Went to this game a couple hours early, heard Bird warmed up before anyone else. Almost nobody in their seats, NO OTHER PERSON on either team was there. Larry was shooting all over the place, putting on a clinic. I hated to disturb him, but knew I'd never see him again. Went out on the court and asked for his autograph. He didn't say a word, he signed my ticked stub, and went back to work. And then he wins the game in OT and I'm standing up on my chair cheering while all these Blazer fans are giving me the evil eye. Greatest ball game I've ever been to. Still have the stub. What a guy. Didn't even know he was left handing it all night because you couldn't tell, he seemed to play that way ALL the time. Amazing. So was being there.
Has anyone ever seen an NBA player just say "Fuck it, tonight I'm shootin' lefty." It's ridiculous. I was lucky enough to have really good seats for a lot of his games and I remember thinking how lucky I was to be able to witness it. The thing was, these guys didn't look like athletes. They looked like guys that just came off the factory floor. Larry had court awareness and made passes that weren't equaled. Boston fan's loved Magic also, because we knew how much Larry respected him. It was a special time for basketball.
Loved Magic ? As a Boston native no - we HATED Magic with a passion. Now many years later if I ever met him in person I'd have to say he's one of the best players to ever play in the league - ever. Not just because of his athleticism but because he's simply a great guy. That huge $hit eating grin he had - oh how we hated that. Probably one of the best ambassadors the sport has ever seen or will see. Tenacious on the court - a gentleman off the court. That's my opinion anyways. Magic and Bird changed the NBA and offered fans one of the best on/off court rivalary's ever. I highly recommend any fan of Bird/Magic watch the interview that Letterman did a few years back. I nearly fell off the chair listening to these two go at it.
Doc James boy, the chemistry between bird and dj was so fun to watch. and robert parrish's career really took off with the addition of bird, the inimitable basketball savant.
AAF-CC Executive Director..... In Birds first year with the Celtics, Parish played for the Golden State Warriors. So Parish was the addition, not Bird.
I am a bit surprised that everyone takes Bird's "I just got bored and figured I'd use my left hand" statement at face value. Bird, McHale and Ainge were notorious for placing bets on each other's skills. Ainge was once bet that he couldn't get to the FT line 15 times, so he drove to the basket on every play, which was something he almost never did in his regular game (he got to the line 13 times and lost the bet). Bird was once bet that he couldn't shoot a 3-pointer with only his left hand, and he made the shot on his second try. It definitely seems plausible that Bird had made a "left-hand points" bet before this game (and several other games). And it definitely seems possible that K.C. Jones looks unamused because he recognizes that this is what is happening.
KC Jones always looked unamused. Just a natural stone face and prolly a tough read at the poker table. I've seen interviews where he speaks of Bird glowingly, I doubt that they had too many bad days together as player & coach.
TheJMSESQ Ok, and true, but there is a difference between real dissension between the two and KC simply thinking "I see what's going on here. He better not lose us this game because he decided to win a bet."
Steve G I'm pretty sure in one other youtube video there is reference to this left handed game. something to do with the defender on Bird that night. must be in one of the trash talking videos.
+Steve G . they were coming down to the last game of the road trip and having not lost one game.. So Larry said you know what I'm going to shoot this whole game or at least three quarters of it left handed
Larry Bird signed signatures with his left hand. He was a left hand dominant person who felt more comfortable playing with his right. Freak of nature. Fully ambidextrous.
You are correct that Larry Bird wrote with his left hand. But he was not "fully ambidextrous." It was very difficult for Bird to learn how to use his left hand in basketball. I write with my left hand, but in basketball, I played right-handed. I could not dribble the ball with my left hand to save my life. In baseball, I batted left, in golf, I'm right-handed. I couldn't make a 3-foot put left-handed. Around the house, I use a hammer with my left, a drill or screwdriver with my right. There's no known rhyme nor reason to it, but we can't do all things equally well either hand.
I''m not suggesting he could shoot from a distance with his left hand, but if you look at his shot it's almost a two handed shot. He's fully ambidextrous in close, dribbling, and passing. It's as good as it gets, but obviously something he trained himself to do. One of his major influences was Pete Maravich, another basically ambidextrous jump shooter/penetrator.
Johnny Blaze It's a shame that Pete didn't stick around with the Celtics for the 81' season he would have got a championship. I don't know how much he would have appreciated it though being a role player at that point. He was always used to being the star. Not saying that's a bad thing, but I don't know if he would of appreciated it as much compared to if he won a title with the Jazz.
Johnny Blaze Does that make you ambidextrous though? Because I sweep, swing a bat, golf club, and eat left handed, but I do everything else right handed.
Yeah, one of Birds best clutch games ever. He decides to break the record fo most points by a Lefty in one game at Portland. Bird also his a game winner to send it into overtime. He then hits the game winner to win OT.
Who in the FLYING FK wakes up one day and says to themselves 'I think for tonight's game I'm gonna play left handed"??? MJ?? NO, Magic?? NO, Kareem?? NO, Kobe?? LeBron?? Duncan?? DrJ?? No, No, No, No... Only Larry Legend.
sam bowie was drafted by the blazers so why would it be rare??? just look up some trailblazers game and there is sam bowie... whats amazing is.. if you see MJ playing in a blazer uniform alongside drexler. LOL SMH
If you stacked up anyone's prime 4-5 years in the league, it would be hard to argue that anyone was better than Bird. Just think, in the 87-88 season Bird averaged 30 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 steals. WTF? Those are insane, cartoon numbers. And that wasn't even his best season.
+Court Tillett If i recall, they needed those 30 ppg since McHale was coming off foot surgery and really wasn't himself all year. Fantastic player. really miss Bird.
+MrBruinman86 spot on. McHale was old school. he played courageously on that broken foot and he was never the same player after that season. Still one of the best post players of all time...right up there with Hakeem, Timmy D, and Jordan.
Court Tillett Many speculate is greatly shortened his career. Shame really. best pure low post player I've ever seen. And who could forget the clotheslining of Rambis in the finals. :-)
Asaad The Clampgod call a spade a spade... That shit was 🗑... Guys allowed to dribble to left or right with the wrong hand. Too much space and separation... Overly committed to every shot fake when you would want to push him to dribble drive action... No second efforts made defensively... Come onnnn 😂
Asaad The Clampgod false narratives watch an entire game... They should statistically put in every time it was more than a common foul in statistical data to every possession up and down. Also if your allowed to use your hands I’m allowed to use mine... If your an elite athlete compared to everyone else that hand check doesn’t mean shit especially if I’m not able to sit on the lane in help defense to wait to help you out... It’s literally still basketball trainers nowadays that teach you how to win the “hand war”...
Asaad The Clampgod it’s no offense to them guys as they PAVED the way for these new guys and I also hate when people say a y’all of famer then wouldn’t be one now while neglecting they would have the same knowledge of the body and basketball as the modern guys... All in all I have to be practical it’s a reason why they tell guys generation off to use their strong hand if available. These guys made the game better in the long run!!!
that's just ridiculous. shoots lefty all night just to create a challenge (where there otherwise was none) and makes the tying and winning shots as if he was practicing layups in his driveway. saw an interview w/reggie miller where he described hitting a last second jumper to win a big game for the pacers while bird was his head coach. he said the team's mobbing him, crowd's going nuts but when he looked over at bird he was just going about his business like nothing special had happened. miller said at first he didn't know what to make of it until it occurred to him that bird prolly made 100 of those last second shots over his career and was prolly thinking to himself "what's the big deal? he's supposed to do that".
TheJMSESQ he didn't shoot left all night he made less than half of his baskets on left handed layups. He had three good left shots rest were follow ups in a meamingless game So stop perpetuating lies. It is was a good game by a all time great... He could have gotten 10 pts a game on left handed putbacks no one would know
Seriously, even though he used his normal shooting hand (right) for the long shots, it's still amazing that he could shoot so many shots left-handed and still get Player of the Game honors!
Amen, very well said. So glad I got to see DJ and say some words when he was coaching before he passed. George Gervin said he gave him more trouble defensively than anyone, and I'm sure Magic would say much the same. But Bird said it best when he said he was the best player he ever played w/ on any of his regular teams.
Trey B. Cartwright Just going to throw this out there....are you related to James William Cartwright? Your comment hints that you "knew" & respected DJ on a different (professional) level than the average Joe. I'm not positive, but I'm pretty sure they both played in the NBA around the same time (I'm too lazy to look it up, but I think I'm right).
MJ was the best all around individual one on one player but I'm going with Bird. A better team player who made his teammates better. Bird could of won the scoring title many times if he wanted. A shame he was hampered by injuries.
@YawningBoy He did it because he was bored. He told everybody before the game he was going to break the left handed scoring record in Memorial Coliseum. You can tell that the announcers were also tipped off to Bird's left handed show. I seem to recall Bird saying that this was his favorite arena to play in and it shows. Bird liked playing in arenas that were dark and hated playing in brightly lit places like the Silverdome.
The left hand "heats up" at the 3:50 mark. He scores 12 straight points with it including that ridiculous running bank shot and a couple of left hooks.
Larry Bird was so much better than anyone else on the court that he had to keep himself interested by trying dumb little things like scoring 20 points left-handed. Most guys would be thrilled to score 20 points regardless. What an assassin.
@TheNeeks6 To be fair, your wrong, Bird does hit hooks and bank shots with his right hand: watch?v=DjcGLGM3emE. Go to the 5:35 (bank portion of the video) and I've seen him make many a right handed hook shot.
In an interview Bird jokes and says towards the end of the game he switched back to shooting normal because it was getting s little close..and giggles. Frickn only Larry Bird.
L. B. 47 11 14. He was bored. Used the left. This was not a high school team they were playing. For most NBA players, this would be a career game. For Larry, just another night at the office. Unstoppable.
Another classic Bird masterpiece. I watched this game on Feb 14th and had it on VHS tape, then lost it when my house was robbed. The use of his left hand enabled him to constantly use his body to shield against defenders and get shots off or draw the foul. Also he could pass with either hand so you never knew when or where the pass was going. Best player ever and has the highest winning percentage of any NBA player in history, over 70% of games he played in.
Actually Magic is just ahead of him in career winning percentage, although I think Bird was the greater player and 5th best career of all-time. Arguably the 2nd greatest peak though.
Actually, if I was given the opportunity to draft a franchise team with any player of any era, I'd start Round One with Larry Bird. With Bird, you know you're going to have the right attitude and talent to win.
@Larry Trimble sheesh this comment is so old I forgot all about it. I have Larry and magic neck and neck. I’ll prolly go with Larry now just cuz I like scoring more but it can go either way. Happy holidays
we do n't know about steals but about blocks,there are videos of 36 yearls old wilt having 6-7 bl in nba finals.he was along russell(then it's hakeem) the best blocker ever.he was a great turnaround shot from medium distance,he was bad ft shooter but was great passer,actually when traded in 76ers and had great teamates he avg more than 8 assits in 2 season and led the league in 1 season(the only center did this).there are also videos making many clutch plays(in offense and defense to).
Bird was the greatest! This is the NBA I grew up watching. Great shooting and passing. Take notice in these older games that all the players can shoot well. Today's NBA is trash.
Don't pretend that today's NBA isn't better at shooting than the NBA then. And also don't pretend that today's NBA isn't waaaaay more talented than the 80s
This game was nothing more than psychological warfare. It was a nationally televised Sunday afternoon game. Everybody in the NBA was watching. Bird's left-handed shooting display was meant to intimidate. He publicly announced that he was going to play left-handed. But Portland still could not stop him. Everybody in the NBA got the message.
Heard about this game and expected to see nothing but lefty shots. Then I see a bunch of righty shots. Perhaps this game should be called "Lots of lefty."
Wow! I love the way this game was shot (no-pun intended) Especially around 6:22, you don't see that type of camera work anymore, feels like you're at the game.
Bird scoring with his left hand for 3 quarters .. absolutely the baddest man in the NBA from 1984 to 1986..3 straight MVP's awards and 2 Finals MVPs..not to mention his 3 straight 3 point shootouts titles..and if course a 3 time NBA World champion 🏆🏆🏆..1992 Member of the Dream Team 🥇 Gold metal winner...NCAA player of the year 1979..man did it all..hell he was even Coach of the Year in 1998 taking Jordan's Bulls 7 games.. sorry but he will always be my starting SF All Time..he and Magic saved the League and Jordan made it into a Worldwide penom..in my opinion they are the three most important players in NBA history period.
+Iowafan92 not really maybe the score was close, but celtics pulled away any time they wanted to. Blazers never had a chance. I've watched the game before too, and I watched it when it was live. I'm a Blazers fan. I'm here in Portland. Blazers never had a chance in this game.
+Scott Allennim complacency on the Celtics. This Celtic team was one of the greatest of all times. The whole game was spent with the Celtics shutting down the Blazers at any time they made a run. Then the Celtics would let them back in a little. But, at any time if the Celtics wanted to take control they had no problem doing so. This Blazer team was weak and three years away from being relevant. Kiki?.... Give me a break. I would take Natt, Cooper, and Fat Lever over Kiki any day. And look what the trio did for the Nuggets for six seasons after the trade. This Blazer team was extremely weak, and if you don't want to admit it than its ok. Blazers were not jelled until the got rid of Paxson, Kiki, and Bowie and brought in Buck Williams and that was 1990.
I guess most people don't know that Larry Bird IS Left handed. At least that's the hand he signs those Big Checks with!! Its best to say that he was ambidextrous as he mostly shot right handed, But he made a Bunch of great shots with his left. The thing that I saw him do night in & out, that very few players do, was his use of Fakes. And his passing abilities were phenomenal for a 6'9" small forward. He would DEFINITELY be on my All Time Starting 5 (by position) along with Tim Duncan at PF, Kareem at Center, Magic & Jordan at guards.
He was not ambidextrous, at least in the socially understood way. He could not write with his right hand. And he could not shoot a basketball with his left hand. Learning to use his left hand on the basketball court was very difficult for him. I write with my left, but couldn't dribble a basketball with my left to save my life. I bat left and golf right. I use a hammer with my left, a screwdriver with my right. That doesn't mean I can do all these tasks with either hand. There's no way in the world I'm going to hit a nail with my right hand, not if my left fingers are holding the nail. I was labelled "ambidextrous" as a child. And it was a pain, because people just assumed you could do everything equally as well with either hand. That's not the case.
Sam Perkins is the exact opposite of Larry Bird. He's right handed in everything else except basketball. There is a kind of ambidextrousness that works that way.
This reminds me of when I used to give a damn about the NBA in general instead of just the Warriors now. As a little kid growing up, we got Celtics games a lot on CBS, and so I grew up watching the teamwork of Bill Russell, John Havilicek, Sam Jones, Bailey Howell, and Dennis Johnson, etc. Bird scores 47 in this game - making 2 of the most important shots... but look at that passing.... wow. Just go to 2:50 and watch him fake 3 guys up in the air, and pass underneath them to the wide open guy 5 feet from the bucket.
One reason I favor Bird- his teammates loved the guy, crutial ingrediant to a team. Jordan had his own private dressing room & screamed at his teammates in practice. My favorite starting 5 = PG - Magic, SG - Jordan, SF - Bird, PF - Malone & center - Kareem. Hard to beat that team.
I'm old enough to remember most of Bird's games. I remember, when this team was in its prime...sometimes Bird would seem to get "bored" with the game, and play lefty for a while. Unreal.
That’s what im saying they act like he was dribbling down the court driving the lane with his left and hooping on people. Some of the left layups were tough but that defense was weak that game
I remember ange talking about this game. He said he was just laughing during the game and that it was like a high school star playing in a jr high leauge he just was toying with players.
When they talk about that era being all about great defense, I see a ton of space between the defender and ball handler in this video. Even off ball separation makes for a lot of wide open players on the catch and shoot.
THIS was talent. Notice how he scored 47 points on 21-34 shooting? Assuming he hits only 2 pters that's 42 points. Knowing that he hit a few 3's results in him getting only 2-3 free throws possibly. Kobe or lebron or Wade would need to get to the line 20 times in a game like this This was when the NBA was about SHOOTING talent. Even the big guys would have a medium jumper or some kind. No it's all about dunks, fouls, and free throws. There isn't any shooting talent left in the NBA
Bird actually had something like 6-7 triple doubles in 12 games this month (massive ones too). McHale was injured for most of them and Bird did a lot more rebounding (and got more touches) as a result. Just imagine what sort of numbers he would have put up if he was ever on a bad team....
...and they played together on the WIT April 9 1978 - the three seconds of passing they had against the Russian is one of the best three seconds when looking back.
I think the thing that people don't appreciate about Bird is that they say he was just a shooter. He was a great shooter but he never really fell in love with the 3 pointer. The most he ever shot was around 3 a game and that was at the end of his career. Bird was a DO EVERYTHING guy, a scorer, passer, rebounder, a good defensive player. And yeah, had he been quick or able to jump high...but then again, I think a lot of his game developed out of not being quick or able to jump high.
I was amaze that he scored quiet a lot with his left... and on top of that achieving triple double in the game.. this guy didnt just put icing on the cake.. he put some decoration extra candy and put some lights cuz he was a little bit bored.. now thats legendary hahaha
well, I counted 20pts with his off hand. thats probably a record that wont be broken. scoring that many with your off hand. And the even crazier thing is that he had a triple double on a 47pt night
Really think about what he did in this game ! The skill but the mental fortitude and disciple to continue to shoot left . Oh he dropped 47 too . lol. Bird was that dude
Went to this game a couple hours early, heard Bird warmed up before anyone else. Almost nobody in their seats, NO OTHER PERSON on either team was there. Larry was shooting all over the place, putting on a clinic. I hated to disturb him, but knew I'd never see him again. Went out on the court and asked for his autograph. He didn't say a word, he signed my ticked stub, and went back to work. And then he wins the game in OT and I'm standing up on my chair cheering while all these Blazer fans are giving me the evil eye. Greatest ball game I've ever been to. Still have the stub. What a guy. Didn't even know he was left handing it all night because you couldn't tell, he seemed to play that way ALL the time. Amazing. So was being there.
Of course that all happened lol
Thats cap
@@amazinghorse1 jealous
@@bjthebasketballguyreacts3039 jealous
@@novaaceslegend3956 I'm a new school guy so why would I be jealous
Has anyone ever seen an NBA player just say "Fuck it, tonight I'm shootin' lefty." It's ridiculous. I was lucky enough to have really good seats for a lot of his games and I remember thinking how lucky I was to be able to witness it. The thing was, these guys didn't look like athletes. They looked like guys that just came off the factory floor. Larry had court awareness and made passes that weren't equaled. Boston fan's loved Magic also, because we knew how much Larry respected him. It was a special time for basketball.
Loved Magic ? As a Boston native no - we HATED Magic with a passion. Now many years later if I ever met him in person I'd have to say he's one of the best players to ever play in the league - ever. Not just because of his athleticism but because he's simply a great guy. That huge $hit eating grin he had - oh how we hated that. Probably one of the best ambassadors the sport has ever seen or will see. Tenacious on the court - a gentleman off the court. That's my opinion anyways. Magic and Bird changed the NBA and offered fans one of the best on/off court rivalary's ever. I highly recommend any fan of Bird/Magic watch the interview that Letterman did a few years back. I nearly fell off the chair listening to these two go at it.
Larry legend
Doc James boy, the chemistry between bird and dj was so fun to watch. and robert parrish's career really took off with the addition of bird, the inimitable basketball savant.
Doc James That's because today's players are all on PED's.
AAF-CC Executive Director..... In Birds first year with the Celtics, Parish played for the Golden State Warriors. So Parish was the addition, not Bird.
My jaw was dropped most of this video. This is amazing. Bird the 🐐🐐🐐
Bird was 62% shooting mostly left-handed. I'm guessing he won the bet.
There was no bet.He said:I'm saving my right hand for the Lakers,whom they played next . . .
I am a bit surprised that everyone takes Bird's "I just got bored and figured I'd use my left hand" statement at face value. Bird, McHale and Ainge were notorious for placing bets on each other's skills. Ainge was once bet that he couldn't get to the FT line 15 times, so he drove to the basket on every play, which was something he almost never did in his regular game (he got to the line 13 times and lost the bet). Bird was once bet that he couldn't shoot a 3-pointer with only his left hand, and he made the shot on his second try. It definitely seems plausible that Bird had made a "left-hand points" bet before this game (and several other games). And it definitely seems possible that K.C. Jones looks unamused because he recognizes that this is what is happening.
KC Jones always looked unamused. Just a natural stone face and prolly a tough read at the poker table. I've seen interviews where he speaks of Bird glowingly, I doubt that they had too many bad days together as player & coach.
TheJMSESQ
Ok, and true, but there is a difference between real dissension between the two and KC simply thinking "I see what's going on here. He better not lose us this game because he decided to win a bet."
Steve G I'm pretty sure in one other youtube video there is reference to this left handed game. something to do with the defender on Bird that night. must be in one of the trash talking videos.
+Steve G . they were coming down to the last game of the road trip and having not lost one game.. So Larry said you know what I'm going to shoot this whole game or at least three quarters of it left handed
john marcey
That is how Bill Walton tells the story, but I'm not sure I believe the official story.
Larry Bird signed signatures with his left hand. He was a left hand dominant person who felt more comfortable playing with his right. Freak of nature. Fully ambidextrous.
You are correct that Larry Bird wrote with his left hand. But he was not "fully ambidextrous." It was very difficult for Bird to learn how to use his left hand in basketball.
I write with my left hand, but in basketball, I played right-handed. I could not dribble the ball with my left hand to save my life.
In baseball, I batted left, in golf, I'm right-handed. I couldn't make a 3-foot put left-handed.
Around the house, I use a hammer with my left, a drill or screwdriver with my right.
There's no known rhyme nor reason to it, but we can't do all things equally well either hand.
I''m not suggesting he could shoot from a distance with his left hand, but if you look at his shot it's almost a two handed shot. He's fully ambidextrous in close, dribbling, and passing. It's as good as it gets, but obviously something he trained himself to do. One of his major influences was Pete Maravich, another basically ambidextrous jump shooter/penetrator.
..
Johnny Blaze It's a shame that Pete didn't stick around with the Celtics for the 81' season he would have got a championship. I don't know how much he would have appreciated it though being a role player at that point. He was always used to being the star. Not saying that's a bad thing, but I don't know if he would of appreciated it as much compared to if he won a title with the Jazz.
Johnny Blaze Does that make you ambidextrous though? Because I sweep, swing a bat, golf club, and eat left handed, but I do everything else right handed.
Yeah, one of Birds best clutch games ever. He decides to break the record fo most points by a Lefty in one game at Portland. Bird also his a game winner to send it into overtime. He then hits the game winner to win OT.
well this comment was 11 years ago cause Harden is a new guy
One cannot hit a "game winner" to send it into overtime. But I see your point.
@@SonZ17 lmao fr
@@isaiahayers1550 don't see his point lol, the word he was looking for was buzzer beater not game winner.
I love him so much 😍 I could watch this guys highlights all day. He was different gravy.
Who in the FLYING FK wakes up one day and says to themselves 'I think for tonight's game I'm gonna play left handed"???
MJ?? NO, Magic?? NO, Kareem?? NO, Kobe?? LeBron?? Duncan?? DrJ?? No, No, No, No... Only Larry Legend.
well put
More remarkable than Larry Legend, is there is actually footage of Sam Bowie playing in a Blazers uniform, now that is rare.
sam bowie was drafted by the blazers so why would it be rare??? just look up some trailblazers game and there is sam bowie... whats amazing is.. if you see MJ playing in a blazer uniform alongside drexler. LOL SMH
I bet Stu Inman bought 40 packs of cigarettes a day when he realized how much better Michael was than Bowie
@@eboooo He was not highly criticized at the time of the pick.
If you stacked up anyone's prime 4-5 years in the league, it would be hard to argue that anyone was better than Bird. Just think, in the 87-88 season Bird averaged 30 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 steals. WTF? Those are insane, cartoon numbers. And that wasn't even his best season.
+Court Tillett If i recall, they needed those 30 ppg since McHale was coming off foot surgery and really wasn't himself all year. Fantastic player. really miss Bird.
+MrBruinman86 spot on. McHale was old school. he played courageously on that broken foot and he was never the same player after that season. Still one of the best post players of all time...right up there with Hakeem, Timmy D, and Jordan.
Court Tillett
Many speculate is greatly shortened his career. Shame really. best pure low post player I've ever seen. And who could forget the clotheslining of Rambis in the finals. :-)
+Court Tillett How exactly does 9.3 rebounds round up to 10 rebounds? And how do you round 6.1 assists up to 7 assists?
+PurpleMonkeyDishwasher lol ikr "cartoon numbers" 😂
It scares me how easy he makes it look
MoistCat maybe the defense isn’t as good as everybody says it is
Asaad The Clampgod call a spade a spade... That shit was 🗑... Guys allowed to dribble to left or right with the wrong hand. Too much space and separation... Overly committed to every shot fake when you would want to push him to dribble drive action... No second efforts made defensively... Come onnnn 😂
Asaad The Clampgod false narratives watch an entire game... They should statistically put in every time it was more than a common foul in statistical data to every possession up and down. Also if your allowed to use your hands I’m allowed to use mine... If your an elite athlete compared to everyone else that hand check doesn’t mean shit especially if I’m not able to sit on the lane in help defense to wait to help you out... It’s literally still basketball trainers nowadays that teach you how to win the “hand war”...
Asaad The Clampgod it’s no offense to them guys as they PAVED the way for these new guys and I also hate when people say a y’all of famer then wouldn’t be one now while neglecting they would have the same knowledge of the body and basketball as the modern guys... All in all I have to be practical it’s a reason why they tell guys generation off to use their strong hand if available. These guys made the game better in the long run!!!
@@chadwilliams2116 yeah but not a lot of right hand people can score using their left hand consistently. Its pure skill
that's just ridiculous. shoots lefty all night just to create a challenge (where there otherwise was none) and makes the tying and winning shots as if he was practicing layups in his driveway.
saw an interview w/reggie miller where he described hitting a last second jumper to win a big game for the pacers while bird was his head coach. he said the team's mobbing him, crowd's going nuts but when he looked over at bird he was just going about his business like nothing special had happened. miller said at first he didn't know what to make of it until it occurred to him that bird prolly made 100 of those last second shots over his career and was prolly thinking to himself "what's the big deal? he's supposed to do that".
Probably Game 3? of the 2000 Finals.
Steve G Game 4, 1998 ECFs.
He didn't shoot left all night. I love bird. But it so wasn't the case. He had a bunch of impressive buckets left...
TheJMSESQ he didn't shoot left all night he made less than half of his baskets on left handed layups. He had three good left shots rest were follow ups in a meamingless game
So stop perpetuating lies. It is was a good game by a all time great... He could have gotten 10 pts a game on left handed putbacks no one would know
@@elastic774 good point
Seriously, even though he used his normal shooting hand (right) for the long shots, it's still amazing that he could shoot so many shots left-handed and still get Player of the Game honors!
@4:10 How I miss those bullet passes from DJ to Bird under the hoop for 2. RIP DJ you are missed.
Amen, very well said. So glad I got to see DJ and say some words when he was coaching before he passed. George Gervin said he gave him more trouble defensively than anyone, and I'm sure Magic would say much the same. But Bird said it best when he said he was the best player he ever played w/ on any of his regular teams.
Trey B. Cartwright Just going to throw this out there....are you related to James William Cartwright? Your comment hints that you "knew" & respected DJ on a different (professional) level than the average Joe. I'm not positive, but I'm pretty sure they both played in the NBA around the same time (I'm too lazy to look it up, but I think I'm right).
MJ was the best all around individual one on one player but I'm going with Bird. A better team player who made his teammates better. Bird could of won the scoring title many times if he wanted. A shame he was hampered by injuries.
Bird was a man playing among children.
This is what greatness is all about. Larry Bird is my fuckin' idol!!!!
@YawningBoy He did it because he was bored. He told everybody before the game he was going to break the left handed scoring record in Memorial Coliseum. You can tell that the announcers were also tipped off to Bird's left handed show. I seem to recall Bird saying that this was his favorite arena to play in and it shows. Bird liked playing in arenas that were dark and hated playing in brightly lit places like the Silverdome.
Not only that he was saving his right hand for magic and the lakers.
Larry Bird was a basketball genius.
Bird did everything, used both hands, low post, inside, long range. Not to mentioning rebounding and steals.
You know you're good when in a close game, you challenge yourself by scoring 22 points with the left hand... Cold Blooded and simply amazing...
He only scored 8😂
@@EasymoneygoatfHow do you figure?
I've been wanting to see this game for a looooong time.....A MILLION THANKS for sharing this! You're D Man!!!
beautiful basketball
In the INFO you say it all. All those things he got done in just one ball game is completely nuts. He did nothing wrong, nothing.
Little things like Birds play at 1:01 is what made him great. Take the fundamentals and put them in the mind of a genius and the game gets too easy.
He has the best first touch/decision of anyone.
The left hand "heats up" at the 3:50 mark. He scores 12 straight points with it including that ridiculous running bank shot and a couple of left hooks.
This was my golden era.
Just another day at the office for Larry Bird.
To say ur gonna shoot the game left handed and do it is the Most Baller thing I've ever seen hahajaj this is amazing
Larry legend!
Such an awesome vid! Thanks for sharing, man! Truly a Legend
Shooting GOAT and top3 IMO
One of the trailblazers players was so frustrated , he literally threw in the towel. Larry legend will do that to you!
i would have to say one of the best all time all around players the game has seen,
Bird had a shot for any situation thats one of many reasons he was greatest of all time in the era 81-86 he won his mvp and championships
Larry Bird was so much better than anyone else on the court that he had to keep himself interested by trying dumb little things like scoring 20 points left-handed. Most guys would be thrilled to score 20 points regardless. What an assassin.
I love watching these old Celtics games. There's so many little gems that never made the common HL reels. Like Birds touch pass to DJ 0:57
Larry looked like he was playing at the park in this game against some young kids!!! Absolute confidence and unstoppable!!
Larry the Legend
he is so freaking good, that final stat line is straight out of a video game!!!
Larry at the end of his career when his back was practically broken was still better than 90% of NBA players today.
Cap 🧢
So true
@TheNeeks6 To be fair, your wrong, Bird does hit hooks and bank shots with his right hand: watch?v=DjcGLGM3emE. Go to the 5:35 (bank portion of the video) and I've seen him make many a right handed hook shot.
Larry Bird is the most intelligent player of all time
47 - 11 - 14....
He scored 20 points with his left hand!
27......
In an interview Bird jokes and says towards the end of the game he switched back to shooting normal because it was getting s little close..and giggles. Frickn only Larry Bird.
27
Damn Larry Bird was different. He could go in today’s game.
As a Bostonian living in New York, I missed most of these Celtic games. RUclips has been my way of reliving the past.
L. B.
47 11 14.
He was bored. Used the left.
This was not a high school team they were playing. For most NBA players, this would be a career game. For Larry, just another night at the office. Unstoppable.
Another classic Bird masterpiece. I watched this game on Feb 14th and had it on VHS tape, then lost it when my house was robbed. The use of his left hand enabled him to constantly use his body to shield against defenders and get shots off or draw the foul. Also he could pass with either hand so you never knew when or where the pass was going. Best player ever and has the highest winning percentage of any NBA player in history, over 70% of games he played in.
Actually Magic is just ahead of him in career winning percentage, although I think Bird was the greater player and 5th best career of all-time. Arguably the 2nd greatest peak though.
LARRY BIRD IS THE 🐐
The real GOAT
Larry with two clutch shots to save the Boston Celtics from defeat holy shit
Amazing player.
Actually, if I was given the opportunity to draft a franchise team with any player of any era, I'd start Round One with Larry Bird. With Bird, you know you're going to have the right attitude and talent to win.
amazing, this larry bird
Larry legend is in my top three all time behind magic and the goat mj
@Larry Trimble sheesh this comment is so old I forgot all about it. I have Larry and magic neck and neck. I’ll prolly go with Larry now just cuz I like scoring more but it can go either way. Happy holidays
we do n't know about steals but about blocks,there are videos of 36 yearls old wilt having 6-7 bl in nba finals.he was along russell(then it's hakeem) the best blocker ever.he was a great turnaround shot from medium distance,he was bad ft shooter but was great passer,actually when traded in 76ers and had great teamates he avg more than 8 assits in 2 season and led the league in 1 season(the only center did this).there are also videos making many clutch plays(in offense and defense to).
Bird was the greatest! This is the NBA I grew up watching. Great shooting and passing. Take notice in these older games that all the players can shoot well. Today's NBA is trash.
Don't pretend that today's NBA isn't better at shooting than the NBA then. And also don't pretend that today's NBA isn't waaaaay more talented than the 80s
Dude was nasty, And slow. That's amazing. What a player. Triple dub and like 8 left handed shots, 47 points, just another day.
He wasn’t that slow. Compared to MJ yeah everyone was. But he was quick and extremely intelligent
michael jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time. We all know that. BUT personally my favorite all time is this man Larry Legend!
No, GabJero, we don't know that. I would put him in the top 5, though....
They weren’t ALL left handed but props to the bird
My GOAT 💯🐐🦍
Bird is awesome. He would dominate in todays game. Rebound, shoot, score, and steals...guy could do it all.
oceans19711 he wouldn’t be as good
This game was nothing more than psychological warfare. It was a nationally televised Sunday afternoon game. Everybody in the NBA was watching. Bird's left-handed shooting display was meant to intimidate. He publicly announced that he was going to play left-handed. But Portland still could not stop him. Everybody in the NBA got the message.
Heard about this game and expected to see nothing but lefty shots. Then I see a bunch of righty shots. Perhaps this game should be called "Lots of lefty."
Bird didn't care about the bet when it was game time. Makes sense. Wouldn't win bets and lose games, he hated losing.
TazTalksYouListen 27 left handed points, he shots 3s right handed ofc lol
#GOAT
You don't see anyone today so skilled with both hands that they can play a game with their not dominant hand and score 47 points...simply amazing
He didn’t score all 47 with the left
"He's shooting a very high percentage" - Hubie Brown
Wow! I love the way this game was shot (no-pun intended) Especially around 6:22, you don't see that type of camera work anymore, feels like you're at the game.
Larry is a bad bad bad man
Bird scoring with his left hand for 3 quarters .. absolutely the baddest man in the NBA from 1984 to 1986..3 straight MVP's awards and 2 Finals MVPs..not to mention his 3 straight 3 point shootouts titles..and if course a 3 time NBA World champion 🏆🏆🏆..1992 Member of the Dream Team 🥇 Gold metal winner...NCAA player of the year 1979..man did it all..hell he was even Coach of the Year in 1998 taking Jordan's Bulls 7 games.. sorry but he will always be my starting SF All Time..he and Magic saved the League and Jordan made it into a Worldwide penom..in my opinion they are the three most important players in NBA history period.
This Celtic team was stacked and just toying with the Blazers.
Nah. Portland played a good game. I've watched the whole game before. The Celts didn't play that well honestly.
+Iowafan92 not really maybe the score was close, but celtics pulled away any time they wanted to. Blazers never had a chance. I've watched the game before too, and I watched it when it was live. I'm a Blazers fan. I'm here in Portland. Blazers never had a chance in this game.
+grigsolve They went to OT. That's not toying that's barely winning. And the Blazers had a decent team. Drexler, Vandeweghe, and Thompson.
+Scott Allennim complacency on the Celtics. This Celtic team was one of the greatest of all times. The whole game was spent with the Celtics shutting down the Blazers at any time they made a run. Then the Celtics would let them back in a little. But, at any time if the Celtics wanted to take control they had no problem doing so. This Blazer team was weak and three years away from being relevant. Kiki?.... Give me a break. I would take Natt, Cooper, and Fat Lever over Kiki any day. And look what the trio did for the Nuggets for six seasons after the trade. This Blazer team was extremely weak, and if you don't want to admit it than its ok. Blazers were not jelled until the got rid of Paxson, Kiki, and Bowie and brought in Buck Williams and that was 1990.
+Scott Allennim
Since Bird was shooting left handed on purpose out of boredom, that does seem to indicate the Celtics weren't completely serious here.
I guess most people don't know that Larry Bird IS Left handed. At least that's the hand he signs those Big Checks with!! Its best to say that he was ambidextrous as he mostly shot right handed, But he made a Bunch of great shots with his left. The thing that I saw him do night in & out, that very few players do, was his use of Fakes. And his passing abilities were phenomenal for a 6'9" small forward. He would DEFINITELY be on my All Time Starting 5 (by position) along with Tim Duncan at PF, Kareem at Center, Magic & Jordan at guards.
He was not ambidextrous, at least in the socially understood way. He could not write with his right hand. And he could not shoot a basketball with his left hand. Learning to use his left hand on the basketball court was very difficult for him.
I write with my left, but couldn't dribble a basketball with my left to save my life. I bat left and golf right. I use a hammer with my left, a screwdriver with my right. That doesn't mean I can do all these tasks with either hand. There's no way in the world I'm going to hit a nail with my right hand, not if my left fingers are holding the nail.
I was labelled "ambidextrous" as a child. And it was a pain, because people just assumed you could do everything equally as well with either hand. That's not the case.
Sam Perkins is the exact opposite of Larry Bird. He's right handed in everything else except basketball. There is a kind of ambidextrousness that works that way.
He is really good in passing and shooting
You have no idea how good he was
This reminds me of when I used to give a damn about the NBA in general instead of just the Warriors now. As a little kid growing up, we got Celtics games a lot on CBS, and so I grew up watching the teamwork of Bill Russell, John Havilicek, Sam Jones, Bailey Howell, and Dennis Johnson, etc. Bird scores 47 in this game - making 2 of the most important shots... but look at that passing.... wow. Just go to 2:50 and watch him fake 3 guys up in the air, and pass underneath them to the wide open guy 5 feet from the bucket.
Thats why he is the best ever!
Absolutely dominating.
One reason I favor Bird- his teammates loved the guy, crutial ingrediant to a team. Jordan had his own private dressing room & screamed at his teammates in practice. My favorite starting 5 = PG - Magic, SG - Jordan, SF - Bird, PF - Malone & center - Kareem. Hard to beat that team.
On the way home after the game, he walked across the Brookline Reservoir.
I'm old enough to remember most of Bird's games. I remember, when this team was in its prime...sometimes Bird would seem to get "bored" with the game, and play lefty for a while. Unreal.
Did layups left handed but all shots were right handed. Another exaggerated legendary story
That’s what im saying they act like he was dribbling down the court driving the lane with his left and hooping on people. Some of the left layups were tough but that defense was weak that game
He's the GOAT.
I remember ange talking about this game. He said he was just laughing during the game and that it was like a high school star playing in a jr high leauge he just was toying with players.
When they talk about that era being all about great defense, I see a ton of space between the defender and ball handler in this video. Even off ball separation makes for a lot of wide open players on the catch and shoot.
Bird was hitting so many shots left handed they were begging for a right
THIS was talent. Notice how he scored 47 points on 21-34 shooting? Assuming he hits only 2 pters that's 42 points. Knowing that he hit a few 3's results in him getting only 2-3 free throws possibly.
Kobe or lebron or Wade would need to get to the line 20 times in a game like this
This was when the NBA was about SHOOTING talent. Even the big guys would have a medium jumper or some kind. No it's all about dunks, fouls, and free throws. There isn't any shooting talent left in the NBA
Bird actually had something like 6-7 triple doubles in 12 games this month (massive ones too). McHale was injured for most of them and Bird did a lot more rebounding (and got more touches) as a result. Just imagine what sort of numbers he would have put up if he was ever on a bad team....
...and they played together on the WIT April 9 1978 - the three seconds of passing they had against the Russian is one of the best three seconds when looking back.
Back when men were men, shorts were short and Larry Bird was dominating teams with both hands.
I think the thing that people don't appreciate about Bird is that they say he was just a shooter. He was a great shooter but he never really fell in love with the 3 pointer. The most he ever shot was around 3 a game and that was at the end of his career. Bird was a DO EVERYTHING guy, a scorer, passer, rebounder, a good defensive player. And yeah, had he been quick or able to jump high...but then again, I think a lot of his game developed out of not being quick or able to jump high.
I was amaze that he scored quiet a lot with his left... and on top of that achieving triple double in the game.. this guy didnt just put icing on the cake.. he put some decoration extra candy and put some lights cuz he was a little bit bored.. now thats legendary hahaha
omg he had everyone in the paratroopers club.
@TheNameOfMyAccount that was beautifully put
You look at the greats...This guy was the reason they coined the term!
well, I counted 20pts with his off hand. thats probably a record that wont be broken. scoring that many with your off hand.
And the even crazier thing is that he had a triple double on a 47pt night
Bird and Petrovic ! Same team. 55555 championships
He scored effortlessly
He was shooting with his right hand though.....
Really think about what he did in this game ! The skill but the mental fortitude and disciple to continue to shoot left . Oh he dropped 47 too . lol. Bird was that dude