Spike Lee: Larry Bird Most Overated Player in NBA History.

ESPN | 3/21/04 | CWB

[cwb]

I just caught a clip of this on ESPN and couldn't help but notice the similarities between what Spike Lee said and that of what Rush said. Not only did he say Bird was the most overated player, he said that the "white media" would make you think that there were no great players before Larry Bird. I could tell that McKindry was uncomfortable with the story and it's going to be interesting to see how other's respond. Maybe we can get a comment from Isiah Thomas and Dennis Rodman who said that if Bird was a black man, he'd be just another average B-ball player.

[jwalsh07]

The real measure of Bird's greatest is taking a sorry university like Indiana State, a insignificant school in Indiana, and leading them to the NCAA championship

Good point, Bird and Nicks were incredible in that run.

[Ol' Sparky]

The difference between Rush's comments and Spike's? Rush's were more accurate and commentary on the media.

[cynicom]

Over the years, I saw Bird and McHale outsmart most of the other players.Good talent, excellent brain overcomes excellent talent no brain every time.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

Chris McKendry, is female.

Well hush my li'l ol' sexist mouth. What a faux pás on my part.

Oh well. I didn't expect an answer from them anyway.

[Charles Henrickson]

Maravich was setting college records when, as a teenager, I started playing and following basketball, so he became my my first basketball hero. Then I saw him play a lot when his NBA teams came to Chicago. Dribbling, passing, and shooting, Pete was one amazing, eye-popping offensive package.

[Fedora]

Spike's just hatin' 'cause the Celtics have 16 NBA championships whereas his Knicks have only won 2, the last being 1972-1973 :)

Larry Bird "Stats"

1980 NBA Rookie of the Year

1980 - 92 (12) time NBA All Star

1982 NBA All Star Game MVP

1981 - 86 (3) NBA World Championship

1984 NBA Playoff MVP

1984 - 86 (3) time NBA MVP

1985 Scores 60 Points vs. Atlanta

1986 NBA Playoff MVP

1986 - 88 3 Point King - NBA All-Star Weekend

1987 "Bird Steals the Ball"

1990 71 Consecutive Free Throws - ended on Feb.13, '90

1990 20,000 Points

1992 Co-Captain, The Dream Team

1992 Retires - Announced August 22, 1992 from French Lick, IN.

Career 40+ Points 52 times (5 in the Playoffs)

50+ Points 5 times

Professional Career: Drafted by Boston on the first-round of the 1978 draft, as a junior eligible, the 6th pick overall ... voted the NBA Rookie of the Year in 1980 and was a member of the league’s All-Rookie Team ... a member of the All-NBA First team his first nine years, and to the Second team in his 11th ... named to the all-star team 12 times ... named the all-star game MVP in 1982 ... All-Defensive Second Team in 1982, 1983, and 1984 ... playoff MVP in 1984 and 1986 ... regular season MVP in 1984, 1985, and 1986; one of only three players in NBA history to achieve the feat in three consecutive seasons ... Player of the week 15 times ... Player of the Month 7 times ... NBA ft% leader in 1984, 1986, 1987, and 1990 ... Boston has never had a r/s losing month with him in the line-up ... whenever he plays 3,000 minutes, Boston advances to the NBA Finals; whenever he doesn’t, Boston does not advance ... only Celtic to score 2,000+ points in three consecutive seasons ... 69 triple-doubles, including 59 in the r/s ... 40+ points 52 times, 46 in the r/s ... 50+ points 4 times, all in the r/s ... was held scoreless on 1/31/81 at Golden State ... grabbed 21 rebounds in Game One of the 1981 NBA Finals vs. Houston; his sensational left-handed flying follow-up of his missed 22-footer came in the middle of the 4th quarter (Boston then trailed 87-86, then won 98-95 ,,, Bird-Erving fight, 11/9/84 ... set NBA playoff record for most points in one year, 1984 ... tallied 34 points in game five win over the Lakers in the 1984 Finals, despite 97 degree temperatures inside Boston Garden ... scored 10,000 career point on 1/11/85 vs. Washington ... consecutive game-winning buzzer beaters on 1/27/85 ... named AP Male Athlete of the Year for 1986 ... named The Sporting News Man of the Year for 1986 ... won the long distance shootout in the first three years of its existence ... triple-double in 1986 title clincher vs. Houston ... consecutive 40+ point games on 3/20/87 (Seattle) and 3/22/87 (New Jersey) ... achieved a triple-double at halftime on 4/1/87 vs. Washington ... on 5/23/87, was ejected with Bill Laimbeer for fighting ... made miraculous steal of Isaiah Thomas’ inbounds pass with five seconds left to give Boston a win in Game Five of their 1987 playoff series ... on 11/7/87 at Washington, game-tying 3-pt. fg. With 4 seconds left in 4th; hit game-winner with no time left in OT ... on 11/11/87, he registered Boston’s first 40/20 game (42 points and 20 rebs.) Vs Indiana ... on 5/22/88, in 7th game vs. Hawks, scored 34 pts. Including 20 (9-10 fgs) in the 4th ... first player in NBA history to register 50% fgs. And 90% fts in the same season, and he is the only player to do it twice ... missed all but six games in the 1988-89 season due to surgical removal of bone spurs in both heels ... had the second best (Calvin Murphy, 78) free throw streak in NBA annals snapped at 71 on 2/12/90 in Houston ... achieved his 5,000 career assist on 11/14/90 vs. Washington; became the 5th NBA player to reach both those numbers (Jabbar, Robertson, West and Havlicek) ... in Game Five clincher vs. Indiana on 5/5/91, he made a Superman-like return after a serious fall to the floor earlier in the game; had a game high 32 points and sparked a key 39-25 run.

1991-92 FINAL SEASON: Became the NBA’S twelfth all-time scorer, as he surpassed Walt Bellamy on 11/5 ... snatched 36 rebounds in two consecutive games on 12/28 - 12/30 ... from March 1 to the rest of the season he played 17 games, 627 (36.9) minutes, 323 (19.0) points (123-267, 21-55, 55-60), 166 (9.8) rebounds, 132 (7.8) assists ... moved into the eleventh spot on the NBA’s all-time scoring list, surpassing Hal Greer ... played 54 minutes vs. Portland on 3/15, recorded 49 points (19-35, 2-8, 9-10), 14 rebounds, 12 assists and 4 steals; had 16 fourth quarter points and made a 3-point field goal with 2 seconds left in regulation to tie the game ... in 9 games from 3/4 - 3/18, he grabbed 79 rebounds of which 78 came off the defensive glass ... 10+ points 42 times ... 20+ points 24 times ... 30+ points 5 times ... 40+ points once ... 10+ rebounds 22 times ... 10+ assists 4 times ... 23 double-doubles ... 1 triple-double ... finished 8th among league leaders in 3-point field goal percentage and ranked second in free throw percentage.

[finnigan2]

-"One thing for sure, Bird had a brain and was ahead of the others on the floor at all times."

Might that qualify him then, to be called a "bird brain?"

Just kidding. I'm one of those who feel that basketball is wildly over rated. I think they could save everyone a lot of time if they just gave both teams 100 points with 30 seconds remaining on the clock.

[I still care]

Wasn't it a Philadelphia paper that started the stink over what Rush said? This is almost the exact same thing, races reversed. Someone post their email, so we can see how deep their bias is.

Rush spoke at the MRC dinner a few days ago, he said he was told explicitly that if Fox, Drudge, talk radio or any such source broke a story the elite media would simply NOT cover it because they would not print a story from Conservative sources. Period. They are not "of the club".

[M-cubed]

I don't ask my accountant for advice on lawncare or my plumber for stock tips.<<..Hey im a plumber of sorts!....You dont own raw silver or stocks like... paas cde ssri sil ?...You've missed the first leg of the "fiat money solution!"...> http://finance.yahoo.com/q/ta?t=1y&s=PAAS&l=on&z=m&q=l&c=cde+sil+ssri&c=%5EIXIC&c=%5EDJI < Disclaimer: This comparison may contain forward looking statments!..Do your own DD ..

[cynicom]

"I'm one of those who feel that basketball is wildly over rated. I think they could save everyone a lot of time if they just gave both teams 100 points with 30 seconds remaining on the clock"

Ironic, those were my words after the Celts faded into history and the "game" became just an up and down court no brainer chase...

[CovenBuster]

Every news outlet will be having a hissy about this tomorrow, just like they did when Rush said what he did about McNabb.

[P-Marlowe]

When Larry Bird played, putting your hands on an opposing player was a FOUL. Players were artists and atheletes. Now, many of them are shirt grabbing, tatooed THUGS. Today's NBA SUCKS and so does SPIKE LEE.

I just couldn't put my finger on why pro basketball holds no interest for me anymore and I think you hit the nail on the head. It's no longer fun to watch. Everybody is a hot dog, fouls never get called, and when they are, there's no consistency to them, everybody plays dirty, there's virtually no pure shooters like Jerry West or Elgin Baylor and basketball players back then had class, they weren't just 7 foot tall street thugs. When Elgin Baylor drove the center he didn't carry the ball for six or seven steps without being called for travelling like they do now. He took one step from the top of the key to the basket and then quietly laid the ball in the basket. No hot dogging. No hanging on the rim. No fists in the air. Just pure class. It was beautiful.

Today's NBA is like watching pro-wrestling without the personality.

[Wonder Warthog]

"Pete was one amazing, eye-popping offensive package."

The thing about Maravich that always amazed me was that he was NOT terribly "athletically gifted" in the sense the Michael Jordan, Shaquille O'neal, and the like are. He developed those skills by dint of excruciatingly long hours of practice over years and years of time. If there was ever a basketball player who was "made not born", then Maravich was it.

[NYCVirago]

I don't think Magic Johnson agrees with Spike Lee's assessment of Bird's skills.

[DCPatriot]

I nominate Pistol Pete Marivich...not Larry Bird.

[Bullish]

Blow it out your crack pipe spike.

[Jack Black]

Malcom X. Mo' Better Blues. Do the Right Thing.

I think all three are at least good movies. Malcolm X is probably the best of the three.

[HitmanLV]

Spike Lee can't get people to come see his movies anymore, so he needs to go out there and mix things up to get his name in the papers. Its been all downhill for him for the last decade or so.

This is Spike doing his marketing, nothing more. Pitiful, but not too controversial.

[Rebelbase]

There's a Jordon highlight video that came out in the late 80's that show him repeatedly blowing past an elder Byrd and scoring I believe it was 62 points.

Definitely not Byrd's prime.

[M-cubed]

Shusssssh! *W*(see post #70)...and dont even ask your plumber of the value of his pre '63 "JUNK SILVER" coins..(ironic misnomer huh?) ....Those arn't covered by capital gains and are only subject to Greshams Law!.....