Larry Bird: Biography. Houston Rockets 4-2, Larry Bird Championship #2: 1984 Boston Celtics, 1984 First Round: Celtics def. If you click and purchase, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you. The 1987 Finals was the culmination of Magic and Bird's decade-long rivalry that dominated the NBA. Donovan Mitchell and Jayson Tatum were carrying their teams on the offensive [] How to say Basketball in different languages? 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. Though just looking at his record can get a bit confusing. His career was cut dramatically short by injury. Larry Bird was named MVP of the series. SI examines the rivalry between the basketball hall of famers and how they changed the landscape of the NBA. Bird was Finals MVP in the teams victories over the Houston Rockets in 1986 and the Los Angeles Lakers in 1984. The #1 and #2 seeds were set to face off in the Conference Finals. The game was known as the "Heat Game", as it was played under 97F (36C) heat, and without any air conditioning, at Boston Garden. Larry Bird Championships: He Defeated the Best! The Celtics had hope they could avenge the loss of two years prior. His performances included scoring 60 points against the Hawks which is still a Boston record to this day. Chicago Bulls 4-1, 1981 Eastern Conference Final: Celtics def. However, the Lakers suffered a key injury when their 3rd leading scorer, Jamaal Wilkes (17 PPG) was ruled out of the finals. Bird set a career-high with 60 points against the Atlanta Hawks during the 1984-85 season. Larry averaged 27-10-6. Larry Bird was one of the most polished rookies to enter the league and was great for the Celtics right from game one. Larry Bird (Larry Legend; The Hick from French Lick) Position: Forward 6-9, 220lb (206cm, 99kg) School: Indiana State (Men) Draft: Boston Celtics, 1st round (6th pick, 6th overall), 1978 NBA draft. Larry Bird is 6-9. Take a look below. After a tough seven game series in the conference finals against the Sixers, Boston advanced to the finals to face the Rockets. Marques Johnson and Sidney Moncrief led the Bucks. In total, Larry Bird went to five NBA finals in his career. He made the Finals five times in his thirteen-year career, winning the championship in 1981, 1984, and 1986. Bird became only the third player in NBA history to win three titles in a row. In other words, he noticed that some . Larry Bird won three championships as a player, but did not win any as a coach. Scott Rafferty is a Senior NBA Editor for The Sporting News. Bird does not have any titles outside of the NBA, despite making the NCAA tournament final in 1979. 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. After the game, Larry Bird said his team played like "sissies" in an attempt to light a fire under his teammates. He won his second NBA Finals MVP. Among his accomplishments, Bird set the new single-game franchise record for points. Larry Bird stats . Larry Bird went 3-2 in his five NBA Finals appearances. Larry Bird had a winning record in NBA Finals games and series. Data runs from 1946-47 to present unless otherwise noted. he guided the Pacers to a 58-24 record, which was the best in franchise history at the time. Despite good performances from Bird, Magic Johnson outplayed him as the jumbo sized Lakers guard won finals MVP. 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. What is Larry Birds Record in the NBA Finals? But does that record provide a fair verdict on James' performance in the NBA Finals? The Rockets fought back to win handily in game 5 at home but the Celtics closed out the series in game 6 in the Boston Garden to take their third title of the Bird era. The Celtics again saw their Eastern Conference rivals matching up against the Milwaukee Bucks. Do you have a blog? Magic beat Larry in their college showdown, but Bird made sure he got his revenge in 1984. Traditional Bird averaged 25.3 points, 9.5 rebounds and 8.0 assists per game for the series. He averaged 27.4 points, 14.0 boards and 3.6 assists per game for the series. 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. Larry pushed the Celtics out of the second round with an easy 4-1 series win over the Atlanta Hawks, led at the time by Dominique Wilkins. Washington Bullets 3-1, 1984 Conference Semis: Celtics def. Larry Birds Celtics lost two NBA Finals. Larry Bird reached 5 NBA Finals, wining 3 and losing 2, he played his entire career with the Boston Celtics. The 86 Celtics are in the conversation for best team ever with Bill Walton joining Bird, Robert Parish and. Game 7 at the Boston Garden was one for the ages! Larry Birds NBA Finals record is 3-2. Right, Born: The Cs took game 5 at home behind Larry Birds 34 points and 17 boards. Instead of battling fatigue and exhaustion from their grueling Semi-Finals series, they went on to beat the Milwaukee Bucks in five games. Larry averaged 23-13-7 on his way to a four-game sweep. Bird finished second in the MVP voting to Malone and was unable to lead the Celtics back to the Conference Finals. Larry Bird Reacts to Eastern Conference Finals MVP Trophy Named After Him. It was also the first of three NBA Finals meetings between the Celtics and Lakers during the Larry Bird and Magic Johnson era. Home; Tickets; Schedule. Larry is a three time NBA MVP consecutively from 1984-86, which is still a record. In the Finals, Bird dropped a triple-double on the Rockets in a series-clinching Game 6, giving the Celtics another ring. The Knicks were led by the explosive scorer Bernard King, who averaged 29-5-3 in the series. In MVP voting, Bird dominated the competition as he took home his third straight MVP award. No matter which side of the aisle you find yourself on, though, Larry Bird has you covered. 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. You can read up on all three of Larry Birds incredible championships below. Larry Bird had a winning record in NBA Finals games and series. 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. She reported on the Celtics' sideline while Pat O'Brien reported on the Lakers' sideline. In Birds rookie season in the league, he helped lead the Boston Celtics all the way into 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 Bucks swept the Nets in the first round then took seven games to get by a tough Sixers squad starring a young. What are the abbreviations on the NBA table. Bird: "So you're overpaid.". How Many Championships did Larry Bird win? In the Western Conference Finals the Rockets handled the defending champion Lakers in five games. Birds Celtics also defeated a very different Rockets team in 1981. May 12, 2022. Or maybe youre a younger fan wondering if Bird really deserves his place in the Pantheon of basketball greats. Do you have a sports website? His first MVP award was in 1984. Not that there was anything to really worry about for him, it really just added a chip on his shoulder to come back and perform to a high standard. While Bird did not have the finals success of a Jordan or Russell, he still had a better record than greats including LeBron and Wilt. They snuck into the playoffs because of a weak Central division. Regardless, Johnson and Bird are widelyregarded as beingtwo of thegreatest players to have ever played the gameand they made for one of the greatest rivalries, one that will never be forgotten. 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. Keep reading to learn more about each championship win, the series leading up to the finals, and each Larry Bird championship season. The first happened in 1985, a year after the Celtics had defeated the Lakers in the finals. After altering wins with the Lakers, the Celtics won Game 7 and the series with a score of 111102. The number two-seeded Bucks went down in a series sweep, with all five Celtics starters averaging double-digit points. (Larry Legend, The Hick from French Lick, Kodak, The Great White Hope) Position: Small Forward and Power Forward Shoots: Right. Subscribe to Stathead Basketball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Basketball Reference Database. This site is a participant in the Impact Affiliate Platform which is an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Fanatics.com . Michael Jordans First Championship: An Epic Run! Born in Indiana in 1956, Larry Bird began playing basketball at a young age. In Game 6, the Lakers evened the series with a 119-108 victory. The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. The Celtics were led by Cedric Maxwell who had 24 points, eight rebounds and eight assists as they came away with a 111-102 victory. Larry Bird Playoffs Game Log. During a mid-1980's game vs. Utah when Bird was torching the Jazz, Larry looked over at . Birds great performances in games one and six helped lead the Celtics to the title and Bird claimed his first NBA Championship in 1981. 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. Should individual honors and scoring records take precedence? Larry Birds Finals record is in the lower half of the list of all-time greats below. Which player is ultimately better all-time is a different conversationbecause that includes a lot more than their individual matchups. Larry led the way with an average of 25 points per game. After the game a Laker fan threw a beer at Celtics guard M.L. The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. 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. The series was not a close one: the Cs took a 3-0 lead before Milwaukee won their second home game to stay alive. The three finals victories are outlined above, but Bird also had two finals losses. What are the abbreviations on the NBA table. Maybe you lived through the glory days of the 1980s Celtics but you cant quite remember how Bird got his rings. Birds 2 Finals losses both came against the Lakers and Magic Johnson, 1985 & 1987. The Larry Bird Finals Record is a statistic of the player who most often wins the NBA Finals. Larry Bird reached 5 NBA Finals, wining 3 and losing 2, he played his entire career with the Boston Celtics. 1st seed in the West, 2nd best league record. Of the subsequent finals, Basketbawful writes, "the Lakers played great and the Boston bench sucked. When asked about what he remembers most about beating the Lakers in the 1984 NBA Finals, Carrs reply was: The final seconds of Game 7. 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. All-NBA First-Teamers NOT in the Hall of Fame, Basketball Positions 101: Understanding the Different Roles on the Court, The Best NBA Players to NOT Make the Hall of Fame, The Best All-Defensive Team in NBA History, The All-Time Worst NBA Finals Performances by a Superstar by Position. Birds Boston Celtics finished 16-15 in NBA Finals games and 3-2 in NBA Finals series. From a statistical perspective, he also averaged 24.3 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 6.3 assists across his career. 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 snuck past the Philadelphia 76ers in 7 games after the Sixers had taken a 3-1 lead to open the series. 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. 1983: Moses Malone: C: Larry Bird won the NBA Finals MVP two times. I write about games, players and seasons from the past. Ruland, a center, averaged 22 points and 12 boards for the season. As an affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. 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. Referee Hugh Evans became dehydrated and fainted at one point in the first half. That NCAA tournament final is one of the most iconic games in college basketball history. And they werent. Bird averaged 24 points per game as Boston won the series in six to net him his THIRD ring. Larry Bird of the Celtics and Magic Johnson of the Lakers, Malcolm Emmons and MPS - USA TODAY Sports. Houston lost a close game 1 then won a tight game 2 in Boston. The Bullets were the 8th seed in the East winning only 35 regular season games and finishing last in the Atlantic division. Aside from the two stars, the teams were among the most stacked in history. Simmons says that he got the idea from watching basketball and looking at player statistics. The Pacers had two pretty comfortable series to begin the 1998 post season with wins over the Cavaliers and the Knicks. The couple has two adopted children named Conner Mariah.. Family. As one of the greatest players to ever step foot in the . The kick-off of one of the greatest rivalries of all time. It did not slow Bird down as he won a title the next season with the now legendary 86 Celtics. In this first iconic matchup, eight Hall of Famers saw play. The Celtics entered the next season off a high, cruising into the NBA playoffs and sweeping Cleveland in the opening series. Copyright 2023 Endgame360 Inc. All Rights Reserved. It was an offensive and defensive clinic. This was the Celtics' first appearance in The Finals since their 1976 championship winning team against the Phoenix Suns.The Celtics were not quite the same team as five years before, as they added the likes of Larry Bird, Robert Parish, and Kevin McHale, a trio that would come to be known as "The Big Three." M. L. Carr, Cedric Maxwell, and Nate Archibald were also capable players off the . I have been a Boston sports fan for more than forty years. One of the most feared competitors during the 1980s was Larry Bird, who won three championships with the Celtics during the decade, destroying teams through his versatile style and killer, lights-out shooting. 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. . This was Birds last finals appearance, meaning that he went to five NBA finals overall, winning 3. Bird created a very good team. The Boston Celtics legend is one of three players in NBA history to win three straight MVPs, and he helped the C's win three championships in the 1980s.. Bird, along with Los Angeles Lakers point guard Magic Johnson, helped take the NBA to another level. Larry Bird averaged 24.0 points, 9.7 rebounds and 9.5 assists per game for the series. After . December 7, In the playoffs, the Celtics defeated the Washington Bullets in four, the New York Knicks in seven, and the Milwaukee Bucks in five. Get the latest news on Larry Bird, biographical info . Here are some of the records and historical rankings that Larry Bird achieved at Indiana State: A member of the 2,000-point, 1,000-rebound club: 2,850 points and 1,247 rebounds Indiana State's all . NY Knicks 4-3, 1984 Eastern Conference Final: Celtics def. Click the links to read up on the Finals records of the best players in league history. Small Forward and Power Forward Bird won the first Finals meeting between them in 1984 and Johnson won the two others; one in 1985, the other in 1987. Despite the changes, it did not stop the Lakers from finishing with the best record (5428) in the Western Conference, powered by their one-two punch of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson. The Lakers were coached by Pat Riley and also featured defensive ace Michael Cooper, a young. Find out more. The Bucks, coached by Celtics legend Don Nelson, won the Central Division title in 1984. The Celtics-Lakers rivalry is a National Basketball Association (NBA) rivalry between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. If you are thinking of buy an NBA jersey then check out the official retailers of the NBA below. 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. The Cs closed it out with a lopsided victory in game 5. Bird averaged 27.2 points, 9.6 boards and 7.0 assists for the series. Join us for a March Madness Webinar on Tuesday, March 7 at 8pm ET. Bill suffered through injuries for much of his career but appeared in 80 games for the Celtics. Larry Bird is one of the ten greatest players in the history of the NBA. The series was full of things like that., We knew that we had to physically beat them because they had never played that kind of game. Their rivalry was second to none and saw them meet up in the NBA Finals three times. Below you can see the playoff results for all of Birds Celtics teams. Certain completely unbiased fans, like myself, rank him very highly in that top ten. He and Chauncey Billups are the only two retired players to win Finals MVP but not to make the Hall of Fame. Boston entered the new decade by winning the 1981 NBA Finals. Larry Bird picked up the 1984 MVP award and led his Celtics to the first seed in the Eastern Conference with a 62-20 overall record. Tatum and the rest of his team are eager to avenge the loss in the Finals . Teaming with players like Larry Bird and Kevin McHale, Maxwell was an essential player on Boston teams that won NBA championships in both 1981 and 1984. Big Names Off the Bench: Kevin McHale, Danny Ainge, Quinn Buckner, Scott Wedman. Some notable games between the two of them: At least when it comes to how they fared in theirhead-to-head matchups. Being the reigning MVP, there were big expectations for Bird in the 1984-85 season. In the Celtics 1981 Championship, Bird did not win Finals MVP. 0:49. If you are interested in Larry Bird Championships, you might be interested in checking out some of these posts I have written about Larry Legend. It seemed like it should be an easy series for the Celtics, with game one and two victories by double digits, but the Knicks home crowd helped their team to win all their series home games. The Cs won games five and six by two points each to reach game 7. He won his second NBA Finals MVP. Copyright 2023 Sports Nostalgia HQ | Powered by Astra WordPress Theme, By continuing to use the site, you agree to the use of cookies. The seeds of the 1984 Finals were first sown five years earlier, during the 1979 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. While that body of work would give anyone the right to too their own horn, Larry Legend took a different course of action. His accolades are countless, with the former Indiana State man being an NBA legend. This struggle did not deter Bird. After that the series was all Lakers, they won four of the next five games to end the series in six and hand Larry his first Finals loss. Boston finished with a 62-20 regular season record and got their revenge on the Bucks, whom they beat 4-1 in the Eastern Conference Finals. Then came the championship series. Only game 3 finished within ten points with the Cs winning 111-107. Who is the highest paid NBA player in the 2021-2022 Season? 1984 was against the Los Ange. The Cs shut the door at home in game 5 winning 115-108. Bird's 3 wins came against the Rockets (1981 & 1986) and the Lakers (1984). Join our linker program. 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. 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. Key Names off the Bench: Kevin McHale, Gerald Henderson, Rick Robey and M.L. 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. Adding one more hall of famer, Bill Walton, put this team over the top. Bird only averaged 15 points per game throughout the series but he did drop a series high 27 points in Game 6 to officially send the Rockets packing, as Bird won his first chip. Dominique was an offensive force, but, unlike MJ, he was not noted for doing much else . In his career, Larry Bird won three NBA regular season MVP awards. Many were expecting another Lakers-Celtics matchup, but it just wasnt in the cards this Finals. They lost twice to the same team: the Los Angeles Lakers. Larry Bird was born on as Larry Joe Bird to parents: Georgia and Claude Joseph "Joe" Bird, a veteran of the Korean War.He attended Springs Valley High School. 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. Celtics Starters: Gerald Henderson, Dennis Johnson, Larry Bird, Cedric Maxwell and Robert Parish. These performances earned Bird his second MVP award. Johnson won 11 of those games, posting averages of 19.4 points, 11.5 assists and 6.8 rebounds in their head-to-head matchups compared to 21.7 points, 10.9 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game for Bird. Also, Bird pushed Michael Cooper to the baseline following the inbound play during the second quarter. The Rockets fought back to win handily in game 5 at home but the Celtics closed out the series in game 6 in the Boston Garden to take their third title of the Bird era. Larry Joe Bird. . The Philadelphia 76ers beat the Lakers in 1983 and the Detroit Pistons snuck by the Lakers in 1989. The Hawks also still had good rebounder Tree Rollis. The top 31 players and coaches, In 1981, the Celtics beat a Houston Rockets team featuring, In 1984, Birds Celtics beat the Showtime Lakers featuring, In 1986 the Celtics defeated a pretty different Houston Rockets squad. Larry Birds finals record was 3-2. The NBA Finals series was closer than either of the Conference Finals. The Celtics stayed unbeaten all-time in home Game 7s with a clear cut 111-102 victory. These Knicks really were Bernard Kings team. The Sixers had an incredible roster featuring three Hall of Famers in Julius Dr. James has as many series losses in the Finals as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Larry Bird combined. His back suffered major issues, as he injured it building on his farm. Your email address will not be published. Jordan scored an all-time playoff record in game 2: 63 points. No stats available. So lets look at the 1984 NBA season. At 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 metres), Erving played forward and was noted for his fast breaks, balletic leaps toward the basket . Indiana State University, High School: Who Did Larry Bird Lose To In the NBA Finals? The Sixers took an 89-82 lead with five+ minutes to go. Magics Michigan State team won the game 75-64, preventing Bird from winning a title for Indiana State. Larry Bird won Finals MVP in 1984 & 1986, the trophy would go to his teammate Cedric Maxwell in 1981. Celtics Starters: Tiny Archibald, Chris Ford, Larry Bird, Cedric Cornbread Maxwell and Robert Parish. Despite excellent performances in his first two seasons, Indiana State had very little success. 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. Houston had a tough road to the Finals: they beat the defending champion Lakers featuring both. 1979 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, "Here Are Some Final Facts on NBA Playoffs", Lakers versus Celtics and the NBA Playoffs, The Last Season: A Team in Search of Its Soul, Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1984_NBA_Finals&oldid=1141615206, 20th century in Los Angeles County, California, Basketball competitions in Inglewood, California, May 1984 sports events in the United States, June 1984 sports events in the United States, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, No. 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. Larry Bird beat iconic NBA players on his way to three NBA championships including Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Hakeem Olajuwon. J Erving, Michael Jordan, Hakeem Olajuwon, Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Hey, it's enough to make Allen Iverson burn his Celtics throwbacks. Known as "Larry Legend," Bird has achieved incredible success in his career, earning multiple awards and holding numerous records. The type of player who didnt even care about stats but always seemed to put up the most absurd statlines ever seen. Two superstars, Magic and Larry, and the two most iconic teams in the leagues history, the Lakers and the Celtics. Thanks for signing up. The East's award is named after Larry Bird and the West's after Magic Johnson. Bird had a good series in other categories, but did not score at his normal rate. Dennis Johnson responded by sinking two free throws to seal the victory. FGA, TRB, AST, PF, GS over 99% complete back to 1975-76. 2 NBA Finals MVP (1984, 1986) 3 NBA Most Valuable Player (1984-1986) . So, for me, being back in the old Boston Garden for Game 7, with twelve seconds left on the clock, and knowing that we were going to be world champions when absolutely no one gave us a chance but usthat is the thing that I remember the most..