Anyone that is old enough to have seen both players play more often than not would say Larry Joe. EASY!

Bird had the whole package. No holes in his game. Even made 3 All Defensive teams and has one of the highest Defensive WS all time. A leader on and off the court. Best small forward ever. Great reaction bro.

I've watched Bird play since college. He would wow you at some point every game. It was just who he was. The game came so easily to him. My top player 5 ever.

There is no comparison, Larry Bird is the greatest small forward of all time. If the game's on the line there's no doubt who you want to take that last shot. #CLUTCH 🏀

☘️ Larry Legend

Bird is my choice. He had what it took to get his team there in so many ways. Great reaction.

Bird every time. He was all about putting points on that board however they got there. He was a team/self when he could have been self/team. So many shots he could have taken but included his teammates a lot more than most great players.

I love the respect you show for Larry Legend. 👏

Also Bird was phenomenal no matter how bad he was hurt. Played with a broken eye socket, broken cheek, infection in a toe they made over a two inch cut in wrapped it up a went to play ball. Surgery on both Achilles tendons. Destroyed a finger playing baseball. Playing his brothers team and his brother hit the ball his way and shattered his finger and had a couple surgeries on it and it's still shaped odd. Amazing. It's cool to see these videos. Back in those days you either watched it, heard about it or read about it because we didn't have videos like this.

remember when bird first came up and malone was on cover of sports illustrated as chairman of the boards, the next series bird out rebounded him in a seven game series, bird good rebound against anybody if he needs to

Bird had 2 50-40-90 seasons. One of only two players ever. Bird and Nash, and Bird did it at a high volume. People underestimate just how great Larry Bird was for some reason. I think maybe because of how it looks.

Even Jordan says Larry is the greatest small forward EVER!!!!

I’m an old man who watched Larry growing up and Larry is my #1 pick of all time. Larry Legend Basketball Jesus is the GOAT

People with an above average IQ are already Larry Bird fans. They don't really need stats to see who's on top. *STATS* only reveal a small part of GOAT. You could throw stats away & still see overall who #1 is. Larry would own any era just as fast as he owned the league his first *"PRACTICE"* There will never ever be another Larry Bird. I don't care how many numbers anybody puts up. It's way deeper than that.

The 3 point line wasn't introduced until Larry lengend first year in the NBA 🐐

Another great small forward. George Iceman Gerwin

I’m old enough at 63 and I’ve been saying for years those of us who seen them both play usually says it’s bird and not even close. Your younger generation has seen a small sample of how he played the game. Actually may even take Dr J and the iceman over James. Why? We’ve all seen James quit on his team and that is the big factor when someone quits. Bird got mean and carried his team never once quit during a game

How is this even a question? The legend everyday and twice on Sunday!

Larry Bird! If you haven’t seen it, the 1992 Dream Team documentary. A must see. Last time Magic and Larry played. It was a magical time 11 future Hall of Famer’s.

Larry legend 🐐

Bird is probably the best shooter and passer of all time. And he is definelty the most clutch player. And he rebounds at a high level and made a lot steals. And 3 MVP's. Why is it even a questiion whe the best is? Insane.

I think he is 6' 10". Look at shots of him standing next to Magic who was listed at 6' 9". Bird always looks a good inch and a half taller than Magic.

Bird would dominate the league today.

Quite simply, Birds skills translate to any era, against any type of defense and defensive rules. On defense Bird would likely do about as well in this era as it did in the 80s, which, by the way, was very high. Maybe not Jordan elite, but pretty damn good. I'm not sure that can be said about some of today's stars. Lebron, with his speed and power would probably still be a star in the 80s for example, but his scoring numbers would dip a bit due to the allowed contact and his only average free-throw numbers. Still he would be damn good in any era.

You are correct. Look at Magic and Larry side by side, Larry is noticeably taller. Larry was a TALL 6' 10" Magic was a short 6'9"". However, I believe Larry could have been a very tall 6' 10".

Larry Bird was the best passer in the league in a league that had Magic Johnson.

Larry was the first 50-40-90 player, and he did it twice! Enough said!

LOTS of ppl say LARRY is 6’10”. He’s listed at 6’9” but he’s clearly taller than Magic who’s also listed as 6’9”….I think Larry is happy to let it stand at 6’9” so he takes his opponents by surprise…

It's because of money. Lebron was expected to take the mantle from Jordan and Kobe and make that sweet marketing/merch money. He was overhyped by the media because of that. I'm not saying he isn't great but he never had a chance to become the GOAT himself if the media made him one from the start. Bird the Legend wrote his own story, but James was robbed of that opportunity and was expected to follow a script already written for him.

The Fucking Legend all day everyday

KG 🐐 anything is Possible 5 ☘️☘️☘️☘️

I started watching these shows when covid hit. And I have watched hundreds. I love your show 42 reasons. One is you don't miss the fine points I love that. And library bird is my hero. Hes 3 years older than I am. We would call off our games. When it got time for Boston to play back in the day PERIOD I'm from Kentucky. That's all we have to even know I'll admit Indiana is higher up. I think they're at the top

23:18 this dude’s hilarious, want a link to his full video?

IT IS HARD TO AGREE WITH SKIP BUT THIS TIME YES HE IS CORRECT

Bird faced MJ 38 times in his career and won 24 of those meetings including sweeping in back to back years in the conference finals, including the game where MJ dropped 63.

If Larry's body had held up and had a longer career. Everyone would have the Legend at the top of the list of greatest.

A healthy Bird? In his prime? Come on, it's not even a question. Larry terrorized everyone in his era, turned an entire franchise around and made every player around him better. The man sat down when he was millimeters away from a quadruple double, why because he was bored and said he'd done enough. Who does that? I keep hearing that Larry never faced any real defense, today he'd get taken out. If the defense is so great these days why are the untouchables putting up such large numbers. Nope, Larry would thrive in today's game.

Sad part was Bird never reached his full potential. Played half his career with a very bad back

The thing that separates Larry from LeBron is va ideo called four crazy stories that proved Larry Bird was the toughest player in NBA history.

I think you're right about Bird being 6'10.

Bron has recruited or went to teams that were loaded. Bird stayed with 1 team and made his boys better. I watched his entire career as a Bird fan. For my money he is the greatest all around team basketball player in history. MJ the best individual player. MJ , Bird and Magic wanted to play the best. Bron wanted to play with the best. Bron is overrated

Bird 💯

I heard in one interview on Bird that was technically 6ft 9 1/2inches tall. Big guy

Bird only averaged 1.9 3's per game;He didn't see a 3 point line til his rookie year!

I hear them saying Le Bron made his teammates better. Bird turned pretty good players into hall of famers. Stay right in Gary.

I have to go lebron 1 vs 1. But in Terms of building a team around I got to go Bird. Also in my all time starting 5 to actually win a game for my life I have Bird as my Small Forward. All time starting 5 for my life.1 Magic, 2MJ, 3Bird, 4Rodman, 5Shaq. Unbeatable lineup.

GOAT BIRD vs # 16 JAMES

Larry Joe Bird is the greatest SF of all time, followed by Elgin Baylor & Dr.J

dont forget Dom. Wilkins....the human hilite reel

The only time Bron is on the floor is when he flops. He would hurt himself if he dove for a ball.

Bird was the 1st 50 40 90 and did it 3 times

You were saying that Bird was one of the only players to put up these kind of numbers with the assist and rebounds. Just so you will know Bird is the only player in history to have a career average of more than 20 points 10 rebounds and more than 5 assists. Bird=24.3,10 and 6.4

Bird would be trash talking James all night and then,,,,,, all net

There was no 3-point shot until the year he started his NBA career, so of course, he hadn't made that part of his game.

The how is hype. Bird first then Scotty and I mean absolutely no disrespect to Scotty. LB is a jump ship, take advantage of player opportunities kind of guy. That is not meant as a negative, it means you don't drive harder, run faster, and push more when the chips are down.

my friend, your missing listing the Big O and Dr. J on that list.

Bird.

Bird and scotty is right

Peanut brain mind 😂😂😂😂😂 i😢 I agree Cartiae 😂😂

Yes, Bird in his prime is definitely better than Lebron. WAAAAY better rebounder, better passer, better shooter and a more hard working defender. Their blocks and steals are similar despite being no where near the athletic freak Lebron is.

Gotta feel bad for birds teammates that were forgotten by the guy with sideburns. As a young player I never watched the old NBA, but if it was a physical game, lebron with his size today would still be driving the lane, because of how big he is. But yes, lebrons not taking a final shot if a shooter like birds on the court. Both of them are part of the few players that get recognized as the best players and the best to make others around them better.

Hye! They left out other important stats! If I had to choose someone who made flopping into an art form, it's no contest: my man LeBron wins, hands down! If I had to choose someone who conserved his energy on the floor by not playing defense or simply gave up coz he knew the game was lost...I ring the bell for LeBron any day! In all honesty, some measure of a player's ability should include what he brings to the team, and in this case, Bird's leadership and will to win inspired the Celtics and made them a better team, as in TEAM.

Lb not a contest.

6'10 all day long

I think Bird is closer to 6'10

There's not even a debate. Only Wilt was ever better than Bird.

We all know Mike is the GOAT, but. search "The Best Larry Bird vs Michael Jordan Story Ever Told"

You had me with you after you mentioned Worthy, Pippin, Baylor...

Cartiae MJ said Larry lengend is the best small forward ever better than Lebron 🐐🐐

BIRD. Is a better shooter, lefty and righty, better passer, much better clutch player, makes everyone better, look at his rookie season when he took a Celtics team took a 29 win team to 61. This alone, you could argue, would not only make him Rookie of the year, in which he won, but MVP. Let’s do a quick thought experiment. BIRDS best scoring year was 29.9. As of writing this, Jason Tatum, an incredible offensive force, had his best year in 2022 - 23 with an average of 30 PPG. Now let’s factor in that BIRD is the best passer of all time, at the very least, top 2. Think about this… BIRD decided not to take shots he could have likely made, but decided to make a higher percentage play by making a pass, to involve teammates. Because of this, it affected his scoring average. Ok, now factor in that today they don’t allow hand checking on defense. The refs call ticki tack fouls because the league almost penalizes you for great defense. Add in that now offensive players can Eurostep ( a polite way of traveling) Let’s also add in the FACT the league promotes offense, so their is about 10 more offensive possessions a game. Than you add in that a great shooter, like a Tatum, has the green light to take 7 to 10 more 3’s a game then BIRD did (who also didn’t really practice 3’s, but somehow won 3 contests in a row, something no one in todays game has done). Ok now let’s go back and do the math. A great player like JT is .01 percentage point above BIRDS best year. ( a year where BIRD IS BETTER in every other statistical category plus defense. What this tells me is simple, BIRD transcended the game, and is a far superior player than James. Last FACT. BIRD had a greater desire to win, and was WAY better at 50/50 balls, something advanced metrics and pundits never talk about. BIRD IS THE WORD 😊

Can't believe steven a picked Tattum Omer Bird. To me this is a joke. Tatum can score the basketball but birds passing and rebounding better than Tatum by far.

Larry Joe didn't flop and rely on refs to give him a leg up. None of the greats did. They won on skill and grit. Bron isn't in the goat conversation.

I’ve long said that the the ONLY thing LeBron has going for him is longevity. That inflates his stats in itself but he also benefits from the amount of 3s that todays players take over what was taken in Larry’s time. You can either compare primes, or you cap both their careers at the same number of years. Larry comes out ahead.

LeBron is not even half the player that bird was

Wilt was seven two? 310 lbs who wins the collision

Bird was Better than Jordan in many of the intangibles as well

One plays thur injury even with cheek bone broken , and Lechina has to be carried off with a leg cramp ,, Lechina isn’t even in top 10

I love how little actual analysis these talking heads do. Case example: Smith says there's "no contest" between Bird and LeBron in terms of clutch play. And yet LeBron has the highest elimination game scoring average in NBA history, the highest Game 7 scoring average in NBA history and has more playoff game-winners than anybody in history. That's before you go deeper into the stats and look at advanced/impact numbers where he sits alongside Mike, Kareem and Wilt. Larry was an awesome, awesome player. One of the all-time great instinctive geniuses. There still hasn't been anybody like him and probably never will be. But it's incredible to me how many people still sell LeBron woefully short. I mean, JAMES WORTHY!?!?! Even as a die-hard Lakers fan, that's straight-up ignorant.

Different players…I would say Lebron was a 2 guard

LaBron over Dr. J?

larry bird is a better rebounder and shooter thats literally it lol all of the stats and Avanced analytics back this up. the idea that this is a debate is laughable and shows people just hate lebron.

He didn’t beat Dr j

labron is trash he can`t post no one up he can`t shoot free throws he travels all the time..there is no comparison

I hate when skin color is mentioned. Bird is the best skilled player ever in basketball. I wish Bird was a black basketball player because all people would say he was the goat. No disrespect to MJ.

Larry Legend is 6-10