Yesterday Pierce was Bird-like.

[nickagneta]

As I watched yesterday's game unfold I couldn't help to be thrown back to a lot of the playoff games of the 1980's with Bird battling Dominique, Bernard King, and Magic's Lakers. The excitement, intensity and drama were exactly the same. The crowd and the building couldn't have been anymore like the atmosphere that the old Garden had, unless of course they shut off the air conditioning and let out a few rats to run around the building. It was very nostalgic.

As was the performance of our Captain. If Paul Pierce's skin complexion was any lighter, I would have sworn that Larry Bird was once again the captain of the Celtics.

For those of you too young to have seen the Celtics in the playoffs before 1988 you only need to watch yesterday's game to understand the reverence we old timers hold for Bird. Yesterday the Truth played as Bird-like as any player has on the Celtics for 21 years. If the Captain can put up about 10 more classics just like that and get a couple of championships he will go down as one of the three best Celtics of all-time.

Pierce, just like Bird in big game situations, put this team on his back and brought them to the next level. He demanded the ball and was certain and deadly from beginning to end. His duel and defeat of one of the soon to be greatest players in league history will go down in Celticlore alongside such games as Bird/Dominique, Cedric Maxwells climb on my back, McHale clotheslines Rambis, Havlicek stole the ball, Bird stole the ball, the ballons not being released in the Forum and the Triple OT against Phoenix.

Yes it was that epic.

Pierce's answering of every Bron basket was soooo Larry Bird. So was his demanding of the ball to do what he needed to do. His defense rose to the occasion all series but yesterday he was magnificent. Put any other player not named Tayshawn Prince on LeBron and LeBron has 60+ yesterday and the Cavs advance. Pierce's passing was brilliant as was Bird's and if Paul wasn't responsible for locking down LeBron I am sure he would have been rebounding like a madman.

I am so proud of the way Pierce has transformed himself over the year's and especially this year. I have my Celtic favorites. Bird, DJ, JoJo, Hondo, Cowens and Reggie. Paul Pierce just jumped deep into that group.

So once again, for the younger pups that have always wondered why we old dogs have held Bird and the 80's in such a bright light, rewatch or remember yesterday's Paul Pierce masterpiece. He's had a few but this was without a doubt his best. Yesterday, Paul Pierce was every bit just like Larry Bird as ever another player could be.

That's high praise and Pierce deserves every bit of it.

[wdleehi]

Pierce was great, but not Bird. 


Bird dropped 20 points in the 4th.



Pierce hit two shots in the 4th.





Pierce was great yesterday.  I am not taking anything away from him, but he still isn't Bird.

[EJPLAYA]

As much as PP was impressive yesterday, he was no Bird. In addition to all of those points, Bird also used his offense to get teammates easy layups and wide open shots. PP was more Lebron-like yesterday. Picked us up on his back and took us there all by himself. Bird made very good players great and mediocre players look very good. I am sure glad he put up that type of game though or we would all be sitting here today in a different mood!

[Birdbrain]

Couldn't agree more and it had nothing to do with scoring.  He made all the big hustle plays the steal off the tip was very Bird like.

Scoring is not what made Bird who he was.  Making plays that needed to made at the right time was why Bird was who he was.

[Roy Hobbs]

The thing is, Bird could play at or near that level on a consistent level.  Pierce was pretty amazing  yesterday, and I definitely get the comparison, but overall the players are just at different tiers in Celtics lore, and for good reason.

It's not a slight against Pierce, but rather it says something about the greatness of Bird.  While yesterday's performance wouldn't have exactly been routine for Larry, it wasn't abnormal, either.

[Birdbrain]

Wasn't the OP talking about yesterday?  If he was then he's correct in stating that it was very Bird like game for Paul and again it has nothing to do with scoring.  It's a portion but, he was all over the place making the right play 90% of the time.

[EJPLAYA]

The thing is, Bird could play at or near that level on a consistent level.  Pierce was pretty amazing  yesterday, and I definitely get the comparison, but overall the players are just at different tiers in Celtics lore, and for good reason.

It's not a slight against Pierce, but rather it says something about the greatness of Bird.  While yesterday's performance wouldn't have exactly been routine for Larry, it wasn't abnormal, either.

Very well said. That is why Bird can have a case made for him of being the best of all-time, or at least top 5 where PP doesn't even get top 5 of the guys he is playing with right now. PP is a great player offensively. He can score with the best of them. He does however have a drop off in other parts of his game that make the comparison a very big stretch. Nice job though captain. We needed you and to do that being guarded by a guy who physically is superior to you was huge.

[Redz]

The thing that gives yesterdays performance a "Bird-like" feel was diving on the floor to steal a jump ball.  After all the great shots Pierce made, that play was the type of thing that separated the Celts from the Cavs yesterday.  House's diving save etc...

In terms of comparing this game to Bird vs Nique, there are similarities, but that was much more of a 4th quarter duel.  And it there many more direct responses to each others heroics.

Anyway you slice, it was a defining game for Pierce.

And yes Roy, you're right about Bird doing this sort of with the sort of regularity that you just expected it from him.  With Pierce, we've been waiting for this type of performance and it was heartening to see that he still has it in him.

[nickagneta]

I'm not comparing Bird to Pierce and am not suggesting Pierce is as good as Bird.

What I'm saying is for that 2 and a half hour time yesterday, Pierce played very much like Bird would have.

Pierce has never and will never put games up like yesterdays consistently at any time, nevermind the playoffs. But Pierce, not only in scoring but in other ways was much like Bird during his great games.

He scored. He tipped passes. He stole the ball. He had some excellent passes to set up easy baskets for teammates. And he was clutch.

Pierce can't be compared to Bird career-wise. But for just yesterday, I think he can.

[hpantazo]

Not only was Pierce Bird-like yesterday, he has played fantastic defense the whole series on lebron. Even yesterday when lebron went for 45 he worked hard for every one of those points. Pierce's best games have all been in high pressure playoff situations, he is a true leader and superstar and deserves much more credit from boston sports fans.

[CelticSteve]

The thing is, Bird could play at or near that level on a consistent level.  Pierce was pretty amazing  yesterday, and I definitely get the comparison, but overall the players are just at different tiers in Celtics lore, and for good reason.

It's not a slight against Pierce, but rather it says something about the greatness of Bird.  While yesterday's performance wouldn't have exactly been routine for Larry, it wasn't abnormal, either.

Very well said. That is why Bird can have a case made for him of being the best of all-time, or at least top 5 where PP doesn't even get top 5 of the guys he is playing with right now. PP is a great player offensively. He can score with the best of them. He does however have a drop off in other parts of his game that make the comparison a very big stretch. Nice job though captain. We needed you and to do that being guarded by a guy who physically is superior to you was huge.

I agree with you both. This is why PP is not considered an elite player on par with Lebron, Kobe -or such past players like Bird. However, I think yesterday was a Bird-like showing by the Captain, except I don't see Bird with those two nasty turnovers in the 4th quarter in that situation. That is where PP fell a little short of Bird yesterday.

[saibnel]

As much as PP was impressive yesterday, he was no Bird. In addition to all of those points, Bird also used his offense to get teammates easy layups and wide open shots. PP was more Lebron-like yesterday. Picked us up on his back and took us there all by himself. Bird made very good players great and mediocre players look very good. I am sure glad he put up that type of game though or we would all be sitting here today in a different mood!

Bird is a far greater player then pp in an historical sense. No question about it. But PP's performance yesterday was absolutely bird like. Somehow everyone puts players on an unreachable petistal when they are done playing.

PP was the cause of almost every point we scored, he had 5 assists should have had 8 if his teammates were finishing. And the defensive attention that had to be paid to him, was the reason so many other teammates scored. PP sat for 5 minutes and we scored 2 points in that time, he played for 42 and we scored 96....is that a coincidence, i dont think so?

Also, Bird could never do on the defensive end what PP did on lebron all series. Bird is my all time favorite player (if you grew up in boston in the 80's I dont think there is any other choice) but if you dont remember how the Lakers use to us Worthy and just attack him in the 4th quarter of all those finals games and Larry was basically helpless to stop him, you are having a very selective memory.

Yesterday, was an alltime great performance by PP in every facet of the game. He just needs about 20 more to move the coversation from "bird like for one game" to bird like in the playoffs. Hopefully we see them.

[Andy Jick]

this thread is laughable...did you guys actually watch that game back in 1988 or are you just supposing something you never saw firsthand?

that bird-wilkins duel was deeper than one game...that whole series was classic...

[SShoreFan 2.0]

The difference between "Bird-Like" and Bird is consistency.

Bird (MJ, Magic & only a few others) were consistently great.  Pierce and so many others are sporadically great. 

Consistency is what separates the star (Hall of Famer) from the Super Star.  Eventually Pierce will join Larry in the HOF, but they'll be in separate wings, much like Magic / Worthy  or Jordan / Pippen

[Who]

The biggest difference is that Bird and Wilkins incorporated their teammates into that huge game. More team basketball. I think it was McHale and Doc that were chief sidekicks, having huge nights themselves. Plus a bunch of others had big contributions to the game. The teams actually played very good basketball that night.

Wdleehi's point is spot on the money too.

That's why yesterday's game is nowhere near the level of performance as that night and many other nights like it. But ESPN and the media's talking heads will surely sell it as such and for that it'll be remembered as they want it to be.