yep. its too hard to say who was better, to me theyre 2 sides of a coin. magic was the athletic, flashy, in your face with a smile, mr nice guy type passer, while larry was the complete opposite. cold, calculated, methodical, straight to the point, and he would trash talk you with the most deadpan face. however, both of their passes were just as lethal. ofc by the numbers magic has more, but he was a point guard for his whole career while larry was a power forward from 1979 to 1983 and a small forward from 1984 to 1992, so there were a lot less pass opportunities for him
It’s a good way to describe how much flair Magic put on his game, but watch his mixtape and it’s clear they’re not easy passes at all. Adding extra style is both for entertainment and distraction for the opposing team. Larry has the edge in my opinion for his Quarterback passing game. Other than that they can do mostly the same things, but Magic is a PG so he’s supposed to distribute and the fact that Larry played Fwd like a guard is insane.
Larry Bird is the best all around player of all time. Top tier in ALL of these things: jump shooter, hustle, outlet passer, rebounder, free throw shooter, IQ, no-look passer, clutch, 3 pt shooter, playmaker, team leader, tap-passer, off-ball player, toughness. Great defender and the player with the least amount of weaknesses to his game in NBA history. His opponents feared him, and they have gone on the record in multiple instances to share that.
He was a quiet guy off court and didn’t deal with the media much or did very little to promote brands of sneakers, etc.,. He was very dedicated to basketball and didn’t get into some of crazy partying antics like other NBA players. He was kind of under the radar player that’s why many newer sports fans don’t know too much about him.
One of the best quotes is from James Worthy: "Jordan made you look slow. Bird made you look stupid." He was an average ordinary looking guy, but his mind and hands were super quick.
His mind seemed to operating at a gear, or maybe even two, higher than his opponents. And if you were on his team, you HAD to be ready to receive the ball no matter what or when. Because he WOULD find you.
Great job Jake. YOU'RE RIGHT, I was a passing PG and practiced Larrys' passes. Nope, couldn't do it. He not only passed like Magic, he shot like Curry, rebounded like Kareem and stole like Stockton. He & MJ are the best ever. He transformed a dismal team into a 3X Champion. 3 consecutive MVPs, All-Star MVP, 2X Finals MVP, 3X all-Defense, Athlete ot Year & King of the 40/50/90 club. LEGEND!!!! 🏀
@@POVJAKELive yes over-all. Lebron isn't as good of a rebounder, shooter, clutch, IQ, team player/leader or as tough as Bird. Lebron and Bird are even with passing, I actually think Bird is a better passer but, we'll call it even. Lebron was a better defender in his early career but, not now. LeBron has proved to be more durable but, who knows how long Bird would have lasted with today/s sport medicine advances. Just my opinion. I'd take Bird over Lebron.
Thanks for your reaction and appreciation of just how good Bird was... Bird was a basketball genius. He was the smartest all around player to ever play the game. He could beat you scoring, passing, it didnt matter. He knew where every player was on the court at all times. 1 foot away..5 feet away... the other end of the court, it didn't matter
That was a good commentary on Bird's play. He was confident because he lived and breathed basketball. Someone asked McHale why he didn't practice all of the time like Bird and McHale said that he had another life. Bird arrived early, practiced and then practiced with the team and many times stayed to practice afterwards. Thanks for the video.
No unnecessary movements with Bird, no tween tween just to do it. Smooth as hell fundamentals with understated flair, making difficult passes look easy and getting his teammates easy shots.
Can you imagine being his teammate and the amount of pressure you’d feel to make the shot when he passes to you? Especially when he could have taken the shot himself but passed it you.
I say this in other places here: imagine you’re a talented young man. You’re the best player in your junior league. You go to high school and you’re the best player there. Colleges are recruiting you. You get a full scholarship to play college ball. You’re the best player on your college team… so much so you get drafted into the NBA! You end up being good enough to START for your NBA team. You’ve been a perpetually elite player your entire career. You’re playing the Celtics and you’ve just made a difficult shot… and you’re terrified when you see Larry Bird racing to get out of bounds holding the ball. Because you just got owned, big shot. Legend was just that much better.
Magic made easy passes look difficult, but Bird made hard passes look easy. If not better, Larry was at least as good as Magic. Larry was one of the greatest shooters ever, causing people to overlook his play making ability. He was a pretty good defender too, making three All Defense teams. He did it all.
In the '80s I would've guessed Magic to be the better passer but now that I get to see much more of Bird thanks to these videos I think he's takes the win.
and ainge and well EVERYONE actually.. Parish and Mchale were good but without bird they were above average players.. 89, bird played 6 games the Celtics won 44 or so games.. Bird never won less then 57 prior, and after his return he never won less than 51 games.. Good players but Bird TRANSFORMED them.. but yea they had to be ready at all times.
Watching Larry live was a treat, his off ball movement and court positioning was the key to his greatness ,it wasn’t fair because he controlled the game just by being present on the court, he was more dangerous without the ball
point forward.. yeaaaahhh.. he was actually a stretch, point, power forward.. he shot the 3 (50/40/90 twice), facilitated (6.3 assists per game) he had an interior game with down low post ups and rebounding (10 rebounds per game for his career) and he led the league in DWS four times which only 5 other CENTERS (whom anchored a team defense) have done in history,
Great video on Bird. I am happy to see a video on his passing. Unbelievable. A key thing to consider is the teamwork. His teammates must have known and practiced to be ready for these lightening fast moves. You are right - his scoring ability made it so they had to double or triple team Larry resulting in his teammates being open. What a luxury the Celtics had in the Bird era.
Excellent analysis of Bird’s gift of passing. Thanks for noting how Larry performed at the highest level - passes are often super difficult but made to look easy with his talent for smooth, precise technique. Indeed, he made impossible passes look easy 😊
"Aww, hell no" is the funniest reaction I've seen to Bird's jump behind the back pass by the sideline 😂😂! That pass was ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS 🤷♂️!! Another intelligent and enjoyable reaction sir! Keep going down the Bird rabbit hole 🤙
What made Larry so great isn’t just his skill, but it’s how he made his teams great. Like you said, you don’t know what he’s going to do. Shoot? Fake out? Pass where you expect it or don’t expect it? Every one of his teammates needed to be completely dialed in every second to be ready for whatever unexpected thing he might do. That was where his greatness was.
I LOVED this reaction, because you really know the game, and you see and appreciate things that many other reactors don't. Also, you made me smile and laugh a lot. Thanks!
Thank you. You’re the first person to acknowledge that rotating a ball all the way back hind you and throwing it forward is hard if not extremely difficult. No one else seemed to have caught that.
larry elevated the whole team, and kudos for them to be able to do something with it. they had to be expecting the ball to just suddenly be in their hands at any moment and be ready to do something with it. predicting those down the court passes and being where they needed to be is crazy too.
I have to rate Bird and Magic equal, as players.Minor differences aside, the big difference is style. Magic is Showtime; Bird is working-class. Both devastingly effective. Both are there to win, whatever it takes.Both made their teammates better players.Both are supremely confident in themselves and their teams. It doesn’t get any better.
Larry could do it all and he did time and time again. There were no weak spots in his game. He made the game exciting. His talents were off the chart. He called his shots out. In the clutch there was no one better. 100% accuracy in passing. His determination was unmeasurable. He was a basketball beast. Magic said it best, "There will never ever ever be another Larry Bird".
Magic was the better passer by the smallest bit. both magic and bird were a team players and they were all about the win. Larry was a small forward. He was the best all around player. He was the first 40-50-90 player. Multiple years. He was 1 steal away from a quadruple double in three quarters. He could've gone back in the game and got the last deal, but he said he did enough damage. He didn't care about all of those stat business. He only cared about the win.great reaction❤
I’ve never understood why ppl put Magic ahead of Larry as a passer….Magic’s passes weren’t as organic as Larry’s. Larry’s were more in the flow of the game. Magic was showboating. I prefer Larry.
@ don't get me wrong I love Larry I prefer him too! Larry by far is the best all around player. Magic as a point guard always was the precipitator . He specifically was to pass the ball. Irish girl Larry is my all time favorite. I do enjoy your take on things and always look at your comments on RUclips too.
I cannot agree. I think Bird was a better passer than Magic. And a better shooter. And a better all around player. If Len Bias doesn't die, it is very likely Bird would have ended up with 5 titles to Magic's 3. That is the biggest reason people put Magic above Bird.
Dude, hearing you talk about trying the behind the back trick passes during practice or in pick up games reminds me of a time long ago, when I was in my late teens/early 20s. Now I grew up in the era of Bird, and given my white boy ass, he was my basketball hero. I couldn't do all his tricks, but I was determined to master as many as I could. I was that basketball geek that drove my mom nuts, because I'd practice passing the ball behind my back against the brick wall of my house, thumping the whole place with every pass I made (yeah, she made me sit inside just so I could hear what it sounded like while she thumped the ball repeatedly). I had a 2 foot chalk box marked out to practice with, and I could nail a pass in that box from 20' on the move easy peasy after a few years of practice. The part you didn't mention is having teammates that know what you can do and can catch such a pass. One time I was playing some pickup ball at a local rec center. It was my first time playing there, and no one knew me or what I could do. So, at one point in the game I manage to pick off a pass, and me and another dude are flying up the court on a fast break, with only one defender between us. I had the ball and made a pretty sick crossover move to get the other guy to commit to defending me, and instead of just tossing an oop (which would have made more sense in hindsight), I zing this behind the back bounce pass to my guy, who was not expecting that at all. Of course, it goes right between his hands, since he wasn't ready, and out of bounds for a TO. But DAMN, it was a sweet pass, and all the folks in the gym that saw it made a such a cheering sound when I made the nasty move and pass, that I wish I had it on video. It was literally the, "OHHHHH!!! Awwwwww!" you hear when a great play 'almost' happens. Dude on my team was really apologetic about letting it get away, saying it was the most amazing pass he'd ever been thrown.
👍 great reaction and commentary. I'd LOVE to see/hear your reaction to _Bird is the Word - 15 minutes of highlights_ (tip - trust the musical progression)
Larry Bird is the greatest SF of all time & arguably the best all around player ever. His game had zero deficiencies, no weaknesses & his IQ was off the charts
Bird turned around a team that had missed the playoffs in the previous two seasons and had a 29-53 record the previous year. Not only did the 1980 ROY lead them to a league-best record of 61-21, but he guided them to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they were ultimately eliminated at the hands of the Philadelphia 76ers in a five-game series.
I saw Bird play in person maybe six or seven times... his timing was near perfect, but even better was his anticipation of what everyone else on the court was going to do next , from moment to moment... and being able to influence opponents' actions with the slightest of motions
A story about Bird from the time: the Boston Garden was used for basketball AND ice hockey... There was a layer of ice under the basketball floor, which would be put back down after a hockey game. Larry would dribble the ball over the entire floor, looking for uneven spots and then go for the steal during the game anytime an opposing player would dribble in that location.
yea Larry was the best scorer, passer and rebounder on that team, best TEAM defender, and top 2-3 in steals and blocks for his team as well, top 1-3 in 3 point shots, top 1-3 in interior play. they celtics didnt really play with a pass heavy pg, other than Birds early years with Archibald, but once Tiny left, Bird was really the facilitator after that. and goto guy.. and primary rebounder.. and he was the QB on defense.
Larry Bird was the greatest and smartest basketball player to ever set foot on a court. It is not even close. He was a basketball genius. He had to retire early because he wore his body out playing the game with so much damn grit.
I’ve always been a lousy basketball player, but I love the game. I’m 65 years old getting ready to slow down in a couple of years, last Saturday me and a buddy installed a pretty decent basketball goal on my now larger patio. Basketball is just part of so many of us for some reason. I always thought good passing was part of what made the game more fun to watch and play.
Back when I played, I could keep track of one other teammate, MAYBE two, on a good night. Larry seemed to know where everyone was at all times, including opponents -- because in order to make a clean pass, you need a clear lane. His vision and awareness never fail to impress, even to this day.
So glad you got to see this video. People today think Bird was just a great jump shooter??? People have no clue how great Bird was!!! Bird rebounded like a Power forward and could shoot from anywhere on the floor and Bird out hustled every body on the court. AND his passing and court vision were off the charts!!! Bird vs all other Forwards in his era ( PF and SF) finished #1 in assists per game for 8 seasons!! Bird was #2 in assists per game for 3 seasons and was once 4th in assists per game. Bird actually dominated his position in passing more than Magic did as a PG. Magic led the league in assists 4 seasons and was #2 in assists for 6 seasons and was also 4th and 7th. John Stockton was also a great PG and passer. Bird was on 3 all defense teams (2nd team) and led the league in defensive win shares 4 times and was 7 times in the top 5 in DWS. Bird in 1983 finished tied for 3rd place for the DPOY award. Bird is the best all around player I have ever seen!!
I see it this way, Magic and Bird were both top-tier passers. Magic had so much flash that he could make even simple passes look great and Bird had the skill set and court awareness to make great passes look simple. Both players benefitted from teammates who complimented their game styles.
Bird always knew where his teammates were, so you had to stay alert as you got open expect a pass. GOAT all-around player. Made his team so much better. #1 Wilt #2 MJ #3 Bird #4 Curry (as he changed BB to bombs-a-way). #5 James/Kobe/Stockton (most steals/assist) O Robertson on and on...
Even Magic says Larry was better on offense. He said it during an interview with him and Larry on Conan. Edit- Not Conan, Lettermen. I stand corrected.
14:11 the Celtic defender abandoned the play Immediately when the shot left bro’s hands to get down-court. Didn’t even Look, that’s Hella faith in your team to get the Reebee!
I think he's the closet thing to magic in terms of passing. I think Magic had a little more flare to his passing but Bird had that bag too if needed. Bird just had a complete package
There are 34 outlet passes in this video. All on point, many of them into traffic. Between those, and the touch passes, and his ability to put spin on the ball, he was playing Basketball, Football, Volleyball, and Baseball out there on the court. Larry Legend is his primary nickname for a reason. Magic was a more prolific passer, since he was a PG, but I think Magic and Larry were about the same skill level when it came to passes.
Larry also trusted his teammates .. larry knew if he threw some crazy pass at them, they were ready and would finish it...I think if you ask Larry today..nobody would know his name if his brothers on the floor didn't have all the faith and trust in him...he was the absolute greatest team player...he took his shots to show it, but when it was game time, and the win mattered...he would be happy to feed you 70 points...if you were dominating your guard...he would find joy in feeding you the ball to run up the score ..larry was a team player more than anything. Just look at his stats..injured since high school....his playing career was really short..he was avg almost triple doubles...career stats...
Larry is a huge 6’10/11 He was listed as 6’9 because big men weren’t allowed to be outside shooters back in the day. Also, I take Larry over anyone. Equal passer and IQ to Magic, but a superior scorer, 3pt shooter, rebounder, and free throw shooter.
Me and my friends always said that if you could combine Bird and Jordan ...... Call him Larry Jordan or Michael Bird ...... It would have been a monstrosity of a player. Lol ....
This is a famous quote someone made back in the day. "Magic made easy passes look spectacular. Larry made spectacular passes look easy."
@@aramhamparian9641 I like that 💯
yep. its too hard to say who was better, to me theyre 2 sides of a coin. magic was the athletic, flashy, in your face with a smile, mr nice guy type passer, while larry was the complete opposite. cold, calculated, methodical, straight to the point, and he would trash talk you with the most deadpan face. however, both of their passes were just as lethal. ofc by the numbers magic has more, but he was a point guard for his whole career while larry was a power forward from 1979 to 1983 and a small forward from 1984 to 1992, so there were a lot less pass opportunities for him
@@simplyskrypt3914Larry with Kareem is better than Magic with Kareem imo.
Magic would make an easy pass look difficult. Bird would make a difficult pass look easy
It’s a good way to describe how much flair Magic put on his game, but watch his mixtape and it’s clear they’re not easy passes at all. Adding extra style is both for entertainment and distraction for the opposing team. Larry has the edge in my opinion for his Quarterback passing game. Other than that they can do mostly the same things, but Magic is a PG so he’s supposed to distribute and the fact that Larry played Fwd like a guard is insane.
Larry Bird is the best all around player of all time. Top tier in ALL of these things: jump shooter, hustle, outlet passer, rebounder, free throw shooter, IQ, no-look passer, clutch, 3 pt shooter, playmaker, team leader, tap-passer, off-ball player, toughness. Great defender and the player with the least amount of weaknesses to his game in NBA history. His opponents feared him, and they have gone on the record in multiple instances to share that.
I agree. He could do it all and do it spectacularly. He is so fun to watch. Number 1 Larry Bird !!!
He was a quiet guy off court and didn’t deal with the media much or did very little to promote brands of sneakers, etc.,. He was very dedicated to basketball and didn’t get into some of crazy partying antics like other NBA players. He was kind of under the radar player that’s why many newer sports fans don’t know too much about him.
100% agreed
One of the best quotes is from James Worthy: "Jordan made you look slow. Bird made you look stupid."
He was an average ordinary looking guy, but his mind and hands were super quick.
I always say Bird didn’t need to be fast, because he knew where he needed to be before anyone else did, and got there first anyway
His mind seemed to operating at a gear, or maybe even two, higher than his opponents.
And if you were on his team, you HAD to be ready to receive the ball no matter what or when. Because he WOULD find you.
@@Quazi-Moto That's sounds like what Lexi Hull, Nalyssa Smith, and Temi Fagbenle said about getting used to Caitlin Clark's passing in the WNBA.
The Bird is the greatest all-around basketball player of all time. Nobody has ever had such a complete package of skills.
100%
Great job Jake. YOU'RE RIGHT, I was a passing PG and practiced Larrys' passes. Nope, couldn't do it. He not only passed like Magic, he shot like Curry, rebounded like Kareem and stole like Stockton. He & MJ are the best ever. He transformed a dismal team into a 3X Champion. 3 consecutive MVPs, All-Star MVP, 2X Finals MVP, 3X all-Defense, Athlete ot Year & King of the 40/50/90 club. LEGEND!!!! 🏀
@@pokerpat6470 thank you!!💯 definitely a legend
Don't forget he's the only man to win MVP, Coach of the Year, and Executive of the Year. No one understands every facet of the game like Larry Legend
You just scratched the
surface on what this
Man did on the basketball
court . Bird is the “ real “
GOAT of the NBA !
Larry said he hates to see a player watch the ball go out of bounds. His heart and hustle can't be matched.
Most under valued player in NBA history. Alot of his intangibles were uncanny. His off hand was better than anyone who ever played in the league.
Those passes are why Parrish and McHale are in the Hall of Fame
Parish says the same.
Bird=best all-around player to ever play in my opinion.
better than lebron ??
@@POVJAKELive yes over-all. Lebron isn't as good of a rebounder, shooter, clutch, IQ, team player/leader or as tough as Bird. Lebron and Bird are even with passing, I actually think Bird is a better passer but, we'll call it even. Lebron was a better defender in his early career but, not now. LeBron has proved to be more durable but, who knows how long Bird would have lasted with today/s sport medicine advances. Just my opinion. I'd take Bird over Lebron.
@@cygnus62 Easy choice for me to take Bird over Lebron!
Larry definitely made his teammates stay on their toes, they had to be ready for a pass ALL the time.
Bird throwing dimes back in the 80's that point guards in today's league cant do. Please react to some of his historic and iconic games bro!!
@@aramhamparian9641 ok bet!!💯
Thanks for your reaction and appreciation of just how good Bird was...
Bird was a basketball genius. He was the smartest all around player to ever play the game. He could beat you scoring, passing, it didnt matter. He knew where every player was on the court at all times. 1 foot away..5 feet away... the other end of the court, it didn't matter
Yup-- that's what Dr. J said-- that Bird was a "basketball genius."
@@heavin6586 no lies told
LARRY LEGEND IS A UNICORN AND THE TRUE GOAT!!! 🐐 ☘️
Bird made everyone better.
That was a good commentary on Bird's play. He was confident because he lived and breathed basketball. Someone asked McHale why he didn't practice all of the time like Bird and McHale said that he had another life. Bird arrived early, practiced and then practiced with the team and many times stayed to practice afterwards. Thanks for the video.
No unnecessary movements with Bird, no tween tween just to do it. Smooth as hell fundamentals with understated flair, making difficult passes look easy and getting his teammates easy shots.
He would have been a great QB. 6’9”, tough as nails and his passes always hit guys on the move in time.
Can you imagine being his teammate and the amount of pressure you’d feel to make the shot when he passes to you? Especially when he could have taken the shot himself but passed it you.
I say this in other places here: imagine you’re a talented young man. You’re the best player in your junior league. You go to high school and you’re the best player there. Colleges are recruiting you. You get a full scholarship to play college ball. You’re the best player on your college team… so much so you get drafted into the NBA! You end up being good enough to START for your NBA team. You’ve been a perpetually elite player your entire career. You’re playing the Celtics and you’ve just made a difficult shot… and you’re terrified when you see Larry Bird racing to get out of bounds holding the ball. Because you just got owned, big shot. Legend was just that much better.
Larry came into the league with that passing, the shooting the guarding, the best overall game ever!!!
The long passes are ridiculous because of the accuracy!
@@UncleCharlie111x2 yeah it was right on time forreal !!
Magic made easy passes look difficult, but Bird made hard passes look easy. If not better, Larry was at least as good as Magic. Larry was one of the greatest shooters ever, causing people to overlook his play making ability. He was a pretty good defender too, making three All Defense teams. He did it all.
I love Magic too, but for my money…. There is no aspect of the game in which Magic was superior to Bird. Not that I can see anyway
In the '80s I would've guessed Magic to be the better passer but now that I get to see much more of Bird thanks to these videos I think he's takes the win.
larry and the celtics knew that you can advance the ball up court MUCH faster by passing instead of dribbling
Bird and Jordan. 1a and 1b best players of all time.
i swear I wrote this..
You gotta give Parish & McHale credit for being ready to catch the ball at all times and finish. Bird will find the open guy
@@pilgrimbelle facts ur right that’s not easy
and ainge and well EVERYONE actually.. Parish and Mchale were good but without bird they were above average players.. 89, bird played 6 games the Celtics won 44 or so games.. Bird never won less then 57 prior, and after his return he never won less than 51 games.. Good players but Bird TRANSFORMED them.. but yea they had to be ready at all times.
Larry told Kevin, "You get open, I'll hit you."
Watching Larry live was a treat, his off ball movement and court positioning was the key to his greatness ,it wasn’t fair because he controlled the game just by being present on the court, he was more dangerous without the ball
The GOAT!!! Great reaction :)
@@amberburris5674 thank you!!!
This was honestly a good reaction 👍🏾
Larry always knew where everyone was on the court. Great court vision....the best.
Lots of goats, only one legend!
Bird passed like Magic, middie and steals like MJ, 3 like Curry, and rebound like Ewing.
point forward.. yeaaaahhh.. he was actually a stretch, point, power forward.. he shot the 3 (50/40/90 twice), facilitated (6.3 assists per game) he had an interior game with down low post ups and rebounding (10 rebounds per game for his career) and he led the league in DWS four times which only 5 other CENTERS (whom anchored a team defense) have done in history,
Bird 🦅 The Goat 🐐.
Great video on Bird. I am happy to see a video on his passing. Unbelievable. A key thing to consider is the teamwork. His teammates must have known and practiced to be ready for these lightening fast moves. You are right - his scoring ability made it so they had to double or triple team Larry resulting in his teammates being open. What a luxury the Celtics had in the Bird era.
He had handles and was a good finisher for a 6 10 forward.
Best court vision ever.
If he's the best player on the court, which he is, then he's super athletic.
I get goosebumps watching the old-timers.
Excellent analysis of Bird’s gift of passing. Thanks for noting how Larry performed at the highest level - passes are often super difficult but made to look easy with his talent for smooth, precise technique. Indeed, he made impossible passes look easy 😊
"Aww, hell no" is the funniest reaction I've seen to Bird's jump behind the back pass by the sideline 😂😂! That pass was ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS 🤷♂️!! Another intelligent and enjoyable reaction sir! Keep going down the Bird rabbit hole 🤙
@@curtissmith2486 thank you 😂 that pass was crazy 💯
Thanks for the reaction. I was hoping you would get to this one. I could never pick a goat. But Larry is about as clutch as it gets.
What made Larry so great isn’t just his skill, but it’s how he made his teams great. Like you said, you don’t know what he’s going to do. Shoot? Fake out? Pass where you expect it or don’t expect it? Every one of his teammates needed to be completely dialed in every second to be ready for whatever unexpected thing he might do. That was where his greatness was.
I LOVED this reaction, because you really know the game, and you see and appreciate things that many other reactors don't. Also, you made me smile and laugh a lot. Thanks!
Thank you. You’re the first person to acknowledge that rotating a ball all the way back hind you and throwing it forward is hard if not extremely difficult. No one else seemed to have caught that.
My 2 fave players . Alex English and Larry
larry elevated the whole team, and kudos for them to be able to do something with it. they had to be expecting the ball to just suddenly be in their hands at any moment and be ready to do something with it. predicting those down the court passes and being where they needed to be is crazy too.
I imagine playing on a team with Bird was always about being ready for the ball and trusting him.
Mr bird was a genius. Ty
I think MJ described Bird as a PF body with PG skills playing the SF position. Seems like a great observation.
Field General Bird: Leading by example.
This is what made Larry the best all around player ever!!! The GOAT!!!!
Alex English and Larry my 2 fav.
Passing is contagious. Ask Magic
Larry was the better passing forward, magic was definitely the passing guard King
@@shaundonlin277 that’s interesting
I have to rate Bird and Magic equal, as players.Minor differences aside, the big difference is style. Magic is Showtime; Bird is working-class. Both devastingly effective. Both are there to win, whatever it takes.Both made their teammates better players.Both are supremely confident in themselves and their teams. It doesn’t get any better.
100% agree
Larry could do it all and he did time and time again. There were no weak spots in his game. He made the game exciting. His talents were off the chart. He called his shots out. In the clutch there was no one better. 100% accuracy in passing. His determination was unmeasurable. He was a basketball beast. Magic said it best, "There will never ever ever be another Larry Bird".
larry legend
Larrys team was smoking baby in this game 😎
Magic was the better passer by the smallest bit. both magic and bird were a team players and they were all about the win. Larry was a small forward. He was the best all around player. He was the first 40-50-90 player. Multiple years. He was 1 steal away from a quadruple double in three quarters. He could've gone back in the game and got the last deal, but he said he did enough damage. He didn't care about all of those stat business. He only cared about the win.great reaction❤
@@Mainegirl79 yeah I believe that they didn’t care about stats forsure lol todays game is definitely like that 💯 and thank you!!!
I’ve never understood why ppl put Magic ahead of Larry as a passer….Magic’s passes weren’t as organic as Larry’s. Larry’s were more in the flow of the game. Magic was showboating. I prefer Larry.
@ don't get me wrong I love Larry I prefer him too! Larry by far is the best all around player. Magic as a point guard always was the precipitator . He specifically was to pass the ball. Irish girl Larry is my all time favorite. I do enjoy your take on things and always look at your comments on RUclips too.
I cannot agree. I think Bird was a better passer than Magic. And a better shooter. And a better all around player. If Len Bias doesn't die, it is very likely Bird would have ended up with 5 titles to Magic's 3. That is the biggest reason people put Magic above Bird.
Thank you! Watched a lot of Larry stuff, but nothing like this pure passing stuff. Wonderful job.
Dude, hearing you talk about trying the behind the back trick passes during practice or in pick up games reminds me of a time long ago, when I was in my late teens/early 20s. Now I grew up in the era of Bird, and given my white boy ass, he was my basketball hero. I couldn't do all his tricks, but I was determined to master as many as I could. I was that basketball geek that drove my mom nuts, because I'd practice passing the ball behind my back against the brick wall of my house, thumping the whole place with every pass I made (yeah, she made me sit inside just so I could hear what it sounded like while she thumped the ball repeatedly). I had a 2 foot chalk box marked out to practice with, and I could nail a pass in that box from 20' on the move easy peasy after a few years of practice. The part you didn't mention is having teammates that know what you can do and can catch such a pass. One time I was playing some pickup ball at a local rec center. It was my first time playing there, and no one knew me or what I could do. So, at one point in the game I manage to pick off a pass, and me and another dude are flying up the court on a fast break, with only one defender between us. I had the ball and made a pretty sick crossover move to get the other guy to commit to defending me, and instead of just tossing an oop (which would have made more sense in hindsight), I zing this behind the back bounce pass to my guy, who was not expecting that at all. Of course, it goes right between his hands, since he wasn't ready, and out of bounds for a TO. But DAMN, it was a sweet pass, and all the folks in the gym that saw it made a such a cheering sound when I made the nasty move and pass, that I wish I had it on video. It was literally the, "OHHHHH!!! Awwwwww!" you hear when a great play 'almost' happens. Dude on my team was really apologetic about letting it get away, saying it was the most amazing pass he'd ever been thrown.
Before you comment, please understand that Larry can hear you, and knows exactly where you are.
👍 great reaction and commentary.
I'd LOVE to see/hear your reaction to _Bird is the Word - 15 minutes of highlights_
(tip - trust the musical progression)
Larry Bird is the greatest SF of all time & arguably the best all around player ever. His game had zero deficiencies, no weaknesses & his IQ was off the charts
Larry Bird is all time assist leader laying on his back!
Bird turned around a team that had missed the playoffs in the previous two seasons and had a 29-53 record the previous year. Not only did the 1980 ROY lead them to a league-best record of 61-21, but he guided them to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they were ultimately eliminated at the hands of the Philadelphia 76ers in a five-game series.
Larry had good vision and heart !
I saw Bird play in person maybe six or seven times... his timing was near perfect, but even better was his anticipation of what everyone else on the court was going to do next , from moment to moment... and being able to influence opponents' actions with the slightest of motions
A story about Bird from the time: the Boston Garden was used for basketball AND ice hockey... There was a layer of ice under the basketball floor, which would be put back down after a hockey game. Larry would dribble the ball over the entire floor, looking for uneven spots and then go for the steal during the game anytime an opposing player would dribble in that location.
yea Larry was the best scorer, passer and rebounder on that team, best TEAM defender, and top 2-3 in steals and blocks for his team as well, top 1-3 in 3 point shots, top 1-3 in interior play. they celtics didnt really play with a pass heavy pg, other than Birds early years with Archibald, but once Tiny left, Bird was really the facilitator after that. and goto guy.. and primary rebounder.. and he was the QB on defense.
Larry Bird was the greatest and smartest basketball player to ever set foot on a court. It is not even close. He was a basketball genius. He had to retire early because he wore his body out playing the game with so much damn grit.
I’ve always been a lousy basketball player, but I love the game. I’m 65 years old getting ready to slow down in a couple of years, last Saturday me and a buddy installed a pretty decent basketball goal on my now larger patio. Basketball is just part of so many of us for some reason. I always thought good passing was part of what made the game more fun to watch and play.
Back when I played, I could keep track of one other teammate, MAYBE two, on a good night.
Larry seemed to know where everyone was at all times, including opponents -- because in order to make a clean pass, you need a clear lane.
His vision and awareness never fail to impress, even to this day.
So glad you got to see this video. People today think Bird was just a great jump shooter??? People have no clue how great Bird was!!! Bird rebounded like a Power forward and could shoot from anywhere on the floor and Bird out hustled every body on the court. AND his passing and court vision were off the charts!!! Bird vs all other Forwards in his era ( PF and SF) finished #1 in assists per game for 8 seasons!! Bird was #2 in assists per game for 3 seasons and was once 4th in assists per game. Bird actually dominated his position in passing more than Magic did as a PG. Magic led the league in assists 4 seasons and was #2 in assists for 6 seasons and was also 4th and 7th. John Stockton was also a great PG and passer. Bird was on 3 all defense teams (2nd team) and led the league in defensive win shares 4 times and was 7 times in the top 5 in DWS. Bird in 1983 finished tied for 3rd place for the DPOY award. Bird is the best all around player I have ever seen!!
This will be good! Here we go!
@@UncleCharlie111x2 yessir 💯💯
I hate when people say he's NOT athletic...he's extremely athletic
"Larry Bird was a magician and a monster" according to David Robinson. He always wanted to be like Larry.
I see it this way, Magic and Bird were both top-tier passers. Magic had so much flash that he could make even simple passes look great and Bird had the skill set and court awareness to make great passes look simple. Both players benefitted from teammates who complimented their game styles.
nice video. subscribed.
This is how Larry made his teammates better when he came in the league as a rookie!!!!!
Bird always knew where his teammates were, so you had to stay alert as you got open expect a pass.
GOAT all-around player. Made his team so much better. #1 Wilt #2 MJ #3 Bird #4 Curry (as he changed
BB to bombs-a-way). #5 James/Kobe/Stockton (most steals/assist) O Robertson on and on...
Best passer of all time….Magic
Best passing FORWARD of all time…Larry
Even Magic says Larry was better on offense. He said it during an interview with him and Larry on Conan.
Edit- Not Conan, Lettermen. I stand corrected.
On David Letterman.
That was a great interview!
@ Was it Letterman? I could have sworn it was Conan. Meh, I’m probably wrong, thanks for catching that.
Larry was a big ole Indiana farm boy. He could huck that ball from one end of the court to the other, no problem.
Economical player ...NO WASTED MOTION ...that's Bird.
Check out The Pistol, Pete Maravich
14:11 the Celtic defender abandoned the play Immediately when the shot left bro’s hands to get down-court. Didn’t even Look, that’s Hella faith in your team to get the Reebee!
I think he's the closet thing to magic in terms of passing. I think Magic had a little more flare to his passing but Bird had that bag too if needed. Bird just had a complete package
+1 subscriber.
@@wanderleyzonneveld-direita8404 love man!!💯
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Both Magic and Bird were great passers but keep in mind Bird also got 10+ rebounds and 25+ PPG.
Magic made the basic pass look spectacular. Bird made the impossible pass look easy.
@@toddfrank3344 💯💯
He understood basketball
There are 34 outlet passes in this video. All on point, many of them into traffic. Between those, and the touch passes, and his ability to put spin on the ball, he was playing Basketball, Football, Volleyball, and Baseball out there on the court. Larry Legend is his primary nickname for a reason. Magic was a more prolific passer, since he was a PG, but I think Magic and Larry were about the same skill level when it came to passes.
Larry also trusted his teammates .. larry knew if he threw some crazy pass at them, they were ready and would finish it...I think if you ask Larry today..nobody would know his name if his brothers on the floor didn't have all the faith and trust in him...he was the absolute greatest team player...he took his shots to show it, but when it was game time, and the win mattered...he would be happy to feed you 70 points...if you were dominating your guard...he would find joy in feeding you the ball to run up the score ..larry was a team player more than anything. Just look at his stats..injured since high school....his playing career was really short..he was avg almost triple doubles...career stats...
Larry is a huge 6’10/11
He was listed as 6’9 because big men weren’t allowed to be outside shooters back in the day.
Also, I take Larry over anyone.
Equal passer and IQ to Magic, but a superior scorer, 3pt shooter, rebounder, and free throw shooter.
I have Magic and Larry as same level of passers. I see them in Jokic, Lebron, and some of the other great passers.
Me and my friends always said that if you could combine Bird and Jordan ...... Call him Larry Jordan or Michael Bird ...... It would have been a monstrosity of a player. Lol ....