Is Luka Doncic the Worthy Successor to Former “Baddest White Boy” Larry Bird?

Luka Doncic has quickly risen up the ranks to become one of the most popular superstars in the league. Arguably the best European player in the league currently. Playing for the Dallas Mavericks, fans see a glimpse of recent Hall of Fame inductee Dirk Nowitzki in the Slovenian. After all, they both played for the same team and were Europeans as well. However, it is not Nowitzki who is compared to Doncic the most.

It is the Boston Celtics legend, Larry Bird. Known as the ‘Baddest White Boy‘ during his time in the league, Bird shares an uncanny resemblance to Doncic, who is 4 decades younger than him.

How tall is Luka Doncic?

The 24-year-old Slovenian is usually not the tallest player on the court, nor is he the most athletic. Doncic is 201 centimeters or 6-foot-7 inches tall. 

Despite having an average height compared to NBA standards, Luka Magic has an impressive wingspan of 7 feet. This allows him to dominate opponents on the court, although he is at a disadvantage physically.

Size poses a huge problem for the Mavericks as they have only one player who is 7 feet or taller. Doncic’s teammate, Kyrie Irving, is also 6-foot-2 inches tall, which is relatively short compared to other players in his position.

Why is Doncic often compared to Larry Bird?

Much like the Slovenian, Larry Bird wasn’t the tallest of players and was also not very athletic. Interestingly, the two have similar physical traits.

Bird weighed 218 pounds during his playing days and is 6-foot-9 inches tall. One of the biggest reasons why Doncic is often compared to Bird is their playing style. The two are often labeled as ‘unathletic’ as you don’t see Doncic going for monstrous dunks during his plays. Bird was the same.

The 3-time NBA champion depended on his impressive shooting prowess rather than his physicality more often than not. Sounds familiar? That’s exactly how Doncic goes about his game.

Doncic’s playing style reminds people of the Celtics great

Cedric Maxwell, a two-time NBA champion and a long-time teammate of Larry Bird, once bestowed the young Slovenian with a huge honor.

“You can quote me: This is Larry Bird reincarnated. This would be Larry Bird of the 2020s, exactly how he would play now”, said Maxwell. This was after a brilliant Doncic game-winner against the Los Angeles Clippers in 2021 according to the New York Post.

The two players like to have the ball in their hands and dictate the play on the floor. Moreover, they depend a lot on their three-pointers as well. 

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Bird had 1,727 three-point attempts, and he drained 649 shots from beyond the arc during his brilliant playing career. On the other hand, Doncic already has 2,713 attempts with 917 three-pointers already drained.

At 24 years old, Doncic is yet to win an NBA title, while Bird won his first NBA title at this age in 1981. With a good team and teammates like Irving, it won’t come as a surprise if Doncic ends up winning his first title very soon.

Do you think Luka Doncic can be as successful as Larry Bird? Let us know in the comments below.

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