The reply is sure, he might nonetheless run the league, and for a couple of causes.
First, Bird was, as Joe Dumar as soon as stated, a basketball savant. Do you assume Charles Barkley might play in the present day? Magic Johnson? Michael Jordan? Isaiah Thomas? James Worthy?
Of course they might – and so they all stated Bird was the one whom they feared most, who gave them sleepless nights.
The major criticism of Bird is that he was gradual and couldn’t leap. Well, neither can Nikola Jokić or Luka Dončić, and each of these guys can be within the Hall of Fame, as a result of they, like Bird, can power the sport to adapt to them, reasonably than vice-versa.
If nothing else, Bird’s passing capability was off the charts, and his hand-eye coordination was excellent. So was his capability to maintain monitor of all the things taking place on the courtroom: he didn’t need to see his teammates to know the place they have been.
What additionally actually works in Bird’s favor is that this: in his heyday, the NBA was far, way more bodily than it’s in the present day. Go take a look at some Bill Laimbeer highlights.
The NBA within the Eighties may very well be brutal. Consider the braveness Thomas had to enter the lane the way in which he did at his dimension, and take into account additionally the Jordan Rules the Pistons had for #23. They all knew they have been going to get a beating each recreation.
It’s not like that now. The recreation is much extra open, and Bird would both drive, go, or hit jumpers at will.
Finally, there are another elements that will work in his favor. The first is private. Bird’s need to dominate would propel him in in the present day’s recreation, too. His mindset is much totally different from anybody in in the present day’s NBA. He would sneer at 90 p.c of the gamers within the league now.
And second, the advances in coaching, diet, gear, and medical care would have actually helped him. Just for one factor, a again drawback ended Bird’s profession. The remedy choices in the present day are much better.
Note – for some motive, the embed doesn’t need to work, so please hit the hyperlink above.
