Tombstone Mountain Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 (edited) This is tasty all the way through. He was better than Jordan. The consummate team player. He knew he was white man paying a black man's game. He was insulted if you put someone other than your best against him. He'd talk trash with the best of 'em...while kicking your ass. He knew what you were gonna do BEFORE you did it. This man was a basketball genius: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwo4vtaZmsY Edited January 23, 2016 by Tombstone Mountain 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueschica Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 Thank you for putting that up, TM! Love me some Larry Bird! We lived in Indiana in the 80's for a little bit and people (proudly) used to joke that he was "the hick from French Lick" but he really was a genius. Mr. Blues (who is Mr. Sports) and I saw a movie on cable not that long ago- "Magic Johnson and Larry Bird-A Courtship of Rivals." It was great to see him young again and all the Lakers-Celtics highlights; excellent flick. Husband and I were having a discussion the other day; so many people in US sports, why aren't there more NFL quality quarterbacks? Are they born that way or made? (Didn't reach a decision, ha ha :P ) But we were remembering Larry Bird's story- coming basically from nothing and just playing basketball on his own to begin with- he was born that way for sure! :) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombstone Mountain Posted January 23, 2016 Author Share Posted January 23, 2016 Thank you for putting that up, TM! Love me some Larry Bird! We lived in Indiana in the 80's for a little bit and people (proudly) used to joke that he was "the hick from French Lick" but he really was a genius. Mr. Blues (who is Mr. Sports) and I saw a movie on cable not that long ago- "Magic Johnson and Larry Bird-A Courtship of Rivals." It was great to see him young again and all the Lakers-Celtics highlights; excellent flick. Husband and I were having a discussion the other day; so many people in US sports, why aren't there more NFL quality quarterbacks? Are they born that way or made? (Didn't reach a decision, ha ha :P ) But we were remembering Larry Bird's story- coming basically from nothing and just playing basketball on his own to begin with- he was born that way for sure! :)He worked hard for what he had. Amazing story how he and Magic truly became friends. During a commercial shoot at his house in Indiana, Magic was invited in for lunch...and he won over Larry's mom. How cool! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughedatbytime Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 I picked up a copy of his autobiography "Drive" about 20 years ago. The first chapter was about when he discovered he was good at basketball was when he was about 13-14 and playing with some people in my hometown. I wish they would have given more details because I was about 7 then and may have played in the same park or driveway. In high school the Sycamore games were on the local public TV station (despite being about 120 miles from Terre Haute). There was a game against the NM State Aggies his senior year, when they were undefeated fairly late in the year, that they were down two when Bob Heaton hit a half court shot at the buzzer to send the game into overtime (no three point rule). I was shocked to find that there is a clip of this on YouTube. Larry actually got a scholarship from IU starting and could have been a player on two of the greatest college teams of all time, the 74-75 undefeated regular season Hoosiers, and the 75-76 team which was the last undefeated team in college basketball history. But as blueschica indicated, he was from French Lick and grew up poor and when fancy dresser Jim Wisman made fun of what he was wearing, he left campus (OK, that wasn't the only reason but it was the catalyst). Wisman, you may remember, was the one who, after a turnover vs Michigan, made the front page of the sports section in every sports section in the country when Knight grabbed him by his uniform. He ended up at ISU and the rest is history. Even after Bird graduated, a Terre Haute radio station would carry his games. Bird had an innate sense of what to do on the court and was a master of psychological warfare, winning the first 3 pt contest without taking off his warmups. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueschica Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 That Bob Heaton clip is awesome! Thanks for posting it. Can never get enough basketball from the Hoosier state! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughedatbytime Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 That Bob Heaton clip is awesome! Thanks for posting it. Can never get enough basketball from the Hoosier state!Remember Shawn Kemp? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gULA_-cgenM 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughedatbytime Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 How about the Big O at Crispus Attuck in the mid 50s? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughedatbytime Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 And of course the greatest legend in Indiana basketball... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueschica Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 Love Martha the cleaning lady! I have never seen her before! Pretty funny. Shawn Kemp was a high school senior, I think, during one of the years we lived there, everybody knew about how good he was. Big O in high school was a little (lot) before my time but very cool clip! :) 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughedatbytime Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 Love Martha the cleaning lady! I have never seen her before! Pretty funny. Shawn Kemp was a high school senior, I think, during one of the years we lived there, everybody knew about how good he was. Big O in high school was a little (lot) before my time but very cool clip! :)Oscar was one of the Farm Bureau Indiana legends along with Hoagy Carmichael (or was it Steven Foster or maybe both), and of course old Dan Patch. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombstone Mountain Posted January 23, 2016 Author Share Posted January 23, 2016 I picked up a copy of his autobiography "Drive" about 20 years ago. The first chapter was about when he discovered he was good at basketball was when he was about 13-14 and playing with some people in my hometown. I wish they would have given more details because I was about 7 then and may have played in the same park or driveway. In high school the Sycamore games were on the local public TV station (despite being about 120 miles from Terre Haute). There was a game against the NM State Aggies his senior year, when they were undefeated fairly late in the year, that they were down two when Bob Heaton hit a half court shot at the buzzer to send the game into overtime (no three point rule). I was shocked to find that there is a clip of this on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ss9Hyxj7O8U Larry actually got a scholarship from IU starting and could have been a player on two of the greatest college teams of all time, the 74-75 undefeated regular season Hoosiers, and the 75-76 team which was the last undefeated team in college basketball history. But as blueschica indicated, he was from French Lick and grew up poor and when fancy dresser Jim Wisman made fun of what he was wearing, he left campus (OK, that wasn't the only reason but it was the catalyst). Wisman, you may remember, was the one who, after a turnover vs Michigan, made the front page of the sports section in every sports section in the country when Knight grabbed him by his uniform. He ended up at ISU and the rest is history. Even after Bird graduated, a Terre Haute radio station would carry his games. Bird had an innate sense of what to do on the court and was a master of psychological warfare, winning the first 3 pt contest without taking off his warmups.And a great leader. After a huddle in the last seconds of a game I recall Bird going over to the inbound passer telling him "screw what the coach said, get ME the ball" Celtics won. He elevated his teammates so much. Made them better players without the ball in his hands 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughedatbytime Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 Bird's collegiate teammates were Carl Nicks, a left handed shooting guard who was a first round pick and played with the Jazz, Shawn Gilbert from St Louis (who was a horrible free throw shoorter), and Indiana farm kids from places like Rushville and Greensburg. They were a fun team to watch but they would have been mid tier in the MVC without Larry. Instead, they went undefeated and played for the national championship in the most watched college game ever. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombstone Mountain Posted January 23, 2016 Author Share Posted January 23, 2016 That Bob Heaton clip is awesome! Thanks for posting it. Can never get enough basketball from the Hoosier state!Remember Shawn Kemp? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gULA_-cgenMI remember the "GoodYear Kemp". When he jumped you could measure it on the Richterhttp://cdn1.thecomeback.com/crossoverchronicles/wp-content/uploads/sites/18/2011/12/fat_shawn_kemp_portland.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughedatbytime Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 That Bob Heaton clip is awesome! Thanks for posting it. Can never get enough basketball from the Hoosier state!Remember Shawn Kemp? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gULA_-cgenMI remember the "GoodYear Kemp". When he jumped you could measure it on the Richterhttp://cdn1.thecomeback.com/crossoverchronicles/wp-content/uploads/sites/18/2011/12/fat_shawn_kemp_portland.jpgNot to mention he's got enough of kids for a 5 on 5 pickup game. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombstone Mountain Posted January 23, 2016 Author Share Posted January 23, 2016 That Bob Heaton clip is awesome! Thanks for posting it. Can never get enough basketball from the Hoosier state!Remember Shawn Kemp? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gULA_-cgenMI remember the "GoodYear Kemp". When he jumped you could measure it on the Richterhttp://cdn1.thecomeback.com/crossoverchronicles/wp-content/uploads/sites/18/2011/12/fat_shawn_kemp_portland.jpgNot to mention he's got enough of kids for a 5 on 5 pickup game.Bet those child support payments hurt, cause you just know he was wise with his money 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombstone Mountain Posted January 23, 2016 Author Share Posted January 23, 2016 Here's one that I love. The Pistons were a dirty team. Watch LB roast them: 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombstone Mountain Posted January 23, 2016 Author Share Posted January 23, 2016 (edited) Here's DR. J and Larry throwing down. Wouldn't want to get in Moses Malone's face. He looked like he'd meet you out by the bus after the game:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NGZ6rU5UEcU Edited January 23, 2016 by Tombstone Mountain 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombstone Mountain Posted January 23, 2016 Author Share Posted January 23, 2016 (edited) Love the qoute from IsaiaH Thomas: "If you put us in a room, me, Magic, Jordan, and Bird. Bird would probably be the guy walking out of the room at the end of the day". This clip is outstanding http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Rg1sFMxnbM Edited January 23, 2016 by Tombstone Mountain 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
librarian Posted January 23, 2016 Share Posted January 23, 2016 :musicnote: Your own, Basketball, Jesus :musicnote: 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombstone Mountain Posted January 23, 2016 Author Share Posted January 23, 2016 (edited) This is great."I like Ervin a lot more than I like Magic!"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVKJ7IAOKLI Edited January 23, 2016 by Tombstone Mountain 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombstone Mountain Posted January 23, 2016 Author Share Posted January 23, 2016 This is real tasty. Great scorer. Great passer of the ball: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick N. Backer Posted January 24, 2016 Share Posted January 24, 2016 I was 12 when Larry came to Boston. The Celtics were dreadful. He gave me so many wonderful moments growing up. The most vivid memories I have are him saving a ball going out of bounds with one hand, transferring it to the other, and hitting the shot, all while in the air; stopping behind the backboard and putting the ball up and over it; and his shootout with Dominique Wilkins in around 1987 or 1988. I had a poster on my wall growing up of him reaching for a ball with the quote "It makes me sick when I see a guy just watch it goes out of bounds." SI had a video after he retired, a clip of which showed Danny Ainge being interviewed and saying "Larry Bird never quits," followed by a clip of him diving for a ball out of bounds. I invoke Larry all the time when talking to my kids about hard work and success in sports. Sadly, for me, I bear more than a passing resemblance to him, minus the height. So I got picked for pick up basketball very early a lot of times, to the great disappointment of the captain. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
librarian Posted January 24, 2016 Share Posted January 24, 2016 :musicnote: Reach out and touch Bird! :musicnote: 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tombstone Mountain Posted January 24, 2016 Author Share Posted January 24, 2016 I was 12 when Larry came to Boston. The Celtics were dreadful. He gave me so many wonderful moments growing up. The most vivid memories I have are him saving a ball going out of bounds with one hand, transferring it to the other, and hitting the shot, all while in the air; stopping behind the backboard and putting the ball up and over it; and his shootout with Dominique Wilkins in around 1987 or 1988. I had a poster on my wall growing up of him reaching for a ball with the quote "It makes me sick when I see a guy just watch it goes out of bounds." SI had a video after he retired, a clip of which showed Danny Ainge being interviewed and saying "Larry Bird never quits," followed by a clip of him diving for a ball out of bounds. I invoke Larry all the time when talking to my kids about hard work and success in sports. Sadly, for me, I bear more than a passing resemblance to him, minus the height. So I got picked for pick up basketball very early a lot of times, to the great disappointment of the captain.Awesome stuff. He made everyone better. Too bad Bill Walton only had a couple years with him. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick N. Backer Posted January 24, 2016 Share Posted January 24, 2016 I was 12 when Larry came to Boston. The Celtics were dreadful. He gave me so many wonderful moments growing up. The most vivid memories I have are him saving a ball going out of bounds with one hand, transferring it to the other, and hitting the shot, all while in the air; stopping behind the backboard and putting the ball up and over it; and his shootout with Dominique Wilkins in around 1987 or 1988. I had a poster on my wall growing up of him reaching for a ball with the quote "It makes me sick when I see a guy just watch it goes out of bounds." SI had a video after he retired, a clip of which showed Danny Ainge being interviewed and saying "Larry Bird never quits," followed by a clip of him diving for a ball out of bounds. I invoke Larry all the time when talking to my kids about hard work and success in sports. Sadly, for me, I bear more than a passing resemblance to him, minus the height. So I got picked for pick up basketball very early a lot of times, to the great disappointment of the captain.Awesome stuff. He made everyone better. Too bad Bill Walton only had a couple years with him. Indeed. And Lenny Bias, that fool, would have extended his career. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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