Click the links to read up on the Finals records of the best players in league history. Finally, lets discuss the NBA Finals. Birds missed game winner in game four turned out to be vital in the series as the Lakers did not let their 3-1 lead slip, winning the series in six games. Bird: "So you're overpaid.". But it was in 1986 when the Celtics faced the Houston Rockets for the championship when Bird . Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. This was the last NBA Finals to use the 22111 format until 2014. The Lakers and the Celtics met again in 1987 where the Lakers won in six games. 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. Get the latest news on Larry Bird, biographical info . BIrd averaged 27.4 points, 10.0 rebounds and 6.0 assist per game for the series. This series prompted Bird to quote, Thats God disguised as Michael Jordan. Michael averaged 43 points through the three-game series. He shone as a head coach and executive for the Indiana Pacers; in fact, hes the only man in history to win Rookie of the Year, MVP, Finals MVP, All-Star MVP, Coach of the Year, and Executive of the Year. It went back and forth but the Celtics were able to walk away with a massive victory to seal the series. Larry Bird's Finals Record: An All-Time Great! - Sports Nostalgia HQ Larry Bird [2023 Update]: Wife, Net worth & Family - Players Bio Answer (1 of 2): Larry Bird has been in the NBA Finals 5 times as a player, all while playing with the Boston Celtics. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. Larry Bird Championships: He Defeated the Best! The 1987 NBA Finals again saw the Los Angeles Lakers up against Birds Celtics. 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. Despite getting swept in the 1983 NBA Finals by the Philadelphia 76ers, the Lakers entered the season among the favorites to win the title. 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. Boston also had to deal with the impending free agency of Kevin McHale and Larry Bird. The following season, the Celtics did end up losing to the Philadelphia 76ers after winning their first-round series against the Washington Bullets (what a team name!). The Celtics ended up shedding the ghosts of the last season and convincingly won 4-1. It was the beginning of one of the most legendary basketball rivalries in the history of the NBA, with Bird and Magic Johnson facing off against each other for the first time. Larry Bird averaged 23.1 points, 11.6 rebounds and 6.0 assists in 31 games in the NBA Finals in his career. The Celtics won the first three games by an average of 6 points before the Hawks got their only win at home. He swept through the Bulls the next year, then beat the Atlanta Hawks in five games, then swept the Bucks. The Sixers had an incredible roster featuring three Hall of Famers in Julius Dr. After altering wins with the Lakers, the Celtics won Game 7 and the series with a score of 111102. They lost twice to the same team: the Los Angeles Lakers. Safe to say he absolutely dominated in every facet of the game for that second ring. The seeds of the 1984 Finals were first sown five years earlier, during the 1979 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.In the final game of the tournament, Larry Bird and his erstwhile unbeaten Indiana State Sycamores lost to Magic Johnson and his Michigan State Spartans by the score of 75-64. 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. It was Boston's worst playoff defeat in franchise history to that date. 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. Shoots: His performances included scoring 60 points against the Hawks which is still a Boston record to this day. Referee Hugh Evans became dehydrated and fainted at one point in the first half. 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. As the reigning rookie of the year, Bird led the Celtics to the finals, beginning with a sweep of the Bulls. Larry Joe Bird (Larry Legend, The Hick from French Lick, Kodak, The Great White Hope) Position: Small Forward and Power Forward Shoots: Right 6-9, 220lb (206cm, 99kg) . Cedric Maxwell, Larry Birds teammate, was awarded Finals MVP with 18-9-3. However, this was not the case. If you remember, there was Kevin McHales hit on Kurt Rambis, and there was Larry Bird bumping Michael Cooper out of bounds. So as it seems unlikely for Bird to ever coach again, Larry Bird has never won a championship as a coach. 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. His back suffered major issues, as he injured it building on his farm. 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. The Celtics had lost to the Lakers in the finals the previous year, but this time their opposition was the Houston Rockets. 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 1987 the Lakers once again beat the Celtics in the NBA Finals. Stephen Curry is now a career 21-4 (.840) in playoff series. You can only imagine how fiery this rivalry was, with two consecutive seven-game series in the Eastern Conference Finals. The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. 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 logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. 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. That went to Birds teammate. How to say Basketball in different languages? This Rockets team still had Robert Reid but now also featured Rodney McCray. The rules shift was a big factor . The East's award is named after Larry Bird and the West's after Magic Johnson. Springs Valley in French Lick, Indiana, Draft: 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. 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. Magic beat Larry in their college showdown, but Bird made sure he got his revenge in 1984. Bird won three titles with the Celtics in 1981, 1984 and 1986, earning Finals MVP honors in the latter two. Larry Bird is one of the ten greatest players in the history of the NBA. Arrives by Wed, Mar 15 Buy Larry Bird Boston Celtics Autographed Wilson Replica Basketball with "HOF 1998" Inscription - Limited Edition of 133 at Walmart.com He was one member of the greatest rivalry in the leagues history between himself and Los Angeles Lakers superstar Magic Johnson. Larry Bird Had a Perfectly Understated Response While Discussing His 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. Celtics forward Larry Bird averaged 27 points and 14 rebounds a game during the series, earning the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP). What Was Michael Jordans Playoff Record? Why did David Stern Veto the Chris Paul to the Lakers Trade? NY Knicks 4-3, 1984 Eastern Conference Final: Celtics def. Larry averaged 27.4 points, 14 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 2.1 steals and 1.1 blocks per game in this series. Larry Bird's Stats For Each Season: Consistency Was The Key, He Larry Bird News, Biography, NBA Records, Stats & Facts - Sportskeeda 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. 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. Larry Bird Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Draft Status and more The Cs took game 5 at home behind Larry Birds 34 points and 17 boards. In 1987-88, Bird was the first Celtic ever to record a 40-20 game, with a 42-point, 20-rebound effort against Indiana. Both times it was to his rival dating back to college: Magic Johnson and the Los Angeles Lakers. The Bucks took them to seven games before they were able to advance and the Pistons took them to seven in the Conference Finals. The Celtics and Lakers met in the NBA Finals in 1984, 1985, and 1987 with Bird and Cooper going at it. Those same Lakers defeated Bird in both his finals losses. Since then Bird won a championship in 1981, then Magic led the Lakers to the finals in 1982 and 1983, winning in the former. Bird has four siblings' all brothers named Mike . At the end of the season, Bird was named Coach of the Year. the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. Larry Bird is 6-9. us, College: However, the Lakers suffered a key injury when their 3rd leading scorer, Jamaal Wilkes (17 PPG) was ruled out of the finals. The Lakers were coming off a four-game sweep by the Philadelphia 76ers in the previous year's finals.

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