Larry Bird once said he “really got irritated when they put a white guy on me… because it’s disrespect to my game.” It’s a quote that sticks in Larry Bird lore and adds to the pantheon of all time quotes by legends. Bird shared many battles with other all-time greats, notably running the 1980s with his rival Magic Johnson. But it was in battles with his Eastern Conference contemporaries like Isiah Thomas and Michael Jordan that we got some of our best Bird moments.
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One other quote stands out from Bird’s path to the Finals. In 1987, Dennis Rodman called Bird “overrated.” A few days later, Thomas threw an infamous insult that was masked in a compliment: “Larry Bird is a very, very good basketball player. I think he’s an exceptional talent. But I’d have to agree with Rodman. If he was black, he’d be just another good guy.”
They were quotes that both Rodman and Thomas regretted years later but that wouldn’t leave the general perception of Bird. While you need to be an excellent player at any level to reach the heights of plural MVP awards and multiple championships, there are people in the current generation who don’t believe the myths they hear about the greatest Celtic of all time.
A former teammate of Michael Jordan recently came out to say the opposite of Thomas and Rodman. John Salley joined The OGs pod with Miami Heat legends Mike Miller and Udonis Haslem and went into depth about his experience playing against Bird.
“[Bird was] better than all the black guys I know,” insisted Salley. “Larry Bird was great no matter what color. The fact that he was on the Celtics, the NBA was really smart about how they did that, but if he would’ve played for Indiana, Indiana would’ve won championships.”
Oftentimes, while it’s the stars who define eras, it’s the role players who keep a history of them. For example, Salley focused on the excellent skill of this generation of NBA basketball, but how load management could lead to its disrespect and downfall when retelling the history of basketball.
Salley’s stories: Bird vs. LeBron
On an episode of The Dan Patrick Show, Salley remembered his fear of playing against Larry Bird when trying to decide who was better all-time. While his answer definitely contains some nostalgia for his own playing days and even his reporting days, Salley detailed his love of Bird through a series of anecdotes about the player.
Salley’s nearly instantaneous answer needed only one sentence: “Do you remember Larry Bird?” Laughing, he followed that up with, “I still have nightmares. I don’t need to [explain].”
Fans will be fans, but even with the bias Salley has, his time spent covering the NBA—both playing in it and writing about it—gives him real insight. Larry Bird is one of the most disrespected legends because of how he moved. He deserves to have some praise every once in a while.
