Top 10 NCAA Shooters - Larry Bird #1
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- čas přidán 16. 06. 2007
- Larry Bird is ranked as the NCAA basketball's #1 shooter in this piece broadcast in 2007. Commentary by Steve Alford, Austin Carr, Bill Walton, Mike Decourcy, Rollie Massimino, and Glen Rice.
Larry Bird talks about shooting, playing at Indiana Sate University, and being amazed watching Pete Maravich play on TV in 1969 (when Larry was 13).
From Geico special in 2007. - Sport
I graduated from ISU while Larry was there. I had season tickets and never missed a game. I have never seen a player like Larry before or after that had the ability to outhink his opponent which allowed him to be two steps ahead of his defender. I have seen him make fakes that left the defender wondering where the ball went. He deliberately bounced the ball off the backboard so he could rebound it to get a better shot. He was a chess master while everyone else was playing checkers
The greatest small forward ever. Period.
Correction. Greatest Bball player ever. Period.
@@cgraf69 I personally think that Wilt is the greatest Bball player ever (so does Larry, by the way). But one can certainly make the argument that Bird is the greatest.
@Rad J But is LeBron really a small forward? He plays numerous positions. It is hard to pinpoint exactly what he is other than one of the absolute greatest.
Bird in my top 3. He was crazy good.
@@humblebeginnings8328 I am not quite sure if I put him in the top three but he is very close. Who is your top three?
Larry Bird was my P.E. Assistant at Springs Valley High School. He was a senior, I was in jr. high. We always had to run 10 laps around the gym as a warmup exercise, except for one day that I will never forger. A trampoline was on the gym floor about 35 feet from the goal at the south end of the court and Larry Bird was jumping on the trampoline. The P.E. teacher (who was also the basketball coach) blew his whistle and said, "I'm going to give the basketball to Larry and he is going to take ten shots while jumping on the trampoline (35 ft. out). Every time Larry makes a shot you don't have to run a lap." So as Larry Bird was jumping up and down on a trampoline 35 ft. from the basket he proceeded to made 7 out of 10 shots which meant we only had to run 3 laps. Little did we know that our "P.E. Hero" would become one of the greatest NBA players of all time. Proud of you Larry.
Awesome story. Bird's incredible shooting got the Celtics out of practice one day when KC meant to challenge the guys by saying if someone can hit a half-court shot we won't practice But if you can't then we're going to work. Bird stepped up.....practice cancelled. Larry Legend
Very cool. :)
Very cool story.
Incredible story, that's how legends are made.
Hahaha friggin awesome story bro.. hard to beat that 👌😳
Something about that understated description that Austin Carr has of Larry Bird, “no nights off with him”, that just sums him up. 100% all the time, everytime, or else why bother? Larry’s mindset. Because he was switched on to the game every second, people didn’t understand how he was doing what he was doing. Only Larry knew.
Bird averaged about 30ppg his senior year and shot 20 shots or less!! Imagine if he shot as much as Pistol Pete?! Larry Bird handcuffed himself a lot when it came to scoring/shooting just to get his teammates involved, that's why Bird was a 3x champion. Not dogging the great Pistol I have nothing but love for his game and old footage, dude was a straight up G!
Seeing those college pics and vids, it's amazing how well he did in the pros considering the damage done to his shooting hand, index finger. What a difference...from unremarkable looking finger to a gnarled knobby thing. One could only imagine the stats he would have amassed had he not injured his finger so severely and not had the back problems he suffered.
Unless you got to watch him during his prime years, you have him underrated.
I never got to watch Russell live, so Bird is the guy I'm starting my all time team with.
I watched a documentary on his childhood and teenage years. Larry had it tough. His dad committed suicide when he was a young teenager and Larry had to work full-time at a grocery store after school. Hats off to Larry Bird for persevering and not looking for excuses that would have kept him from succeeding. Class act.
... and Bob Knight let him walk!
@@MrNaturalSez
Tho he’d never admit it, I bet in his secret heart Bobby Knight could kick himself for letting Bird go.
Larry Legend is the greatest small forward of all time!
LeBron James
@@lloydkline1518
No.
Is Larry Bird.
@@lloydkline1518 nah I'd rather have larry
@@lloydkline1518 Lebron's good, but I'll take Larry.
@@x00p3 how close is lebrin james to kareem abdul jabber scoring record ?? laugh laugh : wonder if larry bird still got his truck driver lisxence?? laugh laugh NBAplayesr get paid better laugh laugh
The thing with Larry is that while he couldn't jump, he could run like a deer, was wiry strong, and had great stamina. He was athletic in a different sense.
Never seen a guy drag team further by himself in a season in college. Sorry Carl Nicks...
One of the top 5 of all-time.
He was really a better passer than shooter.
Such a competitor, like they said, the man had no conscious.
The championship game vs. MSU will remain one of my biggest heartbreaks in sports.
Larry did not get much help that time, he was always doubled and tripled team. If his teammates hit those open shots it would have been a different ballgame.
Yes took place in Salt Lake city. Sad.
...and what a beautiful shot He have, I think.
LARRY BIRD THE BEST EVER
Bird's college career predated the advent of the 3-point line or his scoring average would have been much higher.
Arguing With Stupid People they say Maravich would have averaged 57/game...fifty fucking seven!!!
not to mention his knuckle injury
Pistol would have 57
Larry bird is the goat
Normally undefeated and championship teams are made up of a group of excellent to very good players, that's how they win. It is truly amazing that ONE player took a team of average or below players to an undefeated season and to the NCAA Championship game. That is just incomprehensible!! Every team that has ever won an NCAA basketball championship were loaded with talent, not Indiana State. Bird didn't do it all by himself, just most of it.
seattwa
It reminds me of Herschel Walker and the UGA Bulldogs. It was basically the Bad News Bears having Superman show up and just coincidentally join the team. As they say, the rest is history.
Excellent point! It is definitely incomprehensible, because if people did understand it, they would realize Bird is easily the best bballer ever!
@@cgraf69
Larry Bird is the best basketball player in NBA history and America too.
Bird always made every player on the court better
He was shooting 3 pointers when they were only worth two. lol
exactly...he woulda averaged 50+ easily
that's why his comfortable range extended so far beyond the 3 point line. there's times you can see him with the shot clock running out, shooting a regular shot from 30 feet away, and making it
Same for Jerry West!
Same as pistol
Bird looked great in green, but man alive those blue unis are sweet
A higher shooting percentage dies not fully show the whole reality in a player's shooting ability. The type of team he's on, the competition he played against, and the type of defense shot against all are factors. I would not argue against Bird being #1. He was as great of a wining player as there ever has been. To me, Maravich's overall skill set makes him one of the greatest players.
Larry had better over all skills if you're talking assists, rebounds, steels, blocked shots, etc.
He was somebody with very special skills and basketball IQ
Larry Bird is my inspiration in shooting and i look up to him as a role model in basketball, when i'm shooting my ball in the court, all i wanted was to shoot as good as Larry and scored points. He's a legend, i adore him so much :)
My personal favorite player of all time.
The Lakers ALL BELIEVED IT WAS GOOD! You know the shot I'm talking about!
James Worthy said- that ball hung in the air 4ever. .
I remember in an interview, Larry said after that shot he looked right at Pat Riley-glared at him-as if to say “you knew that was going in, you got lucky!” And Pat Riley knew it. Larry saw it in his face.
Larry was the man...and the best shooter ever..and had the brains to really strike fear in his opponents
We never got to see much of this growing up, but when he hit the Big Time, we were glued to our sets!
Bill Walton is a fine announcer. His enthusiasm, knowledge, and sportsmanship put him head and shoulders above every other national NBA announcer.
@Boacasean: Well I guess it depends on what you rate a player's greatness on then, doesn't it?
The fact that Larry Bird easily did more with less than anyone in the history of the NBA .. IS what makes him the greatest player of all time as far as I'm concerned.
he definitely is the #1 professional hero for anyone who feels they don't get no respect. That goes for any profession you are in.
Most dominant basketball player ever. And such a trash talker... he really knew how to put on a show for the crowd.
Nice smile, "Larry Legend" does what needs to be accomplished to win. Fully understand what TEAM stands for...
One of the greatest player on earth...thank you larry...
i love the sound of the net and basketball when u make a swish =)
Walton's comments about Bird's speed and jumping are just story-telling techniques. I have seen stats on his free standing jumps and he was about average; what's wrong with that? His speed was fine also. The guy was athletic. Very few people played as many minutes as he did.
Philip Bourdon he’s just making the point that Larry was a very smart player. Unless people have competed at high level athletics, most think it’s mostly athleticism but anyone that has competed at a high level knows that intelligence is just as important in order to be great.
His vertical was 28" which was exactly league average. Before the bad back he was blowing by guys and throwing down over 7 footers. His stamina and hand eye coordination incredible. He was a very good athlete before the back became a problem
@@lainiwakura4678 Finally! Someone who's got his eyes open. You're just telling it like it is!
@Stephen Forfer If basketball had weight divisions, you'd be making a point.
Thanks for pointing out what should be obvious. Just watch bird blow around people like they're standing still. People forget he was 6 9 because he was so agile and shot better than any guard he played against.
Larry Legend. Deserved nickname.
we will never know that. Pistol is magic on the court, Bird is warior on the court.
True. Both beyond amazing
Nicely put. It's become cliche to suggest that Bird worked harder than his peers, but I think his talent was more mental than physical, and therefore harder to quantify.
dude was an assassin....the ability to shoot the ball and score like that and then add in everything else,like defense,passing,rebounding and basketball IQ....no doubt he was going to become a legend and master of the game.
@budlite8
Actually I can't remember if its in book "When the game was ours" but Larry Bird said that every night he goes to bed, his biggest regret was not beating Michigan in that finals game. He said in the NBA its one thing to choke because theres always money and everything goes in circles, sooner or later a team will have another shot at the title, but as far as college goes he said that was probably ISU's only shot at ever getting a hold of an NCAA title and he didn't win it for him.
He dedicated his first championship win in 81 to Terre Haute. ❤️
State
Best Basketball Shooter in the history of the universe.
@fatriani:
Forget that. What about the Indiana State Sycamores? They were never a contending team before Larry Bird and haven't been one since Larry Bird. Enough said.
-Yes, I'm glad I'm not an Indiana State fan. They are NEVER going to be good again. Not unless they can join the Big Ten. How is Indiana State going to out-recruit Indiana, Purdue, Notre Dame, and the rest of the Big Ten for a great high school player in Indiana?
Amazing how just one player lifted that team so high.
Remember Eddie Bird did a few things at Indiana State, but nothing close to his big brother.
@Stephen Forfer I think if Pete Maravich would've been 6 feet 8 he'd've been as good as Bird and Magic. Bird was 6 feet 6 entering college and I heard Bird say that he doesn't think that he could've played in the NBA at that height. I was surprised to hear him say that but I'll take his word for it.
@Stephen Forfer Oh, you're talking about best scorer, that's very different from best player. Bird and Magic could've averaged 15 points and still had multiple championships.
thanks for sharing this; bird is my favourite of alla times
Crazy thing is that Larry was a better shooter in college than the pros. Right before coming to Boston he was playing softball with one of his brothers and got the index finger on his shooting hand bent all the way back and it has remained crooked for the rest of his life making his shot worse, yet he’s still one of the greatest NBA shooters ever
the 86 celtics was not only stacked af.... but also selfless af too... parish and mchale... both HOF forwards knew Bird was the leader.. Bill Walton, arguably 1 on the greatest Centers ever, says it was an honor to play with Bird.... DJ, another HOF PG, was always looking for Bird to pass to... chemistry on this team was unreal... they all knew Bird was their leaders and it was no question.... Everyone wanted to play with Bird... no one ever wanted to leave that team..... dunno if I can say the same for Lebron...... lol
people always bashing Pete Maravich sadly. People bashing Bird even sometimes. MARAVICH ONE OF THE BEST PASSERS EVER IN BASKETBALL HISTORY WHEN HE DID PASS SAME WITH LARRY BIRD PERIOD. Have some respect literally. Pete had literally half a heart...Bird a horrible back. You go out there and be that good. Pete was the first fancy memorable guy other than BOB COUSY. Pete was one of the best ball handlers ever who owned the other team one on one by getting by them and superb passer of all time in any basketball college or NBA. Anyways great video on BIRD for sure best college shooter.
Hahahahahaha, Pete Maravich didn't have "half a heart"; he was missing vessels that supply the heart muscle with blood. Pete was the first "fancy memorable guy other than Bob Cousy"? Wow, that is a bunch of bullshit if I have ever read it.
masanf It was said that cause of those vessel problems he only had 50% of the heart working therefore I said half a heart sor-to-speak...thats all :) Well yeh it;s not a crock of shit, Before Cousy name someone who was as fancy as Cousy...not anyone to my recollection. If you come up with someone I doubt it'll be anyone impressive fancy wise. I am souly basing it on a fancy player. Not saying fancy is what matters, it is most diff not, but thats all I am saying dude...chill out good lord ;)
masanf well maybe if he played with more heart he would of been #1
+masanf hey man... instead of using all of this unnecessary profane language, and bashing on the late great, how about showing some respect? Both were greats at what they did, we all know this, but how about naming 3, even 1 player that broke Pete's "record" with or without the 3 point line!................ Don't worry, I'll wait ;-)
+David Leon Holliman numbers are not everything! Scummel has 7 F1 championships, but no good F1 fan put him over Senna with just 3 titles. It really doesn't matters who has the record. There is no comparison between Bird and Pete.
*LARRY BIRD WAS THE BEST BASKETBALL PLAYER IN THE HISTORY.*
Bird was the best all-around player in NBA history.
Best vollege shooter that I saw. Rick Mount from Purdue.
I like that this video highlights how hard Larry worked to be great. These guys aren’t born shooting 3s. They work and work and work. As the old saying goes: amateurs practice until they get it right. Professionals practice until they can’t get it wrong.
Pete maravich best ever
Basketball magician 🎩; Pete marivich
@mrho4speed Yeah, Jimmer is just a straight up jump shooter, Bird could shoot with his back to the basket in the post, left hand, fadeaway, 3 long distance shooting wins, never beaten, etc, etc.
hahah
I love Walton's crazy hyperbole
a legend is born...
@MerkinMuffly I agree. Bird had so many variations on his shot. Could change the arc while retaining accuracy. Scoop shots, tip-ins, floaters, bank shots and his left hand was huge. All without the 3 point line and drawing the other teams best defender and averaging 30 pts/game for 3 years and shooting over 53% - amazing! You should see the posts I have going with a magic nut on bird vs magic - championship game.
Keep fighting the good fight 😂
Larry bird ! Enough said !
Best all around player!
i totally agree Pistol Pete Maravich is my favorite player of all-time, also the story of his life.
In a hypothetical all time draft, Bird is the obvious #1 pick if your goal is to win.
Agreed
Best shooter i ever saw in college was Rick Mount Purdue - over 35 pts / game at a Big 10 School. And he got his team to the finals in 1969 vs UCLA and Alcindor
My favorite of all time fellow Hoosiers
Hard to argue that Bird was the greatest shooter except when someone mentions Pete Maravich.
Maravich had a career 43.8 field goal % in college, while Bird was 53.3%. So there's that.
Great contribution to the argument
The word..the truth..the best player still
in college, looking back at all the film of the games, maravich would have averaged 13 3 pointers a game. 13. He would have averaged 57.2 points a game in his 4 year college career.
seriffaviator - thank you very much, man :))
regards.
mab837: That is a Van Morrison song entitled "Glad Tidings." Nearly all of his songs kick major ass, so make sure you also check out "Caravan", "Days Like This", and, of course, "Brown Eyed Girl"
And Into the mystic and Gloria
Larry Bird once walked into the locker room before the all-star game 3 point contest and asked, which one of you guys is coming in second. He later one that contest. he also won all the other 3 point contests he participated in. Larry Bird is the man.
"what a move by larry"
Freeman Williams from Portland State was the most incredible shooter I ever saw live. He had the coach's green light whenever he had the ball and pretty much started shooting the second he had it within range which was like 2 steps over half court. He held the ball when he shot with one hand on top of the ball and I always thought this was the key to his range and accuracy. Thinking he scored over 40 points on #1 Kentucky and over 80 points against another. He was also a slasher and a whirling dervish driving to the hole! Came out the same year as Bird.
He was selected 8th in the same draft (1978) that Bird was selected 6th in.
Drafted by the SanDiego Clippers.
@jlcon99 Pistol Pete wasn't considered a pure shooter, because he was just as good as scoring other ways. He was a great finisher around the basket. He had all kinds of layup methods. Pistol Pete was the most skilled offensive player until Jordan, but was more crafty, while Jordan was a high leaping athletic guy with large hands.
@MerkinMuffly in 5 games vs kentucky, pete shot 44.2%, averaged 53.6 points, 7.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and made 60 out of 75 free throws, if those stats arent good enough to beat a team one time idk what stats are good enough, and the max they ever lost to kentucky was 26 never by 40
You think Bill Walton thinks highly of Larry? He could talk all day about how great he was. great vid
Larry Bird led the nation in scoring and rebounding when he was a junior (back when players stayed all 4 years in college). Red Auerbach drafted him as a junior for the Celtics even though Bird was going to play another year at Indiana State. It was the Bird drafting that starting the whole, "declaring for the draft" set of rules.
freedomamerica: Another thing to consider is, Larry only played 3 seasons at Indiana State, while both Ferry and Kimble played a full 4 (at Duke and Loyola Marymount respectively), yet he still managed to score (way) more career points than either of them. Bird also shot a higher % (from the field) and had a much higher scoring average (than both of them) as well. And they didn't even have the 3 point shot in college basketball when Larry played.
larry bird is the best shooter in the history of the game!!!!!!!!
Ray Allen and Bird...my two favorite shooters ever.
@geocgeo Yeah, Pete never even made it to an NCAA tourney. Pete probably avg. more shots per game than anyone in ncaa history. When Pat Riley played for UK, he would laugh about Pete taking half court shots as his team was getting their ass handed to them by 40 points. Pistol Pete was a perennial loser in college and the pros, the only year he had a winning record in the pros was when Larry Bird was on his team. Pistol Pete put on a great show, but Bird put on a great show as he was Winning...
Pete was playing for himself while Bird is a team player.
Bird hurt his shooting index finger playing in a softball game while in college just before he turned pro. He said he could never shoot as well as he did before. He crushed his knuckle. You'll notice it when he holds up the #1 sign, how bent his finger is.
Larry was meant to play basketball, no doubt. I remember his days at ISU so well when no one ever heard of ISU or believed there was a place called French Lick!
"bird" was the eagle among them...
Larry Legend...
Lornezo Pajaro, Mexico is proud of you!
Fair enough.
Fwiw, Bird's collegiate scoring average is *over* 30 (and I'm sure you would agree that it's not exactly an apples and oranges comparison as Maravich's collegiate career benefited *tremendously* from being coached by his father, who gave him free reign).
Cheers.
Free rein doesn't make up for lack of a 3 point line.
I love Larry, obviously. But when it comes to college, pistol Pete has GOTTA be # 1
Bird's legacy is that he went to a team of nobodies in college and took them to the final game before losing a game. Then went to the NBA and orchestrated the biggest single season turnaround (at that time). "Franchise" should be his middle name. If basketball IQ could be measured on a measuring stick....Larry would be the stick. #1 is exactly where he needs to be ranked and it wasn't just shooting. Pete and Chris could at the lights out at LSU, but they didn't win like Bird.
"Larry Bird.. oohhh! meeenn,... he's a killer.."
hes da best
Nobody is best than Larry Joe Bird.
hey dude thx a lot for trying to help but i was talking about the very beginning like 0:00 to 0:29.........but the song ur thinking of is glad tidings by van morrison........thx anyways
Larry Bird was a great shooter, and I'm bright orange with lavender pinstripes and mahogany highlights.
yes
nice bangs larry!
purest shooter ever
Maravich #1 Sorry Birdman
The first song is "Glad Tidings," by Van Morrison
and he did all that with those shorts shorts to boot
Look what he did when he when to Boston they only won 21 games before bird got there. Then look at what he did when he started playing he didn't have Mchale or Robert. They when from losing to winner and they won 61 games is first year and they say Jordan is the great less. Look at Jordan record his first year as pro he only change there win by TWO game. In my book Bird is the Best NBA player that every play.
larry legend was all about one thing: team. very few get out of the "me" zone.
Pistol Pete is one of my favorite athletes of all-time. That said, another factor in Bird's favor is that he took the Indiana State Sycamores to the NCAA Final. That's a feat the Pistol didn't match at LSU.
Ever heard of Steve Collier? He was voted Indiana’s Mr. Basketball, the best boys player in the state in 1974. Oh, Larry Bird finished FOURTH in the voting. Five years later, which one would your rather have?
Larry Legend averaged 53% from the field in three years at Indiana State
Bird's only home loss came against Creighton in January of 1978. I was there, scoreboard malfunctioned. A totally screwy night. That was in the middle of a five game losing streak. They later lost to Creighton in the MVC Finals and had to settle for the NIT. Bird's senior year was THE YEAR.
Yes. They actually lost to the Bluejays 3 times in 1978. Home, Away and the conference title game.