After spending years in the college-NBA rivalry and getting chips against him, you might think Larry Bird knows Magic Johnson’s game, but he doesn’t.
irvin johnson He didn’t get his nickname by accident or through some kind of hype. The nickname “Magic” given to him by his writers for recording will forever overtake his real name.
The 6-foot-9-inch point guard was traveling from Everett to Michigan, los angeles lakersthere was another 6’9 sensation preparing to do the same in Indiana boston celtics.
larry bird A year before Johnson entered the league, he entered the league in 1978 as the 6th overall pick by Cs, but decided to stay at Indiana State University and play his final year to bring the NCAA championship. selected.
Ironically, he lost to Magic’s Michigan State in the Finals. Both then entered the league together in 1979, with Johnson finishing first overall, purple and gold. It all contributed to building the greatest rivalry in NBA history.
Magic Johnson gave up nothing in his long rivalry with Larry Bird
Byrd admitted he had no clue what to do next for his longtime rival and arch-nemesis Magic Johnson
NBA players and coaches take pride in predicting how the opposing team will set up their next play and trying to stop it. That chess game is more prominent in the playoffs than it is in regular season games.
In his book When the Game was Ours, the three-time NBA champion Byrd describes how choosing the Magic’s next move even when the Celtics are in pole position to win games and finals. I acknowledge the fact that I could not series.
In Larry Bird’s 2009 book, he revealed that he couldn’t read what Magic Johnson would do on the court:
“When the game was ours, I had no idea what he was going to do with the ball.”
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— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) August 23, 2022
“I used to watch Magic highlights after games and ask, ‘How did he do that?’ He controlled the tempo of the game more than anyone I have ever seen. It was against the Lakers, and I was the only one back in one of their 3-1 breaks.
I’m not that fast, but I was able to read the point guard in those situations and see which way he leaned. I had no idea what he was going to do with that ball.
We didn’t like each other very much. It was hard. We were trying to beat each other every year and people kept comparing us. Worth $75 million written by Boston legend.
Indeed, his biggest rival and one of the greatest players in NBA history, beat him in one championship series and beat him even after losing two championship series. If it couldn’t, the magic was truly unbreakable and unstoppable.
