That's true. The Knicks were never quite at the level of the Celtics, Lakers, Pistons and Bulls. But they always played an exciting style of basketball. Like the time Patrick Ewing got his shot blocked by Mugsy Bogues, to cite just one example.
I watched Wilkins live when he played in Europe as a veteran and when he came with his team to play in Belgrade. Although his career was coming to an end, he was still flying.
Remember when the best always have props to each other, and even the greats that came before them. Now mfs saying they the goat. You don't decide that shit. Fans do. Learn.
I believe the fact that many have forgotten how good bird was makes it equally sad that Wilkins has been forgotten. Dominique wasn't only a dunker. He was a great player.
@@joesavary6081 Not in my house, and in most of the houses in our country. There may be a few houses in Wyoming or North Dakota who forgot about Wilkins, though.
What a great video! FYI: Larry Bird not only played this game with painful bone spurs on the bottoms of both feet, with injuries to both achilles tendons, he also played this game while suffering from bronchial pneumonia, according to an article archived on the NBA website. Astounding.
Larry Legend all day, every day. There have been many great players, both past and present. But never has there been such a killer as Mr Larry Joe Bird!
How is he the goat when he wasnt even the best of his era. Nobody thinks bird is goat. Bird is a legend and a great, not goat. Mj is the goat hands down. Yes the stacked celtics beat the only mj bulls. But it's not even a competition. Mj was hands down better. But I'll pick bird over lefraud. But magic>bird aswell.
@@ScootsMcPoot bird was the best in the 80s he swept MJ twice dude. Jordan didn’t win till Magic and Larry left and the nba changed the rules for mike because of Detroit and the watering down of the league. The 80 s was the toughest ball to play in .
I am not a basketball fan but I am definitely a Larry Bird fan and I had no clue who Kevin McHale was before watching Larry Bird videos but he is pretty wicked and Dominique is a class act all the way😊😊😊😊
Man, McHale was one of the greats and a big fellow, if I was his size I dont know if I would act so gentlemanly against bullying players. Kudos for keeping his cool for so many years and being a perfect match to THE LEGEND
"We both deserve to win, but somebody has to go home." Larry gave rookie Dominique trash, but very much respected him after. I love watching Walton on the side lines. Larry does something amazing and he's very happy, but never surprised... yeah, that's Larry.
Best players in the best era. I’m 74 and have seen it all, so take my word: Bird was the best of the best. Nique and Doc were terrific but Bird earned his “Legend” moniker for just this kind of performance. He always stepped up when he had to. Please notice Bird’s shots were from everywhere and most were all net-left or right handed. Didn’t matter.
Great video, but one correction.. Even more amazing. After Bird had double Achilles surgery, he came back in 89-90 and played in 75gms avg 24,3pts 9.5reb 7.5ass 1.4stls on 47.3 fg%and 93% from the line. Made 2nd team All-NBA. Legend.
Dominique was an absolute wrecking ball. Has become a tremendous ambassador for the game as an elder statesman. His graciousness to teammates and opponents makes for great viewing.
You'd never expect Dominique Wilkins the man and Dominque Wilkins the NBA player to be the same person. He seems like such a super nice, gentle dude. In that great period of NBA play in the late 1980s and early 1990s, I can only imagine Dominque was one of the scariest opponents, sheerly terrifying. The double persona of Dominique Wilkins.
Toughest player ever, 91 Pacers series too he was already banged up from his back and he hits the parquet floor face first and fractures his cheekbone and still came back out and took over the game
Look, I love Larry Bird, but let's just look at your comment. Robert Dipierdominico played the 1989 Australian Rules Grand Final for 2 freaking hours with broken ribs and a collapsed lung. He nearly died while being rushed to hospital after the game and spent 8 days in intensive care. The injury toll from the 1989 Grand Final sounds like something from an actual warzone. These guys kept playing knowing how serious their injuries were. Dean Jones batted for over 500 minutes at Chennai in insane temperatures in 1986 (over 40 degress celsius, full sun and 90 percent humidity). He regularly vomited on the field due to heat stress and nausea, and frequently lost bladder control. He could not hold down any food or fluids. He toughed it out and scored a double century in some of the most arduous conditions known on a sporting field. He lost over 4 kilograms (9 pounds) of body weight and has no recollection of those events (basically a day and a half of his life) due to the damage it did to his body and mind. He was rushed to hospital after he was finally out and placed on a saline drip. He was very lucky to survive. The Game ended in a draw by the way. Which may not sound like much but Jones singlehandedly saved a 5 match, 25 day international cricket competition at Chennai between the two international powerhouses of the sport. Jason McCartney suffered over 50% burns to his body during the 2002 Bali Bombing, and returned to to play an AFL football match wrapped in bandages and padding to try and protect him from further injury the damage he suffered. Having proven his merit to be selected for the senior team through rehabilitation, training and 7 matches in the secondary league (the VFL) he retired after kicking a goal and a providing a goal assist during the match. The match was won by North Melbourne by less than the score he contributed in those two actions. I'm sure we can find other examples. Multiple players have died in Rugby, Soccer (association football), Cricket and Australian Rules Football. Possibly the most notable is Phillip Hughes, who suffered a traumatic brain injury and is no longer with us after being struck in the head by a bouncer at 63 not out. #putoutyourbats Adam Johnson is no longer with us due to having his throat accidentally cut during a match by a ice skate. Timur Faizutdinov got a puck to the head. Bill Masterton has a trophy named after him due to his on ice death. Ray Chapman in baseball.
Larry Bird, when he got to the NBA, realized he could compete, he said that, and I think he kept that confidence. Basketball is good today, but we'll never see another Larry Bird. Thanks for insight into those memories.
Pat Riley once said that if he needed a player to make a shot to win a game, it would be Jordan. If he needed somebody to make a shot to save his life, it would be Bird.
I watched this game live I think on CBS and it's the GREATEST 4th quarter between 2 guys I ve EVER SEEN TO THIS DAY in Feb 2024 Whenever it's on any classic or anything I watch and I LOVE the respect that they had for eachother still years later to here Dominque who was 1 of the most UNDERRATED players in history in my opinion u don't hear enough about him He was absolutely incredible Should ve been on Dream Team 1 if he doesn't blow out his Achilles Was such a GREAT GAME
I live in same county where Larry was from. Im not old enough to have seen him play in high school. My folks did their take away was he knew where everyone was on the court all the time. He did no look passes that surprised team mates. But most important, they related how he could shoot from anywhere, with uncanny awareness of where the hoop was. No big revelations there. He also was known to shoot hundreds of practice shots daily. He was naturally talented, but great because of work ethic and modesty.
I was always a huge Larry Bird you couldn't be more right Wilkins was a gifted player and what a classy person all the respect in the world 2 Dominique
Great video, man. I saw that game on TV way back then. It was AWESOME. Bird was really something else. Anyone who experienced the NBA in the 80's real time knows how good Bird really was and how much he dominated. Thanks for telling the story so well.
Very underrated Kevin Willis. You were a great center but had to adapt to the NBA game of that time. I always thought you were more like Rick Mahorn than Lambeer.You were something special!
I grew up in Atlanta and I still live here, and all I know is when it came to 1 on 1 play, nobody could guard Dominique, period. Bird is still the GOAT, but so is Nique. Straight from Hazzard County. Bad Street Atlanta, GA y'all.
Bird was always and always will be my favorite but I agree with you magic Jordan bird Dominique new how to play the game the right way athletically so gifted
@@GregWilliams-no1oj I agree. Players back then were absolute beasts on the court, completely different breed from players today. Seems like basketball went soft.
Bird would do the impossible so often he began to make me question my mere ability to choose my affiliations, as I refused to be a disgusting ‘fair weather fan’ & abort my Sixers. I was nearly getting ulcers from waiting for him to be a normal human and make a mistake. The end result was good however as I stopped worrying so much about who wins and instead just appreciate that I was lucky enough to be able to learn what greatness is all about. And I didn’t even need a gastroenterologist 🤬🤨😊
--- No one could stop Dominique. Bird wasn't that kind of 1v1 defender. He was a help defender who read the passing lanes. And in '88, Bird was traffic cone on D but could still score with the best. I'm still taking Bird over Lebron, KD for the last shot.
Wilkins is such a phenomenal dunker that a lot of people know his dunks but don't realize what a great all around player and guy he is. I had his Starting Lineup action figure and card in the early 90's.
What Larry Bird did was mozzo genius? He watched what leg Wilkinson was pivoting on as soon as he stood on that leg. Burn made his move to go around it because he knew that Wilkes couldn't move that leg at that point. Bird is so smart. He's a genius at what he does by just watching what it takes to get around somebody. Undoubtedly undoubtedly undoubtedly the best NBA player that ever walked on the court. All the way around. Thank you, Larry Bird for all that fantastic plan and effort. You put out if a person don't get excited about what it takes because you gave it. You showed it, you did it. Larry Bird, thank you. I god bless you buddy
Those were the days - from a Pistons “Bad Boys” fan. So many great players. Magic, Bird, Dominique, Jordan, Kareem, Isaiah, Ainge, Stockton, Worthy, Malone, Barkley, Robinson etc… The league was stacked with greats. And probably never again.
I saw this series real time on TV, satellite. I guess I shouldn't, but I can't help but cloud up every time I watch clips of it. I severely miss, watching Bird and the other Celtics play the best basketball I have ever seen. I also miss the other great teams and players who played against them during the Bird era. There were several great teams and players at that time. Atlanta, with Domenique, was certainly one of them.
Thanks for these videos. Basketball was a man's game back then, and I loved watching my Knicks battle. These players today wouldn't last 10 minutes with all their flopping and driving to the hole untouched. You want to come to the hole? Come on, but you're going to get touched up big time. That's why Jordan gets so much respect, he was as great as he was back when it was still a very physical game. Larry would average 40 today and Jordan would average 60. And Nique? He'd be somewhere in between I'm sure.
Such Great Times. We were Piston Fans but you HAVE to give credit to Boston's Line Up and the Great Larry Bird. To me the 1980's was the Best Overall NBA era ever. (Of course the 90's were great as well) The excitement, the teams, the coaches, the announcers, all added up to the best overall era for professional Basketball in my lifetime. You had to live back then to understand it. To feel it.
Yup. I had recently moved to Chicago during the Bad Boys era. You could still get standing room only seats at Chicago Stadium for $10 back in 1990. I would go whenever the Pistons were in town, and wear all my Pistons garb. One time I had a whole section of Bulls fans chanting against me in my Bad Boys tank top, up in the SRO seats, yelling, "Detroit sucks, and so do YOU!" But the game was so much more fun and exciting in the Bird/Magic, to MJ Bulls era. Once MJ left the Bulls for good, the game got less exciting. When the Pistons got good again with Ben Wallace and Rip Hamilton and the rest, it just wasn't the same. As big as Ben was, I never saw him knock anyone down like Laimbeer, Rodman, or Mahorn would do. Dwayne Wade regularly drove to the hole without being knocked on his a$$, like he would have been with the Bad Boys. These days, I can't remember the last time when I have actually watched an NBA game. Who wants to watch guys just trading 3 pt shots? Boring!
If there was ONE person back then you DIDNT talk shit too, it was Larry fkn BIRD! the shit talk only fired him up 100x more. some of my uncles were at this game, and said it was the best match they have ever seen in any sport.
I skipped a class in college to watch that game where Bird had 24 in the first quarter. I just knew Dom would destroy Bird. I was a Dr. J fan my entire life and thought Bird was WAY over rated - that game changed my mind and made me a believer. Bird is a bad dude. Cleary one of the best ever.
Just another day at the office for Larry Legend.👑 The CBS announcer Brent Musberger used to do NBA and NFL games and he was an unashamed bandwagon jumper. As soon as one player or team started getting hot he was their biggest cheerleader, even if he was kicking them 5 minutes before that.
Larry Bird is the only player in NBA history to shoot better than 50-40-90 four straight years while averaging over 28 PPG. And that's not counting the double digit career rebounding and being the best passing forward in history. Celts go from 29 wins before his rookie year to 61 wins his rookie year and there was no Parish, McKale, DJ, or Ainge on that team, just the same guys who won only 29 plus Larry Bird. Greatest one year win improvement by ANY team in NBA history and it came because of the addition of a rookie. It proved that Bird carrying a bunch of no-name players at Indiana State to a undefeated season, slaying one giant after another during March madness until that 1979 NCAA championship game was no fluke. What he did at sad sack Indiana State has never been repeated and what he did his rookie year at (then) sad sack Boston has never been repeated. There is a reason for that, a very precise reason...BECAUSE NO ONE SINCE HAS BEEN AS GOOD AS BIRD AND THEREFORE COULDN'T DO THOSE THINGS AND DIDN'T DO THOSE THINGS. You will never see another Larry Joe Bird.
Kudos to the players willing to share honest and positive feedback for their opponent! Egos seemed to have been left at home, a distinct mark of this generations players.
Wow With bone spurs adrenaline keeps you going and Carries you and then when you stop the pain is terrible,listening to both teams views and respect were amazing Goosebump memories
I remember this series like it was yesterday, being in my mid-teens at the time. What a time to be alive to be able to see the NBA in its glory days. God, I miss the old school NBA.
Love how guys talk like todays guys are it. No freaking way. The game was played inside out then. Now its outside in. Like a glorified 3 point contest. No defense.
Huge Hawks fan Dominique was my favorite player! Great series but I knew when Hawks lost game 6 Celtics had it! Greatest series ever sadly didn't turn out my way 😢
Back when even thenplayers were excited to play against their rivals bcoz the games were not rigged. Thats the 80s, but in the 90s david stern and jordan did something inside his office 🌭🌭 and it changed the NBA. Rigged games, manipulated trades to let someone win bcoz they had to sell shoes
I had said then, and I still say now, that Michael Jordan didn't retire when he went to go play baseball for Jerry Reinsdorf's White Sox AA team; David Stern suspended him for going gambling in Atlantic City casino and cavorting with mobsters during the playoffs against the Knicks. Because it's pretty telling that exactly one year to the day that Jordan "retired", the movie SPACE JAM is released, and at the end of the movie, Jordan says "I'm back", meaning he was returning to the NBA. There are three absolutes that I've learned over my 57 years that you just don't do, unless you have a very good life insurance policy: 1. Don't fuck with an Italian man's teenage daughter 2. Don't fuck with a black man's food 3. Don't mess with a Jew's money So, by calling it a retirement instead of a suspension, David Stern made sure that he kept the NBA fan base tuned in to see who would win while Jordan was playing baseball with the Birmingham Barons. Because the NBA would have lost a significant amount of fans and revenue if Jordan had actually retired and stayed away from the game.
lifelong Celtics fan here. Three channels and no cable. Never missed a Celtics game. The Hawks always scared the crap out of me and friends when they were coming up on the schedule. The dudes were just freaks of nature.Sixers were a scare too.
The way those teams were allowed to play so physical in those games in the past. I wonder where LeBron would be right now, if he was beat up like that all the time.
As a 80's basketball fan, a Celtics fan and definitely a Bird fan Dominique should never downplay his greatness. That dude wasn't called the human highlight film for no reason.
Love the video. One thing that's wrong is those bone spurs never stopped him or his career. It was the back surgeries. And yet in 92 on the dream team laying in front of the bench to stretch his back and do what he did for that team. Mad respect for Bird. Never complained never used injuries as an excuse he just played till he literally couldn't anymore
My friend and I were at that game 7. Part way through the 4th quarter we turned to each other but said nothing. We just needed to confirm that what was happening was real. I remember that the crowd roared for Dominique as well as Larry because both of the show they were putting on. At the end, they congratulated each other.
Man Wilkins was a beast! And I appreciate that he appreciates the greats he played against.
Dominique was a beast and he was also a truly class act! Rarely cried to the refs which was Larry Birds specialty 😢
Yea and all these young NBA fans keep saying nobody big was in the 80s
@@ThomasRogan-gc5pibecause usually bird was correct to
There was a lot of good teams in theblate 80sband early to mid 90s that just barely lost to the greats.
Atlanta, Cleveland, Utah...New York.
That's true. The Knicks were never quite at the level of the Celtics, Lakers, Pistons and Bulls. But they always played an exciting style of basketball. Like the time Patrick Ewing got his shot blocked by Mugsy Bogues, to cite just one example.
When you listen to Wilkens talk about Bird, you respect both even more. Two super greats. Some of us were so lucky in life to watch both of them.
A better era of 📺 the NBA😊
I watched Wilkins live when he played in Europe as a veteran and when he came with his team to play in Belgrade. Although his career was coming to an end, he was still flying.
Remember when the best always have props to each other, and even the greats that came before them. Now mfs saying they the goat. You don't decide that shit. Fans do. Learn.
Willis was a beast
I was in my twenties in the nineties. Great memories!
I believe the fact that many have forgotten how good bird was makes it equally sad that Wilkins has been forgotten. Dominique wasn't only a dunker. He was a great player.
He could fly! Bird had respect for Dominique!!
Nobody in my house forgets how good Wilkins was
@@joesavary6081 Not in my house, and in most of the houses in our country.
There may be a few houses in Wyoming or North Dakota who forgot about Wilkins, though.
@@sludge8506ha ha ha.. *ya.. 'nique Wilkins and Oscar Roberson < so good
The human highlight! Never forget Nique!
When my memory goes, I look forward to seeing this again for the first time.
I have to remember your line. Great post!
We can watch them together! Lol.
Good one!
What a great video! FYI: Larry Bird not only played this game with painful bone spurs on the bottoms of both feet, with injuries to both achilles tendons, he also played this game while suffering from bronchial pneumonia, according to an article archived on the NBA website. Astounding.
Yeah, we watched this video & many others. Do you always feel the need to translate & repeat for attention?
@@ericksonparks1740you think EVERYONE watched the FULL video? because if you think you are one ignorant person
@@ericksonparks1740salty huh
Did he walk to the game, up hill both ways with holes in his shoes also?
@@user-nx4vl5tn8c yes he did lmao
Again I'll say: Not Jordan. Not James.
Bird.
Larry Legend all day, every day. There have been many great players, both past and present. But never has there been such a killer as Mr Larry Joe Bird!
Definitely not LeFraud!
How is he the goat when he wasnt even the best of his era. Nobody thinks bird is goat. Bird is a legend and a great, not goat. Mj is the goat hands down. Yes the stacked celtics beat the only mj bulls. But it's not even a competition. Mj was hands down better. But I'll pick bird over lefraud. But magic>bird aswell.
The Bird WAS the word!
@@ScootsMcPoot bird was the best in the 80s he swept MJ twice dude. Jordan didn’t win till Magic and Larry left and the nba changed the rules for mike because of Detroit and the watering down of the league. The 80 s was the toughest ball to play in .
I am not a basketball fan but I am definitely a Larry Bird fan and I had no clue who Kevin McHale was before watching Larry Bird videos but he is pretty wicked and Dominique is a class act all the way😊😊😊😊
Man, McHale was one of the greats and a big fellow, if I was his size I dont know if I would act so gentlemanly against bullying players. Kudos for keeping his cool for so many years and being a perfect match to THE LEGEND
"We both deserve to win, but somebody has to go home." Larry gave rookie Dominique trash, but very much respected him after.
I love watching Walton on the side lines. Larry does something amazing and he's very happy, but never surprised... yeah, that's Larry.
Bird & Wilkins……two of the best players in NBA history. I respect them both tremendously!
Best players in the best era. I’m 74 and have seen it all, so take my word: Bird was the best of the best. Nique and Doc were terrific but Bird earned his “Legend” moniker for just this kind of performance. He always stepped up when he had to. Please notice Bird’s shots were from everywhere and most were all net-left or right handed. Didn’t matter.
Absolutely!!! No one like Bird!
I agree.Best time to see basketball.
Larry Bird didn't just drop out of the sky. He continuously worked on his game. He did so well because he kept putting in the work.
Great video, but one correction.. Even more amazing. After Bird had double Achilles surgery, he came back in 89-90 and played in 75gms avg 24,3pts 9.5reb 7.5ass 1.4stls on 47.3 fg%and 93% from the line. Made 2nd team All-NBA. Legend.
Dominique was an absolute wrecking ball. Has become a tremendous ambassador for the game as an elder statesman. His graciousness to teammates and opponents makes for great viewing.
It's officially a good day when there's a new Larry Legend vid. Thanks!
You'd never expect Dominique Wilkins the man and Dominque Wilkins the NBA player to be the same person. He seems like such a super nice, gentle dude. In that great period of NBA play in the late 1980s and early 1990s, I can only imagine Dominque was one of the scariest opponents, sheerly terrifying. The double persona of Dominique Wilkins.
We thank you Prime Larry Bird for yet another _great_ story!
May we never forget these greats.
Toughest player ever, 91 Pacers series too he was already banged up from his back and he hits the parquet floor face first and fractures his cheekbone and still came back out and took over the game
Larry Legend, might be the gutsiest, toughest player of any sport,ever...he was on another level...
Look, I love Larry Bird, but let's just look at your comment.
Robert Dipierdominico played the 1989 Australian Rules Grand Final for 2 freaking hours with broken ribs and a collapsed lung. He nearly died while being rushed to hospital after the game and spent 8 days in intensive care. The injury toll from the 1989 Grand Final sounds like something from an actual warzone. These guys kept playing knowing how serious their injuries were.
Dean Jones batted for over 500 minutes at Chennai in insane temperatures in 1986 (over 40 degress celsius, full sun and 90 percent humidity). He regularly vomited on the field due to heat stress and nausea, and frequently lost bladder control. He could not hold down any food or fluids. He toughed it out and scored a double century in some of the most arduous conditions known on a sporting field. He lost over 4 kilograms (9 pounds) of body weight and has no recollection of those events (basically a day and a half of his life) due to the damage it did to his body and mind. He was rushed to hospital after he was finally out and placed on a saline drip. He was very lucky to survive.
The Game ended in a draw by the way. Which may not sound like much but Jones singlehandedly saved a 5 match, 25 day international cricket competition at Chennai between the two international powerhouses of the sport.
Jason McCartney suffered over 50% burns to his body during the 2002 Bali Bombing, and returned to to play an AFL football match wrapped in bandages and padding to try and protect him from further injury the damage he suffered. Having proven his merit to be selected for the senior team through rehabilitation, training and 7 matches in the secondary league (the VFL) he retired after kicking a goal and a providing a goal assist during the match. The match was won by North Melbourne by less than the score he contributed in those two actions.
I'm sure we can find other examples. Multiple players have died in Rugby, Soccer (association football), Cricket and Australian Rules Football. Possibly the most notable is Phillip Hughes, who suffered a traumatic brain injury and is no longer with us after being struck in the head by a bouncer at 63 not out. #putoutyourbats
Adam Johnson is no longer with us due to having his throat accidentally cut during a match by a ice skate. Timur Faizutdinov got a puck to the head. Bill Masterton has a trophy named after him due to his on ice death. Ray Chapman in baseball.
Pssh...one time, I played Tiddly Winks with my sister and I had a slight toothache. That's toughness right there. @@AndyViant
😂😂😂😂
Round ball in the 80's was a blast, with so many great NBA players that gave it all to us fans. Great look back.
Silver has killed the NBA
Larry Bird, when he got to the NBA, realized he could compete, he said that, and I think he kept that confidence. Basketball is good today, but we'll never see another Larry Bird. Thanks for insight into those memories.
I do agree we'll never see another Larry Bird! But I can't agree on basketball being good today.... It is so boring in comparison!
Pat Riley once said that if he needed a player to make a shot to win a game, it would be Jordan. If he needed somebody to make a shot to save his life, it would be Bird.
Boy oh boy do I miss those great men that played in the NBA. Hats off. I can't pass up watching these gems.
I watched this game live I think on CBS and it's the GREATEST 4th quarter between 2 guys I ve EVER SEEN TO THIS DAY in Feb 2024
Whenever it's on any classic or anything I watch and I LOVE the respect that they had for eachother still years later to here Dominque who was 1 of the most UNDERRATED players in history in my opinion u don't hear enough about him
He was absolutely incredible
Should ve been on Dream Team 1 if he doesn't blow out his Achilles
Was such a GREAT GAME
I was still bad for him that he was injured and Dominique couldn't be on the dream team!!! because he absolutely would have been! Should've been!
Bird is my all time fav, but I loved to watch Dominique play.
Dominique is a class dude
Both of these players are head and shoulders above Lebron as basketball players and as people.
Best SF in history without question. Bad, tough, skilled & and an all time shooter. Always makes my starting all time team. As MJ says 🍻
Larry Bird is legitimately the greatest basketball player of all time. End of discussion.
Bird, Jordan, Kobe, Wilkins, Hakeem. In no particular order, those guys would crush everybody forever.
God the NBA NEEDS another “Larry Bird”…
I live in same county where Larry was from. Im not old enough to have seen him play in high school. My folks did their take away was he knew where everyone was on the court all the time. He did no look passes that surprised team mates. But most important, they related how he could shoot from anywhere, with uncanny awareness of where the hoop was. No big revelations there. He also was known to shoot hundreds of practice shots daily. He was naturally talented, but great because of work ethic and modesty.
This video was so well researched and cut together. Great job!
Dominique is the most underrated player in history besides Wilt.
I was always a huge Larry Bird you couldn't be more right Wilkins was a gifted player and what a classy person all the respect in the world 2 Dominique
lol no
The Great Shootout!!! Got to be the best 4th quarter ever for me! Nique & Bird were just incredible!!!
There mere many great players back then I enjoyed watching them all .
I was just a kid watching Larry Bird play basketball. It was so much fun. He was different than the rest.
Great video, man. I saw that game on TV way back then. It was AWESOME. Bird was really something else. Anyone who experienced the NBA in the 80's real time knows how good Bird really was and how much he dominated. Thanks for telling the story so well.
Very underrated Kevin Willis. You were a great center but had to adapt to the NBA game of that time. I always thought you were more like Rick Mahorn than Lambeer.You were something special!
Best quote during that game was Musberger’s, “ You are watching greatness!”
Basketball was different back then. These young bucks in today's NBA would get bodied so hard and have no one to cry to.
I grew up in Atlanta and I still live here, and all I know is when it came to 1 on 1 play, nobody could guard Dominique, period. Bird is still the GOAT, but so is Nique. Straight from Hazzard County. Bad Street Atlanta, GA y'all.
Jordan is THE GOAT.
Bird was always and always will be my favorite but I agree with you magic Jordan bird Dominique new how to play the game the right way athletically so gifted
@@GregWilliams-no1oj I agree. Players back then were absolute beasts on the court, completely different breed from players today. Seems like basketball went soft.
Bird smoked him
You don’t get to be goat when you never win anything. College. Nba. Europe.
A busted up Larry Bird is better than any healthy player. He was always hurt in career and is still the GOAT.
He was always hurt, being the drama queen that he was.
@@sludge8506loser
Bird would do the impossible so often he began to make me question my mere ability to choose my affiliations, as I refused to be a disgusting ‘fair weather fan’ & abort my Sixers. I was nearly getting ulcers from waiting for him to be a normal human and make a mistake. The end result was good however as I stopped worrying so much about who wins and instead just appreciate that I was lucky enough to be able to learn what greatness is all about. And I didn’t even need a gastroenterologist 🤬🤨😊
All the respect to 'Nique, stayed on Bird on defense while delivering on offense.
--- No one could stop Dominique. Bird wasn't that kind of 1v1 defender. He was a help defender who read the passing lanes.
And in '88, Bird was traffic cone on D but could still score with the best. I'm still taking Bird over Lebron, KD for the last shot.
Kevin willis was one of my favorite role players, he was the kind of player you could plug into any team and make it better.
Willis was a Rodman, but who could score too..That was a great Hawks team
P😊@@brianjschumer
"Its up to them to stop it". He didnt say its up to me to score because he already knew it was in. Cold
Larry Legend GOAT! Mr. 4th quarter!
Drop everything and just watch it.
greatness comes along ever now and then.whether you are a player or fan just to witness it is special no matter whos side you are on.
Wilkins is such a phenomenal dunker that a lot of people know his dunks but don't realize what a great all around player and guy he is. I had his Starting Lineup action figure and card in the early 90's.
What Larry Bird did was mozzo genius? He watched what leg Wilkinson was pivoting on as soon as he stood on that leg. Burn made his move to go around it because he knew that Wilkes couldn't move that leg at that point. Bird is so smart. He's a genius at what he does by just watching what it takes to get around somebody. Undoubtedly undoubtedly undoubtedly the best NBA player that ever walked on the court. All the way around. Thank you, Larry Bird for all that fantastic plan and effort. You put out if a person don't get excited about what it takes because you gave it. You showed it, you did it. Larry Bird, thank you.
I god bless you buddy
These recollections bring back so much 80's hype! GOODNESS!
Learning about Wilkins. Wow. What a player.
He was the only one close to Jordan
Those were the days - from a Pistons “Bad Boys” fan. So many great players. Magic, Bird, Dominique, Jordan, Kareem, Isaiah, Ainge, Stockton, Worthy, Malone, Barkley, Robinson etc… The league was stacked with greats. And probably never again.
I loved watching these guys play! Wilkins, Bird, Parish, McHale, Koncak... those guys were BEASTS!!!!
Bird’s back gave out on him too, towards the end of his career. Was always playing injured. That’s why he’s called Larry Legend
Dominque is a true gentleman, played an amazing game himself. Fun to watch the replay..
I saw this series real time on TV, satellite. I guess I shouldn't, but I can't help but cloud up every time I watch clips of it. I severely miss, watching Bird and the other Celtics play the best basketball I have ever seen. I also miss the other great teams and players who played against them during the Bird era. There were several great teams and players at that time. Atlanta, with Domenique, was certainly one of them.
It's almost forgotten how popular Magic was! He's almost non-existent now. It's all Larry Larry LARRY!
Thanks for these videos. Basketball was a man's game back then, and I loved watching my Knicks battle. These players today wouldn't last 10 minutes with all their flopping and driving to the hole untouched. You want to come to the hole? Come on, but you're going to get touched up big time. That's why Jordan gets so much respect, he was as great as he was back when it was still a very physical game. Larry would average 40 today and Jordan would average 60. And Nique? He'd be somewhere in between I'm sure.
Such Great Times.
We were Piston Fans but you HAVE to give credit to Boston's Line Up and the Great Larry Bird.
To me the 1980's was the Best Overall NBA era ever.
(Of course the 90's were great as well)
The excitement, the teams, the coaches, the announcers, all added up to the best overall era for professional Basketball in my lifetime.
You had to live back then to understand it. To feel it.
Yup. I had recently moved to Chicago during the Bad Boys era. You could still get standing room only seats at Chicago Stadium for $10 back in 1990. I would go whenever the Pistons were in town, and wear all my Pistons garb. One time I had a whole section of Bulls fans chanting against me in my Bad Boys tank top, up in the SRO seats, yelling, "Detroit sucks, and so do YOU!" But the game was so much more fun and exciting in the Bird/Magic, to MJ Bulls era. Once MJ left the Bulls for good, the game got less exciting. When the Pistons got good again with Ben Wallace and Rip Hamilton and the rest, it just wasn't the same. As big as Ben was, I never saw him knock anyone down like Laimbeer, Rodman, or Mahorn would do. Dwayne Wade regularly drove to the hole without being knocked on his a$$, like he would have been with the Bad Boys. These days, I can't remember the last time when I have actually watched an NBA game. Who wants to watch guys just trading 3 pt shots? Boring!
@@kkelleybass seats were cheap back then
If there was ONE person back then you DIDNT talk shit too, it was Larry fkn BIRD! the shit talk only fired him up 100x more. some of my uncles were at this game, and said it was the best match they have ever seen in any sport.
I skipped a class in college to watch that game where Bird had 24 in the first quarter. I just knew Dom would destroy Bird. I was a Dr. J fan my entire life and thought Bird was WAY over rated - that game changed my mind and made me a believer. Bird is a bad dude. Cleary one of the best ever.
MAN I MISS THOSE GAMES!!! NBA has never been the same. Dominique and Bird, wow
Basketball should not be a dirty game. Physical yes,but not cheap shots.
Just another day at the office for Larry Legend.👑
The CBS announcer Brent Musberger used to do NBA and NFL games and he was an unashamed bandwagon jumper. As soon as one player or team started getting hot he was their biggest cheerleader, even if he was kicking them 5 minutes before that.
Larry Bird is the only player in NBA history to shoot better than 50-40-90 four straight years while averaging over 28 PPG.
And that's not counting the double digit career rebounding and being the best passing forward in history.
Celts go from 29 wins before his rookie year to 61 wins his rookie year and there was no Parish, McKale, DJ, or Ainge on that team, just the same guys who won only 29 plus Larry Bird.
Greatest one year win improvement by ANY team in NBA history and it came because of the addition of a rookie.
It proved that Bird carrying a bunch of no-name players at Indiana State to a undefeated season, slaying one giant after another during March madness until that 1979 NCAA championship game was no fluke.
What he did at sad sack Indiana State has never been repeated and what he did his rookie year at (then) sad sack Boston has never been repeated.
There is a reason for that, a very precise reason...BECAUSE NO ONE SINCE HAS BEEN AS GOOD AS BIRD AND THEREFORE COULDN'T DO THOSE THINGS AND DIDN'T DO THOSE THINGS.
You will never see another Larry Joe Bird.
Kudos to the players willing to share honest and positive feedback for their opponent! Egos seemed to have been left at home, a distinct mark of this generations players.
Not just the toughest, but the greatest.
Saw him once, my Suns were up by 17 in the 4th quarter n Bird went to work. We lost by one when he hit a last second 3. It was amazing.
Bird came back in 1990 and was pretty dang good
I like how you sped up the reading. flow is better. phenomenal channel. subscribed.
Wow
With bone spurs adrenaline keeps you going and Carries you and then when you stop the pain is terrible,listening to both teams views and respect were amazing Goosebump memories
I remember this series like it was yesterday, being in my mid-teens at the time. What a time to be alive to be able to see the NBA in its glory days. God, I miss the old school NBA.
I'll bet Dom and the guys on the Hawks after Kevin gave Larry some shit gave him a crazy look and said 'What'chu talkin' about Willis?!! STFU!!'
Glad i Was Able To witness His Greatness
Too bad Dominic and Bird never played on the same team it would have been SPECTACULAR. This game was an epic clash of Warriors. Enough said.
Great video. Wilkins was amazing. Bird a legend
THE BODY WEARS OUT ON ALL SPORTS ATHELETES
Awesome!!
Perfection in so many ways pretty smart nice from what I see in her videos
Love how guys talk like todays guys are it. No freaking way. The game was played inside out then. Now its outside in. Like a glorified 3 point contest. No defense.
No defense. Could not be more wrong.
Huge Hawks fan Dominique was my favorite player! Great series but I knew when Hawks lost game 6 Celtics had it! Greatest series ever sadly didn't turn out my way 😢
Yes, true. Because Bird was there!!
Great content, I just subscribed 🔥
Man I appreciate you showing what a legend Bird was people don't realize how good he was. He accomplished what he did in his short career.
Amazing video! 🏀
LARRY LEGEND IS A UNICORN AND THE TRUE GOAT!!! 🐐 ☘️
😁
Back when even thenplayers were excited to play against their rivals bcoz the games were not rigged. Thats the 80s, but in the 90s david stern and jordan did something inside his office 🌭🌭 and it changed the NBA. Rigged games, manipulated trades to let someone win bcoz they had to sell shoes
I had said then, and I still say now, that Michael Jordan didn't retire when he went to go play baseball for Jerry Reinsdorf's White Sox AA team; David Stern suspended him for going gambling in Atlantic City casino and cavorting with mobsters during the playoffs against the Knicks.
Because it's pretty telling that exactly one year to the day that Jordan "retired", the movie SPACE JAM is released, and at the end of the movie, Jordan says "I'm back", meaning he was returning to the NBA.
There are three absolutes that I've learned over my 57 years that you just don't do, unless you have a very good life insurance policy:
1. Don't fuck with an Italian man's teenage daughter
2. Don't fuck with a black man's food
3. Don't mess with a Jew's money
So, by calling it a retirement instead of a suspension, David Stern made sure that he kept the NBA fan base tuned in to see who would win while Jordan was playing baseball with the Birmingham Barons. Because the NBA would have lost a significant amount of fans and revenue if Jordan had actually retired and stayed away from the game.
Awesome!
Larry Bird deserves all the accolades and awards of his career.
This was the NBA I loved!
I am not even aware of the league's existence today!
Kevin Willis in the end was a talented thug. The sad thing is that he had much more skill than thugs like Dennis Rodman, Bill Laimbeer, etc. etc.
lifelong Celtics fan here. Three channels and no cable. Never missed a Celtics game. The Hawks always scared the crap out of me and friends when they were coming up on the schedule. The dudes were just freaks of nature.Sixers were a scare too.
The way those teams were allowed to play so physical in those games in the past. I wonder where LeBron would be right now, if he was beat up like that all the time.
As a 80's basketball fan, a Celtics fan and definitely a Bird fan Dominique should never downplay his greatness. That dude wasn't called the human highlight film for no reason.
Larry bird my favorite player ever wish he didn’t hurt his back in 85 or he may have played few more years
Incredible video.Rare like for you.
Love the video. One thing that's wrong is those bone spurs never stopped him or his career. It was the back surgeries. And yet in 92 on the dream team laying in front of the bench to stretch his back and do what he did for that team. Mad respect for Bird. Never complained never used injuries as an excuse he just played till he literally couldn't anymore
Cannot imagine him taking a game off to "save his energy" like the modern player mentality. He would have been offended at the idea.
Wilkins is a legend that does not get his roses either great player
My friend and I were at that game 7. Part way through the 4th quarter we turned to each other but said nothing. We just needed to confirm that what was happening was real. I remember that the crowd roared for Dominique as well as Larry because both of the show they were putting on. At the end, they congratulated each other.