puis dans la liste qui s’affiche, cliquez sur AdBlock
Par Joël Pütz | Journaliste sportif
Due to the Lakers-Celtics rivalry, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Larry Bird faced off on numerous occasions in the 1980s. The former center gave his most honest opinion about the Boston legend in 2022.
More than thirty years after his retirement, his career stats still command respect. Averaging 24.3 points, 10 rebounds, and 6.3 assists in nearly 900 regular season games, Larry Bird is one of the most all-around offensive players in history. The craziest thing about all this is that he achieved it without any significant athleticism.
Quickly hampered by his body, and especially his back, the forward wasn’t one to jump higher or run faster than others. However, he stood out from the competition in terms of game intelligence, and is considered one of, if not the, most formidable basketball minds of all time.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s amazing tribute to Larry Bird
As a result, Larry Legend managed to bully players far more athletic than him without even getting into a physical battle, letting his genius do the show on the court. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar knows this better than anyone, having faced him several times in the NBA Finals. The former Lakers center didn’t mince his words about his teammate Magic Johnson’s great rival during an interview:
The best guy I played against might have been Larry Bird. People don’t appreciate Larry Bird enough. They think he was a chubby white guy. But he would wear us down. The muscle that was between his ears was the best because he made three points, assisted, rebounded and had steals. He was always in the right place at the right time. He is, without a doubt, one of the best players I’ve ever played against.
Coming from someone who is considered an even bigger NBA legend than Bird, and even a Top 3 all-time player according to many observers, this is the ultimate compliment. KAJ wasn’t the only one to bow down to the IQ of No. 33, as the iconic Julius Erving had a similar speech about the three-time regular season MVP:
What I noticed about Larry right away, even as a rookie, is that not only can he get his shot, he had amazing range for a big man. He may be the best shooter I’ve ever seen and he is a smart passer, able to weave the ball through inches of daylight. And he would not stop working.
