Larry Bird, Who Coined the Association of “God” to Michael Jordan, Once Bad-Mouthed MJ for Not Aiding His Teammates: “I Don’t Like to Watch the Same Guy Take Every Shot”

Michael Jordan had a highly successful professional career, unlike anyone. He was unstoppable at his peak and won six championships during the 90s. Before MJ and the Chicago Bulls started dominating, Larry Bird’s Boston Celtics ruled the NBA. Bird helped the Celtics win three championships in the 80s. However, the Bulls didn’t had a strong team at that time and they were heavily dependent on MJ. Once, Larry Bird labeled MJ as ‘God’ after being impressed by the former Bulls star.

Being called a ‘God’ in his early days in the NBA was arguably the biggest compliment Michael Jordan could get. In 1986, the Bulls and the Celtics faced each other in the first round of playoffs. It was a matchup between a Celtics team stacked with superstars and a Bulls team reliant on Michael Jordan.

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Jordan showed the Celtics that it is difficult to beat the Bulls side with a 49-point performance in game 1. He followed it by scoring 63 points in game 2. After the game, Larry gave a huge compliment to Jordan.

“I think he’s God disguised as Michael Jordan,” Bird said at the time.

However, the Bulls lost the series by going down in three straight games. Jordan finished the series as its top scorer with 131 points in 3 games. It was a big statement at that time, considering Larry Bird had just 85 points in 3 games. But the Bulls’ reliance on Jordan once changed Bird’s stance on Jordan.

Larry Bird once called out Michael Jordan for his one-dimensional game

In the 1986-87 season, Michael Jordan took 32% of Chicago Bulls‘ shots. This led to a lot of criticism of the Bulls for their reliance on MJ. However, according to a 1987 Sports Illustrated report, many started questioning Jordan’s ability to “make the players around him better“. Even Larry Bird stepped in on the conversation and questioned Jordan.

“I don’t like to watch the same guy take every shot. That’s not what the game is all about,” said Bird, according to the SI report.

However, the report further stated that the Bulls were comparatively weaker than the Celtics and the Lakers. Bird and Magic Johnson were deemed as the players who made their teammates better, while Jordan wasn’t.

Jordan has always been a fighter, and he would do anything to win. The change in the Bulls was visible when they had a strong roster in the early 90s. In fact, Jordan helped them win three back-to-back championships at that time.

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When Jordan decided to retire, the Bulls failed to win any silverware. Then they won another three when Jordan decided to come back to the NBA again.