The Boston Celtics are the most successful franchise in NBA history with 18 NBA Championships to their name. However, the last time the Celtics could claim to have a dynastic run in the NBA was in the 1980s, led by the legendary Larry Bird.
Bird led Boston to three championships (1981, 1984, 1986) but saw his career shortened by back injuries. He’s the only person to win three MVPs in a row, and many consistently rank him as one of the greatest players of all time.
Bird’s resume is impressive, given he had just a 13-year career, but many modern players have challenged Bird’s standing on all-time lists. LeBron James has become the leading answer in the greatest small forward of all time debate over Bird, with James challenging Michael Jordan as the all-time GOAT in the sport. Kevin Durant and Kawhi Leonard are also often debated as being equal or better than Bird for their accomplishments over their Hall of Fame careers as well.
Bird’s teammate, Robert Parish, has shut down those notions. In a recent interview with FanDuel TV’s ‘Run It Back,’ Parish vehemently claimed that James, Durant, and Leonard aren’t in the same conversation as Bird while conceding that LeBron and Durant do deserve props as all-time greats.
“With all due respect to those guys, they’re not in the same conversation with Larry. The best of the best, it’s hard to get a seat at that table.”
Bird averaged 24.3 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 6.3 assists over his career, winning three championships, three league MVPs, two Finals MVPs, while earning 12 All-Star and 10 All-NBA selections over his 13-year career.
Parish has a clear bias here, but objectively, it’s hard to see how LeBron hasn’t proven he’s a better all-around player than Bird over his career, outside of just stats or longevity. Adding the fact that James is the all-time leading scorer, all-time leader in wins, and all-time leader in appearances across both the regular season and Playoffs, it’s dismissive to say Bird is objectively the better player.
However, Parish might not be wrong to hold Bird in higher regard than Durant or Leonard. Larry Bird ultimately did win more than both those players in a much shorter time and was unquestionably the best in the NBA for multiple years in his prime, something that Durant or Leonard can’t claim outside of maybe one season in their career.
Paris also named the only player he believes is entering the all-time great conversations from the modern era: Nikola Jokic.
“The only one I think that might be able to get a seat at this table outside LeBron and Durant, might be the big fella up in Denver.” We may have to bring out another seat for him. They’re about to add a chair to the all-time great table because if he stays healthy, he’s going to be an all-time great. He’s the only one from the young generation that I’m almost certain will be an all-time great.”
If the current generation features players drafted after 2012, then Jokic is a pretty solid name for Parish to name. Many will argue that Giannis Antetokounmpo and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander have proven they should be perceived at that level, with others potentially naming the likes of Luka Doncic, Jayson Tatum, and Joel Embiid as all-time greats. However, Jokic’s resume and production have had him pretty consistently be considered the best player in the 2020s so far.
Making lists ranking players across nearly 80 years of NBA history is an impossible task, with more contenders making their cases every few seasons. The current generation will soon start entering the conversations that the likes of LeBron, Durant, and Kawhi, with more potentially threatening Larry Bird’s position as well.
But the NBA has to keep moving on, and eras will continue skewing these conversations for different groups of fans.
