The Chicago Bulls‘ cheerleaders went out of their way to put a stop to Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics ahead of a playoff game in 1981. Although the cheerleaders did their best to get Bird drunk the night before, the Celtics forward could not be stopped from dominating, as seen in a recently resurfaced clip.
Former Celtics player Rick Robey recalled a story of how cheerleaders from the Chicago Bulls tried to get Bird drunk the night before a playoff game.
“I can remember the night. He and I, we went out to Rush Street and, as you said, we had a couple of beers, maybe a few too many because the Chicago cheerleading staff happened to be in the bar that we were at and they kept sending us a few beers and a few beers.”
“Before you knew it, it was late at night, and we had a few too many,” Robey continued. “We got in a cab, and they got us back to the hotel.”
“About six hours later, we had to be up. We’re playing the 12 ‘o’clock game that afternoon, and we get to the arena, and we’re still a little tired. Matter of fact, Larry fell asleep on the taping table to get a little nap before the game.”
Robey recounted how Bird started poorly as he missed everything on his first shot attempt. Following this, Robert Parish picked up three quick fouls, resulting in an unfavorable start to the game.
Unfortunately for Chicago, Bird missing the first shot was not a good omen for the rest of the game. The Celtics forward went on to score 35 points while grabbing 11 rebounds and dishing out five assists to lead Boston to a 109-103 win and a 4-0 series sweep against the Bulls.
Robey also recounted that after the win, Larry Bird talked trash to the cheerleaders by thanking them for the beers.
The Chicago Bulls didn’t pose much of a challenge to Bird and the Celtics in the 1981 playoffs. Following the series win, Boston went on to beat the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference Finals before eventually facing the Houston Rockets in the NBA Finals.
Bird and the Celtics would eventually go on to win the Finals in six games as the forward would contribute 15.3 points, 15.3 rebounds, and 7.0 assists per game to aid the team.
This championship would mark the first of three wins for Larry Bird and this iteration of the Boston Celtics. For the next decade, he contributed significantly to the team’s success.
His career was marked by several highlights, including three MVP awards, 10x All-NBA accolades, and 12x All-Star selections. He was also a core member of the 1992 Dream Team.
His career was also marked by several memorable stories, such as the legend of him destroying Craig Hodges at the three-point contest. He even blasted Charles Barkley and said putting a white guy to guard him was disrespectful.
Following his playing career, Bird also coached the Indiana Pacers from 1997-2000. During this time, he won the Coach of the Year award in the 1997-98 season and even led the Pacers to the 2000 NBA Finals. He eventually took over as President of Basketball Operations for Indiana until he retired from the role in 2012.
