In the game the Lakers answered the Celtics' rough tactics when Laker forward James Worthy shoved Cedric Maxwell into a basket support. Boston finished with a 62-20 regular season record and got their revenge on the Bucks, whom they beat 4-1 in the Eastern Conference Finals. Magic Johnson's rivalry with Larry Bird sparked greatest NBA Finals Jordan scored an all-time playoff record in game 2: 63 points. One of the most exciting 3-0 series in league history, the Celtics made quick work of the up-and-coming Bulls featuring a young Michael Jordan. In Game 7, the Celtics got 24 points from Cedric Maxwell and 22 from DJ with Bird scoring 20 as they won the game 111-102 and the series for Bostons 15th NBA title. Even with Jordan exploding, only game two was close at 135-131. The Philadelphia 76ers beat the Lakers in 1983 and the Detroit Pistons snuck by the Lakers in 1989. He swept through the Bulls the next year, then beat the Atlanta Hawks in five games, then swept the Bucks. Johnson was called "Tragic Johnson" by Celtics fans due to the two crucial errors he committed in Game 4 (the Parish steal, followed by two botched free throws in OT). Maxwell later claimed he said something like that but not quite so family friendly. The Lakers then inbounded the ball and Magic Johnson inexplicably dribbled the clock out during regulation time. 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. he was voted the NBA Finals MVP. Despite excellent performances in his first two seasons, Indiana State had very little success. Reflecting back on the series, Magic Johnson said ". 1979 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament, "Here Are Some Final Facts on NBA Playoffs", Lakers versus Celtics and the NBA Playoffs, The Last Season: A Team in Search of Its Soul, Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1984_NBA_Finals&oldid=1141615206, 20th century in Los Angeles County, California, Basketball competitions in Inglewood, California, May 1984 sports events in the United States, June 1984 sports events in the United States, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, No. Copyright 2023 Sports Nostalgia HQ | Powered by Astra WordPress Theme, By continuing to use the site, you agree to the use of cookies. Answer (1 of 43): To start by answering the question, I'd say - yes. By: HoopsHype. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. In his career, Larry Bird won three NBA regular season MVP awards. The Celtics beat the Lakers 4-3, winning by nine points in the deciding Game 7. Larry led the way with an average of 25 points per game. Click the links to read up on the Finals records of the best players in league history. Aside from stats, Larry Bird was a winner, bringing home multiple championship rings during his time with the Celtics. Simmons says that he got the idea from watching basketball and looking at player statistics. It was one of the most dominant playoff runs that we had ever seen in basketball at this time and it was hard to imagine them as anything other than favorites entering that series against the Rockets, a team that they already beat in the championship before. Your email address will not be published. Sadly for Bird, Michigan State were just too much for him as the Spartans ran out 75-64 winners. Jayson Tatum passed Celtics legend Larry Bird (1987-88) last night with his 34th 30-point game of the 2022-23 season. Larry Bird Vs Magic Johnson : r/nba - Reddit Carr as he left the floor, causing him to label the series "all-out-war.". He averaged 27.4 points, 14.0 boards and 3.6 assists per game for the series. Copyright 2023 Sporting News Holdings Limited. The Cs took game 5 at home behind Larry Birds 34 points and 17 boards. He made the Finals five times in his thirteen-year career, winning the championship in 1981, 1984, and 1986. He joined the Celtics a year later. 0:00. There's always a mystique about players that played before the 90's because we don't have all the data, stats etc as we have to. The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. Chicago Bulls 4-1, 1981 Eastern Conference Final: Celtics def. Its pretty easy to forget how many times Bird has been in the NBA Finals with all of the many accolades and unbelievably, but true, stories about him. FGA, TRB, AST, PF, GS over 99% complete back to 1975-76. The first round was a 3-1 victory over the Washington Bullets. Larry Bird Playoffs Game Log | Basketball-Reference.com What are the abbreviations on the NBA table. A year later, the Pacers would not have to worry about Michael Jordan as they returned to the playoffs, this time as the second seed in the east. The Bucks, coached by Celtics legend Don Nelson, won the Central Division title in 1984. Larry Bird's Celtics made the Finals in 1985 and 1987 but lost to the Los Angeles Lakers. The series was the eighth time in NBA history that the Celtics and Lakers met in the NBA finals, with Boston winning each time, and the first championship that the Celtics claimed at home since 1966. It featured the first time that Larry Bird met Magic Johnson in the NBA Finals, their first head-to-head championship meeting since the 1979 NCAA title game. Boston entered the new decade by winning the 1981 NBA Finals. What is Larry Bird's record in the NBA Finals? - Hoop Maestro Chicago Bulls 3-0, 1986 Conference Semis: Celtics def. JJ Redick Tried to Clarify His Stance on Larry Bird and '80s Basketball Cedric Maxwell averaged 17.7 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists to win Finals MVP. And after watching the Lakers face the Philadelphia 76ers twice during the 1982 and 1983 Finals, they were determined to win in 84. The Celtics won the third and final title of the Bird era with a victory over the twin towers of the Houston Rockets. Bird was Finals MVP in the teams victories over the Houston Rockets in 1986 and the Los Angeles Lakers in 1984. Bird vs. Magic: Stats, Rings & Head-to-Head Record | Heavy.com It featured the first time that Larry Bird met Magic Johnson in the NBA Finals, their first head-to-head championship meeting since the 1979 NCAA title game. Bird won three in a row between 1983 and 1986, whereas Johnson closedthe decade out with a pair ofMVP awards. Larry Birds Finals record is in the lower half of the list of all-time greats below. The Bullets were the 8th seed in the East winning only 35 regular season games and finishing last in the Atlantic division. He finished 1986 with averages of 25-10-7. Have the Phoenix Suns ever won the NBA title? Larry Bird NBA Finals Stats | StatMuse The Boston Celtics won the 1981 NBA Championship in six games giving Larry Bird his first NBA title. The Celtics took seven games to defeat Bernard Kings Knicks in the conference semifinals. Check out stats on every National Basketball Association Finals MVP winner on ESPN.com. No stats available. Head to Head: Larry Bird vs. Magic Johnson | Stathead.com The Lakers took an early lead in overtime, but a controversial foul call foul on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, with 16 seconds remaining in regulation, had been his 6th foul, and he was out of the game. Even from his first season with Indiana State, Birds performances were exceptional. Referee Hugh Evans became dehydrated and fainted at one point in the first half. If you were wondering about his career numbers while we wrap this up, he averaged 24.3 points, 10 rebounds, 6.3 assists, 1.7 steals and 0.8 blocks per game. Jayson Tatum's 25th birthday | ksdk.com Peak, Bird was better imo 1984 NBA Finals - Wikipedia Then came the championship series. Larry averaged 27-10-6. Larry Bird Championships: He Defeated the Best! After dispatching MJ, the Cs cruised by Dominique Wilkins and the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference Semis. Larry Bird averaged 24.0 points, 9.7 rebounds and 9.5 assists per game for the series. As weve mentioned, all these players were inducted into the Hall of Fame. That might seem unbelievable this is coming from a man who famously asked his Three-Point Contest peers who was coming in second but it largely fits within Birds character. Featured Image Photo Credit: Adapted from:Bernard Cardinal Law, Larry Bird and Mayor Raymond L. FlynnbyBoston City Archivesis licensed underCC BY 2.0. The Houston Rockets were led by their Twin Towers, Hakeem Olajuwon and Ralph Sampson. 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 7564. Bird picked up his first Finals MVP honurs. (the Lakers) learned a valuable lesson. The Celtics ended up shedding the ghosts of the last season and convincingly won 4-1. Larry Bird is 6-9. The Celtics had hope they could avenge the loss of two years prior. 0:49. It was the same matchup with pretty much the same teams. The games were reasonably close if the series was not. Between 1980 and 1989, there were only two seasons that ended with someone other than Johnson or Bird winning the title. The three finals victories are outlined above, but Bird also had two finals losses. In the Finals, Bird dropped a triple-double on the Rockets in a series-clinching Game 6, giving the Celtics another ring. Furthermore, Johnson and Bird earned five of the 10 MVP awards handed out during the 1980s. You can only imagine how fiery this rivalry was, with two consecutive seven-game series in the Eastern Conference Finals. After the tournament, both entered the NBA in the 197980 season with high expectations. Their rivalry was second to none and saw them meet up in the NBA Finals three times. In the playoffs, the Celtics defeated the Washington Bullets in four, the New York Knicks in seven, and the Milwaukee Bucks in five. Fast forward a couple of seasons and Bird marched his team back into the 1984 postseason. Michael Jordans First Championship: An Epic Run! The Celtics did not warm up with their sweat pants on because of extreme heat, and an oxygen tank was provided to give air to an aging Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. 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. The seeds of the 1984 Finals were first sown five years earlier, during the 1979 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. What surprises me more, though, is that former NBA player, 38-year-old JJ Redick, can't admit that the NBA of the 1980s was more physical than the game played today.. Nearly two weeks ago, Redick caused a stir by saying Bird shouldn't be considered .
Jay Thomas Rhea Perlman,
North Augusta Newspaper Obituaries,
Kent State Athletic Department Salaries,
St Michaels Catholic Academy Basketball,
Articles L