Larry Bird knows a thing or two about closing out an NBA Finals.
Last season, the 2024 version of the Boston Celtics completed a gentleman’s sweep of the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals to win the franchise’s 18th championship banner.
Larry Bird’s rivalry with Magic Johnson paved the way for the modern NBA to flourishGettyJayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and co were excellent, and only had to look at Larry Legend’s example for exactly what to do in a pivotal closeout game.
In 1986, Bird and the Celtics came up against the Houston Rockets and a young Hakeem Olajuwon in the NBA Finals.
Olajuwon was yet to flourish into the dominant center he’d later become while Bird and the Celtics were at the peak of their powers.
Bird had won the 1981 Finals – against the Rockets – and led Boston over bitter rivals Magic Johnson and the Los Angeles Lakers in 1984.
He was also the league MVP from 1984 to 1986 and was looking to bounce back from a Finals defeat to the Lakers in ’85.
Bird and Boston returned with a vengeance in ’86 after picking up former Clippers big man Bill Walton who was named Sixth Man of the Year in his first season in green and white.
The Celtics’ ‘Big Three’ frontcourt of Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish – frequently ranked among the best frontcourts in NBA history – dominated the league en route to 67 regular season wins.
Bird was a beast, trash-talking Olajuwon at the All-Star Game, winning the inaugural Three-Point Shootout and averaging 25.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 6.8 assists, and 2.0 steals per game to became just the third player in NBA history to win three consecutive MVP Awards.
The Celtics’ juggernaut continued into the postseason and lost just one game in three rounds as they advanced to face the Rockets in the Finals.
Bird won three MVPs between 1984 and 1986Getty He talked trash to Olajuwon at the 1986 All-Star Game and put it on him in that year’s FinalsGetty Bird was named 1986 Finals MVP for his performancesGettyAhead of Game 1, Olajuwon, born in Lagos, Nigeria, said he knew nothing about the Celtics’ illustrious history including 15 championships banners.
“I know nothing of this tradition. I am not from around here,” he said.
“We’d like to give him a two-week history lesson,” Bird replied.
Bird did just that, and recorded two triple-doubles in the series, including a 29-point, 11-rebound, 12-assist and three-steal performance in a closeout Game 6.
The C’s starting five outscored the entire Rockets team, 98-97, winning by a margin of 114-97 to clinch what would be the final title at Boston Garden.
Bird was named Finals MVP for the second and final time of his career after averaging 24 points, 9.7 rebounds, and 9.5 assists per game in the championship round.
“I’ve never seen anyone who could demoralize a whole team like he can. It’s like he doesn’t even need his teammates. It’s just him, one on five, and he almost beats you singlehanded. It’s the way he does it. Offensive rebound, go right to the corner, three-point shot, nothing but net. He gets you down and then breaks your back,” Rockets forward Jim Peterson said.
Bird had many stunning performances during his Hall of Fame career, but perhaps none were more complete – and important – than Game 6 against the Rockets in ’86.
“That was the only game I was totally prepared for. As far as focus was concerned, none better. Never,” he said.
He admitted he should have quit right then and thereGetty Tatum likely to be out for the whole of next seasonGETTY“I should have quit right there.”
Fast forward 36 years and the Celtics were NBA champions once again.
In 2024, the Cs clinched the Larry O’Brien Trophy with a blowout 106-88 Game 5 win in front of their home fans inside TD Garden.
Jaylen Brown won Finals MVP after averaging 20.8 points, 5.4 rebounds and five assists per game.
They were unable to go back-to-back this season, though.
Boston cruised through the regular season, finishing with a 61-21 record that saw them finish second in the Eastern Conference.
But they crashed out of the postseason in the second round at the hands of the New York Knicks, losing game six of the series, 119-81.
Tatum suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon injury in Game 4 and did not play the rest of the series.
He’s since undergone successful surgery but is expected to miss the entire 2025-26 season.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( ‘I should have quit’ – Larry Bird’s greatest game saw him drop triple-double on iconic big man in NBA Finals )
Also on site :