Clark Kellogg, opponent: He was very discreet, almost like a ventriloquist.
Joe Kleine, teammate: I’d get in the car with my wife after the game and go, “Remember when he hit that shot? You wouldn’t believe what he said.”
Butch Carter, opponent: But the guy guarding him f***ing knew he was talking sh** to him. He was talking lots of it.
Terry Porter, opponent: My rookie year in Boston. He had the ball in the deep corner. I was sprinting to close out and he was in his famous form, and he shot it and as I was running out he said, “Too late, rookie.” I didn’t even know he was a trash talker. I got to the bench and told Clyde (Drexler) and he was like, “Yeah, he does that all the time.”
Mike Gminski, opponent: He’d drive down the lane and I’d try to go up and block his shot, and he’d say, “What are you jumping for? You’re not going to get this.”
Magic Johnson's agent Lon Rosen: He would actually tell you where he was going to go. I heard him say that during games. I heard it.
Xavier McDaniel: We’d been going at it all night. It was tied or they were up one. He just told me, “Xavier, I’m going to get this ball right here and I’m going to shoot it in your F’in face.” And I said, “I know. And I’m going to be sitting right here waiting.” He went to the spot and got it. He nudged me back with his shoulder a little bit to clear space. I jumped to try to block it. He hit it, looked at me and said, “F***, I didn’t mean to leave time on the clock.”
Rosen: The Lakers were playing the Celtics at home and Magic wasn’t playing that game. Larry came up to Magic before the game and said, “Sit back, I’m going to put on a show tonight.” He scored 40.
Jerry Sichting, teammate: Shortly after he won the 3-point contest, we were playing the Knicks. We were out shooting around way before the game, and Mike Saunders was the trainer for the Knicks and at the All-Star Game. He’s out there on the bench, talking to a couple players. He says something to Bird: “You’re not going to make any of those tonight.” Larry turns around and goes, “Sh**, Mike, I’m going to bank one against you guys tonight.” I hear it and I’m just laughing.
Hubie Brown, opposing coach*: Now this is a big game. And now the score is something like (Celtics) 106-104 with about 15 seconds left. We put on the press. They inbound the ball. We trap Dennis Johnson and he throws a pass to Bird. Before we can trap him, Bird dribbles across halfcourt. All he has to do is hold the ball and the game is over. He goes off to the right side. We rotate to get him. Now he’s about 27 feet away from the basket.
Jerry Sichting: He’s over by their bench and banks one in, right in front of their coaches and trainers. He just turned around and started laughing at Mike all the way down the court.
Brown: Do you know the guts it took to do that?
Mike Gminski: I was with the 76ers at the time. We go up by one with about four seconds to go. They call timeout, get the ball at half court. Barkley is guarding Larry. Bird comes up to him and says, “You know who’s getting the ball, don’t you?” Charles kind of nodded his head. Larry said, “I tell you what I’m going to do: I’m going to get the ball, take two dribbles down the baseline and shoot a fadeaway jump shot.” I’m on the weak side. I’ve got McHale. Bird takes two dribbles down to the baseline, fadeaway jump shot, and the ball was halfway to the net and I just started walking to our locker room. I knew it was good.
Jeff Judkins: Back in the old days, every rookie had to carry bags on the road. I’ll never forget our first road trip. He stood up in front of all the guys on the bus and said, “I want you guys to know: I’m never going to get you any water, and I’m never going to carry one bag ever.”
Leo Rautins: I was with the Nets in preseason. I’m covering Larry for a couple possessions. He comes off this screen and curls up from the baseline to the top of the key. He catches the ball and I’m way back. I’m doing everything I can to fight through these screens and catch up to him. He didn’t say a damn word, but I swear to God he was thinking, OK, come on, keep coming, keep coming, you’re almost here, jump … OK, I’m shooting the ball. It was the weirdest feeling I’ve ever had with nobody saying a word. I’ve played this game long enough to know: He waited for me. He waited for me to make that a tough shot.
Michael Cooper: Robert Reed told me a story where Larry was saying, “Come on, come on out here, get out here.” He would catch the ball and Robert’s still trying to get off this screen to get out there to him and Larry would wait.
Earl Cureton: I was in Detroit and I was guarding him one game. He was coming up with the ball and Chuck Daly was yelling at me. “Get up on him, Earl, get up on him!” Larry stopped, pulled up, shot the ball, looked at me and said, “You heard what Chuck said. He told you to get up on me. Get up on me!”
Judkins: One time we were in a game and it was really close. It was right at the end of the game. Bill Fitch calls a timeout. Bill tried to control a lot of things. We’re sitting in the timeout trying to draw up this play. Larry just says, “Coach, coach, coach. I’ll just go on the block, throw me the ball and it’ll be over. I’ll just shoot my shot.” So that’s what we did.
Sichting: This is against the Knicks. We come in at halftime and we’ve got the lead. He’s guarding Johnny Newman and Newman has 10 or 12 points at halftime. Bird had about 18 or 20. K.C. (Jones) always let the assistant coaches talk first and then he’d talk. Chris Ford gets up and says, “Somebody’s got to guard Johnny Newman. He’s kicking our ass out there.” Bird looked at Chris Ford and goes, “Sh**, he’s got 10 points. What do you think they’re talking about over in their locker room?”
Kevin Gamble: I’ve been in the huddle with him and he’d be like, “Hey man, just give me the f'ing ball and get out of the way.”
Cooper: That was the same thing he told K.C. Jones in our series. D.J. was telling me this. K.C. was having a hard time drawing up the play and time was ticking down and Larry said, “Coach, get me the ball, and the rest of you guys get the f*** out of the way.”
https://theathletic.com/1725703/202...id-the-greatest-trash-talker-ever-larry-bird/
Joe Kleine, teammate: I’d get in the car with my wife after the game and go, “Remember when he hit that shot? You wouldn’t believe what he said.”
Butch Carter, opponent: But the guy guarding him f***ing knew he was talking sh** to him. He was talking lots of it.
Terry Porter, opponent: My rookie year in Boston. He had the ball in the deep corner. I was sprinting to close out and he was in his famous form, and he shot it and as I was running out he said, “Too late, rookie.” I didn’t even know he was a trash talker. I got to the bench and told Clyde (Drexler) and he was like, “Yeah, he does that all the time.”
Mike Gminski, opponent: He’d drive down the lane and I’d try to go up and block his shot, and he’d say, “What are you jumping for? You’re not going to get this.”
Magic Johnson's agent Lon Rosen: He would actually tell you where he was going to go. I heard him say that during games. I heard it.
Xavier McDaniel: We’d been going at it all night. It was tied or they were up one. He just told me, “Xavier, I’m going to get this ball right here and I’m going to shoot it in your F’in face.” And I said, “I know. And I’m going to be sitting right here waiting.” He went to the spot and got it. He nudged me back with his shoulder a little bit to clear space. I jumped to try to block it. He hit it, looked at me and said, “F***, I didn’t mean to leave time on the clock.”
Rosen: The Lakers were playing the Celtics at home and Magic wasn’t playing that game. Larry came up to Magic before the game and said, “Sit back, I’m going to put on a show tonight.” He scored 40.
Jerry Sichting, teammate: Shortly after he won the 3-point contest, we were playing the Knicks. We were out shooting around way before the game, and Mike Saunders was the trainer for the Knicks and at the All-Star Game. He’s out there on the bench, talking to a couple players. He says something to Bird: “You’re not going to make any of those tonight.” Larry turns around and goes, “Sh**, Mike, I’m going to bank one against you guys tonight.” I hear it and I’m just laughing.
Hubie Brown, opposing coach*: Now this is a big game. And now the score is something like (Celtics) 106-104 with about 15 seconds left. We put on the press. They inbound the ball. We trap Dennis Johnson and he throws a pass to Bird. Before we can trap him, Bird dribbles across halfcourt. All he has to do is hold the ball and the game is over. He goes off to the right side. We rotate to get him. Now he’s about 27 feet away from the basket.
Jerry Sichting: He’s over by their bench and banks one in, right in front of their coaches and trainers. He just turned around and started laughing at Mike all the way down the court.
Brown: Do you know the guts it took to do that?
Mike Gminski: I was with the 76ers at the time. We go up by one with about four seconds to go. They call timeout, get the ball at half court. Barkley is guarding Larry. Bird comes up to him and says, “You know who’s getting the ball, don’t you?” Charles kind of nodded his head. Larry said, “I tell you what I’m going to do: I’m going to get the ball, take two dribbles down the baseline and shoot a fadeaway jump shot.” I’m on the weak side. I’ve got McHale. Bird takes two dribbles down to the baseline, fadeaway jump shot, and the ball was halfway to the net and I just started walking to our locker room. I knew it was good.
Jeff Judkins: Back in the old days, every rookie had to carry bags on the road. I’ll never forget our first road trip. He stood up in front of all the guys on the bus and said, “I want you guys to know: I’m never going to get you any water, and I’m never going to carry one bag ever.”
Leo Rautins: I was with the Nets in preseason. I’m covering Larry for a couple possessions. He comes off this screen and curls up from the baseline to the top of the key. He catches the ball and I’m way back. I’m doing everything I can to fight through these screens and catch up to him. He didn’t say a damn word, but I swear to God he was thinking, OK, come on, keep coming, keep coming, you’re almost here, jump … OK, I’m shooting the ball. It was the weirdest feeling I’ve ever had with nobody saying a word. I’ve played this game long enough to know: He waited for me. He waited for me to make that a tough shot.
Michael Cooper: Robert Reed told me a story where Larry was saying, “Come on, come on out here, get out here.” He would catch the ball and Robert’s still trying to get off this screen to get out there to him and Larry would wait.
Earl Cureton: I was in Detroit and I was guarding him one game. He was coming up with the ball and Chuck Daly was yelling at me. “Get up on him, Earl, get up on him!” Larry stopped, pulled up, shot the ball, looked at me and said, “You heard what Chuck said. He told you to get up on me. Get up on me!”
Judkins: One time we were in a game and it was really close. It was right at the end of the game. Bill Fitch calls a timeout. Bill tried to control a lot of things. We’re sitting in the timeout trying to draw up this play. Larry just says, “Coach, coach, coach. I’ll just go on the block, throw me the ball and it’ll be over. I’ll just shoot my shot.” So that’s what we did.
Sichting: This is against the Knicks. We come in at halftime and we’ve got the lead. He’s guarding Johnny Newman and Newman has 10 or 12 points at halftime. Bird had about 18 or 20. K.C. (Jones) always let the assistant coaches talk first and then he’d talk. Chris Ford gets up and says, “Somebody’s got to guard Johnny Newman. He’s kicking our ass out there.” Bird looked at Chris Ford and goes, “Sh**, he’s got 10 points. What do you think they’re talking about over in their locker room?”
Kevin Gamble: I’ve been in the huddle with him and he’d be like, “Hey man, just give me the f'ing ball and get out of the way.”
Cooper: That was the same thing he told K.C. Jones in our series. D.J. was telling me this. K.C. was having a hard time drawing up the play and time was ticking down and Larry said, “Coach, get me the ball, and the rest of you guys get the f*** out of the way.”
https://theathletic.com/1725703/202...id-the-greatest-trash-talker-ever-larry-bird/
