtics won the series, with Bird getting a triple double in the deciding game six. This was the last NBA Finals to use the 22111 format until 2014. Philadelphia 76ers 4-3, 1981 NBA Finals: Celtics def. Magic beat Larry in their college showdown, but Bird made sure he got his revenge in 1984. Johnson and Bird met at the NBA Finals three times in 1984, 1985 and 1987. Certain completely unbiased fans, like myself, rank him very highly in that top ten. Larry Bird's Celtics made the Finals in 1985 and 1987 but lost to the Los Angeles Lakers. All the playoff action was documented on the 1984 NBA Season documentary Pride and Passion, narrated by Dick Stockton. * 1981: Boston Celtics def. But it was in 1986 when the Celtics faced the Houston Rockets for the championship when Bird . Bird won Finals MVP in 1984 when his Celttics defeated the Lakers in seven games. What surprises me more, though, is that former NBA player, 38-year-old JJ Redick, can't admit that the NBA of the 1980s was more physical than the game played today.. Nearly two weeks ago, Redick caused a stir by saying Bird shouldn't be considered . Fans gave Bird a standing ovation when he was introduced. Player stats broken down into various categories; i.e. Larry Bird, the former basketball player for NBA's Boston Celtics, is a true icon in the world of basketball. The Laker momentum was stalled, and Larry Bird came up with a crucial jumper over Magic Johnson with 16 seconds remaining in overtime, then M.L. The Celtics swept the Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Celtics won the Finals convincingly 4-2. Logos were compiled by the amazing SportsLogos.net. He worked the first half, but was replaced by John Vanak for the second half. [1] The Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeated the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers in seven games. Magic led the Lakers to victory at home in game 6, setting the stage for a Boston Garden Game 7. Despite good performances from Bird, Magic Johnson outplayed him as the jumbo sized Lakers guard won finals MVP. He averaged 30.3 points, 13.3 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game across his three seasons, winning Naismith College Player of the Year in 1979. Their rivalry was second to none and saw them meet up in the NBA Finals three times. Springs Valley in French Lick, Indiana, Draft: Houston Rockets 4-2, who would briefly play with Bird later in his career, the greatest non-final series in NBA history, Bernard Cardinal Law, Larry Bird and Mayor Raymond L. Flynn. Nobody thought that the Celtics would beat the Lakers in 1984. The Celtics played in two other Finals series with Bird, losing to the Los Angeles Lakers in '85 and '87. Between the two players, they won eight NBA titles, five Finals MVP awards, six league MVP . As it turned out, Chauncey Billups was right about KG getting in trouble for being too vocal. 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. Get the latest news on Larry Bird, biographical info . The East's award is named after Larry Bird and the West's after Magic Johnson. Do you have a sports website? Better than MJ, LeBron, Kareem, Larry and Magic.If you take out Steph's games with an NBA75 teammate (KD), Steph's Playoff Win% is 48-26 (.649), which is still better than Duncan, Kobe and Larry Bird's with all their NBA75 teammates. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. October 9, 2019. Larry Bird was named MVP of the series. Larry Bird Championships: He Defeated the Best! The expected CelticsLakers finals, however, never happened. In his career, Larry Bird won three NBA regular season MVP awards. His back suffered major issues, as he injured it building on his farm. He averaged 23.1 points, 11.6 rebounds and 6.0 . The 1981 Finals MVP Cedric Maxwell led the team in scoring after saying something like Get on my back boys before the game. Amazing! The next year, the NBA Finals switched to the 2-3-2 format with Game 5 going to the team without home-court advantage, which continued through 2013. Larry wouldnt have been a controversial choice, but Cedric Maxwell was the emotional center of the Celtics and meant so much to the teams culture. In his first season as Pacers coach, Indiana finished third in the east, having finished tenth the prior season. His first MVP award was in 1984. Bostons setbacks didnt end on the basketball court. The Celtics took four games to get by the Bullets in the first round best-of-five series. In 1974, Bird received a scholarship to play basketball at Indiana University but struggled to adapt to the large student population. That might seem unbelievable this is coming from a man who famously asked his Three-Point Contest peers who was coming in second but it largely fits within Birds character. The last four games all came down to the last shot, with all the games being decided by two points or less. The three finals victories are outlined above, but Bird also had two finals losses. Learn more and register, International Stats at Basketball-Reference.com, College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com, Scores from any date in BAA/NBA or ABA history, Frequently Asked Questions about the NBA, WNBA and Basketball, Basketball-Reference.com Blog and Articles, Subscribe to Stathead Basketball: Get your first month FREE. 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. Your default site has been set for 7 days, Scoring the rivalry: How Magic Johnson and Larry Bird played in their legendary head-to-head matchups. How Does Larry Birds Finals Record Compare to Other Great NBA Players? So lets look at the 1984 NBA season. While he didnt change who he was if anything, the Hick from French Lick was remarkably consistent he had an incredibly low-key take when it came to his own legacy. He was still one to wear what he wanted, enjoy the simple pleasures of life, and, in this case, refuse to hype up his own accomplishments. However, this was not the case. Stockton, the play-by-play announcer for the series, was joined by Tom Heinsohn, and the duo would call the next four NBA Finals until 1987. The Celtics snuck past the Philadelphia 76ers in 7 games after the Sixers had taken a 3-1 lead to open the series. The Celtics star received 52 first placed votes, with second place Bernard King only getting eleven. Only the strong survive. The NBA Playoffs saw some change this year, with the tournament expanding to 16-teams and the four-round knockout we see today. If you remember, there was Kevin McHales hit on Kurt Rambis, and there was Larry Bird bumping Michael Cooper out of bounds. more information Accept. The 1984 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 198384 season, and the culmination of the season's playoffs. At 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 metres), Erving played forward and was noted for his fast breaks, balletic leaps toward the basket . FGA, TRB, AST, PF, GS over 99% complete back to 1975-76. There's always a mystique about players that played before the 90's because we don't have all the data, stats etc as we have to. The Celtics got the better of their Showtime Lakers rivales in a heated seven game series to claim the 1984 NBA Title. Michael Jordans Prime: The Greatest of All Time, Who has the most rings in the NBA? His performances helped to take the Celtics to 62 wins in the regular season, topping the NBA. Indiana State University, High School: Larry Bird was a star. NY Knicks 4-3, 1984 Eastern Conference Final: Celtics def. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. It was the same matchup with pretty much the same teams. The American greatest basketball still worked as a coach and executive in the NBA, which had indeed led him to get over the low . Birds 2 Finals losses both came against the Lakers and Magic Johnson, 1985 & 1987. Have the Phoenix Suns ever won the NBA title? The Celtics-Lakers rivalry is a National Basketball Association (NBA) rivalry between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers. It was one of the most dominant playoff runs that we had ever seen in basketball at this time and it was hard to imagine them as anything other than favorites entering that series against the Rockets, a team that they already beat in the championship before. He has been an NBA champion in 1981, 1984 and 1986 out of which he was the NBA Finals MVP in 1984 and 1986. The Bullets featured Jeff Ruland a really good, likely underrated, player who was at his peak. Cedric Maxwell, Larry Birds teammate, was awarded Finals MVP with 18-9-3. However, despite sweeping the Bulls in the first round again, they had serious issues the next few. Larry Bird reached 5 NBA Finals, wining 3 and losing 2, he played his entire career with the Boston Celtics. Known as "Larry Legend," Bird has achieved incredible success in his career, earning multiple awards and holding numerous records. The NBA Finals series was closer than either of the Conference Finals. Big Names Off the Bench: Kevin McHale, Danny Ainge, Quinn Buckner, Scott Wedman. He averaged 15.3 points, 15.3 rebounds and 7.0 assists for the series. The teams traded games throughout the series. The Houston Rockets have long been a sneakily dangerous team even when they were losing, dating from when the Rockets faced the Boston Celtics in the 1981 NBA Finals with a losing record. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this. The kick-off of one of the greatest rivalries of all time. However, this changed in the 1979 season when Birds Indiana State qualified for the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history. He won his second NBA Finals MVP. The Knicks had slipped past a young Detroit Pistons team featuring Kelly Tripucka, Isiah Thomas and Bill Laimbeer in five games in the first round. 1979-80 Bird 1980-81 Bird 1981-82 Bird 1982-83 Bird 1983-84 Bird 1984-85 Bird 1985-86 Bird 1986-87 Bird 1987-88 Bird 1988-89 Bird 1989-90 Bird 1990-91 Bird 1991-92 Bird 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 82 82 77 79 79 80 82 74 76 6 75 60 45. It was Boston's worst playoff defeat in franchise history to that date. Larry Bird was one of the most polished rookies to enter the league and was great for the Celtics right from game one. Bird finished second in the MVP voting to Malone and was unable to lead the Celtics back to the Conference Finals. Bird averaged 28.7 points, 10.5 rebounds and 6.6 assists across the regular season as the Celtics once again topped the eastern conference. Also, Bird pushed Michael Cooper to the baseline following the inbound play during the second quarter. So for an entire decade, the NBA Finals included one of the two marquee franchises. Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is an American former professional basketball player, coach, and executive in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Larry is a three time NBA MVP consecutively from 1984-86, which is still a record. Required fields are marked *. 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. As someone who watched Bird play and has now researched and written more than a half dozen articles about his career, I can help you out. In other words, he noticed that some . Larry Birds First NBA Championship 1981. Larry Bird is one of the greatest NBA players of all time. The Bucks, coached by Celtics legend Don Nelson, won the Central Division title in 1984. A year later, the Pacers would not have to worry about Michael Jordan as they returned to the playoffs, this time as the second seed in the east.
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