Reflecting back on the series, Magic Johnson said ". The 1987 Finals was the culmination of Magic and Bird's decade-long rivalry that dominated the NBA. Some of Johnson's notable performances against Bird: As for some of Bird's notable performances against Johnson: Johnson and Bird played against each other 19 times in the playoffs over the course of three NBA Finals. The Philadelphia 76ers defeated the Celtics in the conference finals before losing to the Lakers in the 1980 NBA Finals, with Johnson earning Finals MVP honors for his Game 6 performance. The Houston Rockets were led by their Twin Towers, Hakeem Olajuwon and Ralph Sampson. The Sixers took an 89-82 lead with five+ minutes to go. 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. 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. In Game 2, the Lakers led 113-111 with 18 seconds left when Gerald Henderson stole a James Worthy pass to score a game tying layup. Take a look below. They were the thoroughbreds, we were the Clydesdales., It was a very physical series, and thats exactly what we wanted because we knew thats the only way we could beat those guys. At 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 metres), Erving played forward and was noted for his fast breaks, balletic leaps toward the basket . Funny story about that series, Boston was actually down 3-1 entering Game 5, and Bird ended up dropping 32, 25 and 23 points in each of those games to rally off three straight wins and advance his team to the Finals. Regular season: PTS, FG, FT, 3P complete all-time. Answer (1 of 6): Larry Bird (basketball player) was 3-2 in the NBA Finals. 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). Bird has four siblings' all brothers named Mike . The Lakers were coached by Pat Riley and also featured defensive ace Michael Cooper, a young. Who Did Larry Bird Defeat in the NBA Finals? Game 4 of the 1984 Finals marked the last Finals game to go into overtime until Game 2 of the 1990 NBA Finals. However, despite sweeping the Bulls in the first round again, they had serious issues the next few. Los Angeles Lakers in 7 games (4 wins, 3 losses) * 1985: Los Angeles Lak. * 1981: Boston Celtics def. After . 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. It was also the first of three NBA Finals meetings between the Celtics and Lakers during the Larry Bird and Magic Johnson era. Larry Bird then married Dinah Mattingly on September 30, 1989, who he met while studying at the Indiana State University. During a mid-1980's game vs. Utah when Bird was torching the Jazz, Larry looked over at . Larry Bird averaged 24.0 points, 9.7 rebounds and 9.5 assists per game for the series. Boston won two close ones to start the series before Washington stole game three by 3 points. The first two meetings of the season between Cleveland and Boston took OT, but the Celtics were able to sneak a 117-113 win at home. Data runs from 1946-47 to present unless otherwise noted. Larry Bird averaged 23.1 points, 11.6 rebounds and 6.0 assists in 31 games in the NBA Finals in his career. In Game 3, the Lakers raced to an easy 137-104 victory as Magic Johnson dished out 21 assists, an NBA Finals record. Bird averaged 24.2 points,10.1 rebounds and 6.6 assists per game in the 1983-84 season. The Celtics ended up shedding the ghosts of the last season and convincingly won 4-1. Though just looking at his record can get a bit confusing. The three finals victories are outlined above, but Bird also had two finals losses. He scored 27 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, dished out 3.6 assists and had 2.1 steals per game. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. 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. How Many Championships did Larry Bird win? 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 . Coming off the back of a disappointing loss to the Lakers in the finals, many people saw Bird taking a step back going into the 1985-86 season. His team mate Cedric Maxwell won MVP. The Lakers were coming off a four-game sweep by the Philadelphia 76ers in the previous year's finals. 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 Celtics won a very close game 3 in Houston to take control of the series with a 3-1 lead. Celtics Starters: Gerald Henderson, Dennis Johnson, Larry Bird, Cedric Maxwell and Robert Parish. The Celtics won the first three games by an average of 6 points before the Hawks got their only win at home. During that year Lesley Visser, Stockton's wife, became the first woman to cover the NBA Finals for CBS. His performances included scoring 60 points against the Hawks which is still a Boston record to this day. The Knicks were led by the explosive scorer Bernard King, who averaged 29-5-3 in the series. Atlanta Hawks 4-1, 1986 Eastern Conference Final: Celtics def. Sample Searches for learning more about the power and flexibility of Stathead. Larry Bird Championships: He Defeated the Best! The league had changed the Finals homecourt schedule to the 2-3-2 format that year, allowing the team with the lesser record (LA) to host the middle three games. Jordan averaged an insane 43.7 points, 5.7 assists and 6.3 rebounds for this. 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 . Trailing in game 4, Kevin McHale clothes lined Kurt Rambis to spark the Cs to victory. He finished 1986 with averages of 25-10-7. Amazing! The Cs won in a blowout in game 3 in Houston before Houston tied it up with a tight win in game 4. The teams traded games throughout the series. . Here are some of Larry Bird's notable career achievements and statistics: Three-time NBA champion (1981, 1984, 1986) . However, this was not the case. I wrote about his record in the NBA Finals here. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. * Larry Bird was injured and missed the playoffs in 1989. Despite good performances from Bird, Magic Johnson outplayed him as the jumbo sized Lakers guard won finals MVP. His first run to the NBA Finals came in his second season, averaging 21-11-5 with 2 steals a game. In the first two NBA matchups between Bird and Magic . There were three Larry Bird championships with the Boston Celtics: in 1981, 1984 and 1986. Both these players were representing teams from their home States, adding extra spice to the whole thing. us, College: After a tough seven game series in the conference finals against the Sixers, Boston advanced to the finals to face the Rockets. 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. 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. Bird won Finals MVP in 1984 when his Celttics defeated the Lakers in seven games. Celtics forward Larry Bird averaged 27 points and 14 rebounds a game during the series, earning the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP). The Celtics and Lakers met in the NBA Finals in 1984, 1985, and 1987 with Bird and Cooper going at it. Despite the similarities, the Lakers won the series in six games. As for their averages, Johnson posted 20.7 points, 13.5 assists and 7.5 rebounds per game in their head-to-head matchups in the Finals compared to Bird's 25.3 points, 11.1 rebounds and 4.6 assists. What is Larry Birds Record in the NBA Finals? The first round was a 3-1 victory over the Washington Bullets. Boston entered the new decade by winning the 1981 NBA Finals. The Boston Celtics were matched up against the Houston Rockets, led by Hall of Famer Moses Malone. In his second season with the Celtics, Boston finished first in the East as they had done the previous year. He averaged 15.3 points, 15.3 rebounds and 7.0 assists for the series. Allen Iverson Jersey Mitchell and Ness: A Complete Guide. Certain completely unbiased fans, like myself, rank him very highly in that top ten. All rights reserved. They did make the playoffs the year after and many thought that they would easily repeat at first. Finally, lets discuss the NBA Finals. This series was a rematch of the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics after their rivalry was revived in 1979 with the Magic JohnsonLarry Bird pair entering the league. They beat the Rockets twice and the Lakers once to win NBA titles. It was yet again against the Lakers and they split the first two games 1-1. 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. But what is Larry Birds record in the NBA Finals? But it is also quite possible even probable that Larry Bird cost the Celtics the 1985 NBA championship.". Born in Indiana in 1956, Larry Bird began playing basketball at a young age. The Cs closed it out winning game four by 3 points. In Game 7, the heat that was an issue in Game 5 was not as bad (indoor temperatures hovered around 91F (33C) during the game, due to additional fans being brought in to try to cool the air). Bird, who was selected 6th in the 1978 NBA draft but committed back to Indiana State for his senior season, was named Rookie of the Year after leading the Celtics to a 32-game turnaround from the previous year, going from 29 to 61 wins. We are compensated for referring traffic and business to Fanatics.com and other companies linked to on this site. Those other two times? Copyright 2023 Sporting News Holdings Limited. It's clear the two dominated the decade, but who got the better of who? the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. The Celtics star received 52 first placed votes, with second place Bernard King only getting eleven. The rules shift was a big factor . 1981 was against the Houston Rockets where Cedric Maxwell was the NBA Finals MVP. Cedric Maxwell averaged 17.7 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists to win Finals MVP. The Celtics had Larry Bird as their centerpiece and posted a record of 67-15, including an NBA record 40 wins at home. Former Celtics player M.L. The Cs closed it out with a lopsided victory in game 5. His individual performance was recognised all across the NBA as he helped Boston to a then record breaking 67-15 regular season record. Ruland, a center, averaged 22 points and 12 boards for the season. Averaging 30-10-7 with 3 steals. Despite excellent performances in his first two seasons, Indiana State had very little success. BIrd averaged 27.4 points, 10.0 rebounds and 6.0 assist per game for the series. This cost the Lakers valuable depth, as James Worthy, a key contributor off the bench, would now have to start in Wilkes' place. 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 NBA unveiled two new postseason awards on Thursday morning: the Eastern Conference Finals MVP and Western Conference Finals MVP. So lets look at the 1984 NBA season. 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. These performances earned Bird his second MVP award. Bird averaged 25.3 points, 9.5 rebounds and 8.0 assists per game for the series. No one thought we could beat the Lakers. He stayed loyal to the Celtics throughout his entire career and they were the team that reaped the benefits of his five NBA Finals appearances and three NBAchampionships. What Was Michael Jordans Playoff Record? But it was in 1986 when the Celtics faced the Houston Rockets for the championship when Bird . He was named NBA Head Coach of the Year in 1998. Larry averaged 27.4 points, 14 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.1 steals and 1.1 blocks per game in this series. He has been an NBA champion in 1981, 1984 and 1986 out of which he was the NBA Finals MVP in 1984 and 1986. 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. The Eastern Conference Finals were much more difficult. And, to be clear, he came by it honestly. 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. Aside from stats, Larry Bird was a winner, bringing home multiple championship rings during his time with the Celtics. The Celtics then knocked the 76ers off once again, this time in five games and advanced to the Finals for the second time in as many years. Larry Bird said there were 'obvious' differences between himself and Magic Johnson. I wrote about his underrated defense here. 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. 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. 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 Celtics stayed unbeaten all-time in home Game 7s with a clear cut 111-102 victory. . They lost twice to the same team: the Los Angeles Lakers. Birds 3 wins came against the Rockets (1981 & 1986) and the Lakers (1984). In Game 7, the Celtics got 24 points from Cedric Maxwell and 22 from DJ with Bird scoring 20 as they won the game 111-102 and the series for Bostons 15th NBA title. Larry Bird won his first NBA Finals MVP. The Bucks, coached by Celtics legend Don Nelson, won the Central Division title in 1984. Do you have a blog? This was brought on after Ralph had an altercation with a Boston player in game five.
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