Maybe you lived through the glory days of the 1980s Celtics but you cant quite remember how Bird got his rings. Required fields are marked *. Larry Bird won three NBA championships in his basketball career. Everything you wanted to know about Indiana legend Larry Bird This struggle did not deter Bird. The Sixers had an incredible roster featuring three Hall of Famers in Julius Dr. Featured Image Photo Credit: Adapted from:Bernard Cardinal Law, Larry Bird and Mayor Raymond L. FlynnbyBoston City Archivesis licensed underCC BY 2.0. At that time, Bird also expressed unhappiness over Mangurians decision to sell the team, and he was one of the players who defended Fitch after they were swept by the Bucks. His performances helped to take the Celtics to 62 wins in the regular season, topping the NBA. (Larry Legend, The Hick from French Lick, Kodak, The Great White Hope), Position: The Celtics-Lakers rivalry is a National Basketball Association (NBA) rivalry between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers. We present them here for purely educational purposes. Bird averaged 26.7 points, 13.7 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game for the series. According to Basketball Reference, Johnson and Bird played against each other 18 times in the regular season throughout their careers. Larry Bird is one of the few basketball players in history that are widely recognized even by people who dont even know the sport. In the game the Lakers answered the Celtics' rough tactics when Laker forward James Worthy shoved Cedric Maxwell into a basket support. It didnt take the Lakers long to learn, but in that series, it was the element of surprise that we needed. Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. Magic gets the edge because he finished his career stronger, he was able to get/maybe steal from Charles Barkley the 1990 MVP, and he got the Lakers to another finals in 91, after 88 and the injuries Boston was done being any kind of serious contender they never got past the second round again for the rest of Larry Bird's time but if you're talkin Peak vs. 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. 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 . The NBA unveiled two new postseason awards on Thursday morning: the Eastern Conference Finals MVP and Western Conference Finals MVP. While the 22111 format remained intact for the remainder of the playoff rounds, the 232 format would be used until 2013. Data Provided By Michael Jordans First Championship: An Epic Run! The Los Angeles Lakers won both games in the regular season series: The Lakers opened the series with a 115-109 victory at Boston Garden. Do you have a blog? He was pre-knee injury at this point and averaged 26 per game in the regular season and 29 per game in this series. Birds Boston Celtics finished 16-15 in NBA Finals games and 3-2 in NBA Finals series. Hakeem was no slouch, averaging the most points and rebounds in the NBA playoffs. The 1984 NBA Finals is considered one of the most epic series in league history. The Larry Bird Finals Record is a statistic of the player who most often wins the NBA Finals. 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. Larry, to his credit, was phenomenal. That went to Birds teammate. Its pretty easy to forget how many times Bird has been in the NBA Finals with all of the many accolades and unbelievably, but true, stories about him. Safe to say he absolutely dominated in every facet of the game for that second ring. From a statistical perspective, he also averaged 24.3 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 6.3 assists across his career. 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. Two superstars, Magic and Larry, and the two most iconic teams in the leagues history, the Lakers and the Celtics. The Lakers destroyed the Cs in their first home game 137-104 in game 3. The Pacers got their revenge on the Knicks, winning the eastern conference finals in six games to go up against the Lakers. The Celtics won game 2 at home but lost two games in Philly to fall behind 3-1. 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. The Celtics then took the series lead for the first time by winning Game 5 but the thoroughbred Lakers sent the series to a Game 7 with their own double-digit win. The 1981 Finals MVP Cedric Maxwell led the team in scoring after saying something like Get on my back boys before the game. Isn't 15.3 points, 15.3 rebounds and 7 assists per game one of the coolest statlines for an NBA playoff series ever?A quote from Larry Bird's book "Drive" co. He was the NBA Finals MVP in 1981, and the . Being the reigning MVP, there were big expectations for Bird in the 1984-85 season. Only game 3 finished within ten points with the Cs winning 111-107. The Lakers were coached by Pat Riley and also featured defensive ace Michael Cooper, a young. The Philadelphia 76ers beat the Lakers in 1983 and the Detroit Pistons snuck by the Lakers in 1989. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Aside from stats, Larry Bird was a winner, bringing home multiple championship rings during his time with the Celtics. That NCAA tournament final is one of the most iconic games in college basketball history. His first MVP award was in 1984. Larry Bird averaged 24.0 points, 9.7 rebounds and 9.5 assists per game for the series. He was a monster, averaging 22-16 in this Finals series. So for an entire decade, the NBA Finals included one of the two marquee franchises. Head to Head: Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson. The #1 and #2 seeds were set to face off in the Conference Finals. Bird retired from the NBA in 1992 and immediately took up an advisory role with the Boston Celtics. However, the Lakers suffered a key injury when their 3rd leading scorer, Jamaal Wilkes (17 PPG) was ruled out of the finals. Im not a guy that talks about my past because I always look to the future, but you really sit down and look at it, Ive been involved in a lot, its pretty nice, the forward simply explained. Bernard Cardinal Law, Larry Bird and Mayor Raymond L. Flynn. It was the same matchup with pretty much the same teams. In Game 3, the Lakers raced to an easy 137-104 victory as Magic Johnson dished out 21 assists, an NBA Finals record. Michael Jordans Prime: The Greatest of All Time, Who has the most rings in the NBA? So lets look at the 1984 NBA season. The Celtics had Larry Bird as their centerpiece and posted a record of 67-15, including an NBA record 40 wins at home. Hall of Fame. The Western Conference Finals also led to one of the greatest game-winners ever. 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. He instead enrolled at the smaller Indiana State University. . (Larry Legend, The Hick from French Lick, Kodak, The Great White Hope) Position: Small Forward and Power Forward Shoots: Right. Certain completely unbiased fans, like myself, rank him very highly in that top ten. The Cs closed it out with a lopsided victory in game 5. In addition to Nique, the Hawks starred Kevin Willis. With Kareem ageing, the Celtics hoped that they could win the finals. SI examines the rivalry between the basketball hall of famers and how they changed the landscape of the NBA. The Celtics won the first three games by an average of 6 points before the Hawks got their only win at home. How Many Finals MVPs Does Larry Bird Have? Despite a back injury in the 1985 offseason, Bird averaged 25.8 points, 9.8 rebound and 6.8 assists per game and for the third straight season, the Celtics finished top of the Eastern Conference. talent just don't get it. The Celtics ended the series shooting 52% from the field while holding the Bucks to 44% shooting. The 1987 Finals was the culmination of Magic and Bird's decade-long rivalry that dominated the NBA. The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA or its clubs. But it is also quite possible even probable that Larry Bird cost the Celtics the 1985 NBA championship.". It brought Bird his third and final NBA Championship. After the tournament, both entered the NBA in the 197980 season with high expectations. Larry Bird's Career Record vs. NBA Legends: He Beat Michael Jordan 23 Times, But Magic Johnson Won The Head-To-Head Matchups . In the playoffs, the team went 15-3 en route to winning the championship. While that body of work would give anyone the right to too their own horn, Larry Legend took a different course of action. The games were reasonably close if the series was not. One of the most exciting 3-0 series in league history, the Celtics made quick work of the up-and-coming Bulls featuring a young Michael Jordan. It's an era thing. What is Larry Birds Record in the NBA Finals? If you click and purchase, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. December 7, And they werent. After altering wins with the Lakers, the Celtics won Game 7 and the series with a score of 111102. Games. Get the latest news on Larry Bird, biographical info . 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. Larry Bird Stats and news - NBA stats and news on Boston Celtics Forward Larry Bird. BOSTON (AP) June 12, 1984: The Boston Celtics beat the Los Angeles Lakers 111-102 in Game 7 in the first NBA Finals between Boston's Larry Bird and Los Angeles' Magic Johnson . All rights reserved. Magic Johnson and Larry Bird's rivalry - Sportskeeda