Long before Michael Jordan became the basketball legend we know today, he had a memorable encounter with the veteran Larry Bird, a moment that profoundly influenced his journey. The interaction between the two did not go well but it fueled Jordan’s determination. Curry Kirkpatrick who is the former writer of Sports Illustrated penned down this first meet.
The 1984 Olympics, an exhibition game played the back-drop for this interaction. Jordan was right out of college, and Bird was iconic in his own right. His Airness ran to grab the ball that bounced down from the college end to the pro end. However, what happened next was not only unexpected but also shook the Bulls star.
Kirkpatrick stated, “The ball had to be picked up by Larry Bird. And Michael went up a few feet away and held out his hands, and Bird took the ball and fired it back down the court over Jordan’s head as if to say, you’re not only not getting this ball, I don’t give a damn who you are”.
In those brief seconds, Bird gave a glimpse of his mindset and also conveyed that Jordan needed to earn his respect. Additionally, Jordan had already made waves due to his remarkable college stats, and his future dominance was already the talk of the town.
Larry Bird saw Michael Jordan’s potential to take over the league
Jordan’s legendary mark in the NBA is undeniable. He became a threat to the then-legends who eventually had to make peace with this. Among these, Bird left no chance to pick up on Jordan as evident from their first interaction.
Kirkpatrick pointed out the first glimpse of this, “Larry Bird knows exactly who this guy is and what’s gonna happen in the next few years, and he wants to get every edge he can get right now”. Bird saw the potential of Jordan and tried to weigh him down. Notably, the Boston Celtics star Bird eliminated Jordan in the first two play-offs of his career.
“That wasn’t Michael Jordan, that was God disguised as Michael Jordan.” -Larry Bird#NBA2K24 #VirtualPhotography #PS5 pic.twitter.com/sJuSaTQSom
— AJW Virtual Photography (@ajw_vp) September 24, 2023
Just two years after Jordan made his debut in the NBA, Bird called Jordan a god. Additionally, he accepted that Jordan is the greatest player. Despite the Celtics winning Game 2 of the Eastern Conference, Jordan displayed his remarkable skills by scoring 63 points. Even though his team did not win over the Celtics, he won Bird’s respect.
Larry Bird spoke to the Boston Globe and said, “I would never have called him the greatest player I’d ever seen if I didn’t mean it”. The six-time championship winner continued, “It’s just God disguised as Michael Jordan”. The two have over time started respecting each other and they are arguably two of the most iconic players.
