Larry Bird is one of the greatest NBA players to ever grace an NBA court. He was an exemplary forward and arguably one of the best in his position, if not the best. He had a modern game in the ’80s and he dominated the league. winning 3 championships and being the last man to win 3 NBA MVP trophies in a row.
Bird had legendary trash-talking skills, once asking a locker room full of NBA players who will come second behind him at the 1988 NBA All-Star 3-point contest. He trash-talked players ruthlessly on the court. What’s hilarious is that Larry Bird was so used to trash-talking, he couldn’t stop himself from doing so while praising teammate Dennis Johnson.
“Dennis is the key to our team. I knew last year when we picked up Dennis and saw how good he is, we knew we were going to win a championship. The way Dennis plays, we needed that. We need a guy like him to come and hit the shot like he does, play good defense, and do the all-around game. Dennis Johnson is really the best player I have ever played with in my life.”
“Well, I haven’t played with very many good ones.”
Bird played with some legendary teammates on the Boston Celtics, but this is extremely high praise for Dennis Johnson, one of the most underrated point guards in NBA history.
Dennis Johnson’s Time With Larry Bird And The Boston Celtics
Johnson signed with the Celtics in 1984, the offseason after Larry Bird won his second title in Boston. Johnson would be a veteran presence on the 1986 championship team, playing heavy minutes as the team’s starting point guard.
In his 7 seasons in Boston, Johnson averaged 12.6 points, 6.4 assists, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.2 steals. He would retire in 1990 after a successful 13-year career. Bird was incredible throughout this era and won championships with and without Johnson, but Dennis is a living example of a perfectly complementary role player.
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