How would '87 have changed had Bird's 3, on the buzz, went in in GM 4?

[TitleMaster]

I think it might have been a Celtics win, meaning the whole series, because all the C's shooters were hot in Game 5. And then, DJ started to really warm up, starting in Game 6. I think although the Laker's would have still had won Game 6, I wouldn't say for sure that Game 7 was 100% in their hands, despite homecourt.

[angryguy77]

Thanks for the jinx

[Roy Hobbs]

Thanks for the jinx

What is he jinxing?  The outcome of the '87 series against the Lakers? 

It's hard to say what would have happened if that shot goes down.  The Celts were playing on gritty determination at that point, with the Lakers being the deeper, more rested and healthier squad.  The Lakers won all three of their home games in that series fairly easily, but perhaps if there's a Game 7, the Celts would have stepped up.  I think Vegas would have favored the Lakers by a pretty good margin, but as another thread says, "never underestimate the heart of a champion".

[BballTim]

  Bird felt at the time that if the Celts had won that title the Lakers would have broken up their current group. He had a fairly long term view of the rivalry.

[Greenbean]

Thanks for the jinx

What is he jinxing?  The outcome of the '87 series against the Lakers? 

It's hard to say what would have happened if that shot goes down.  The Celts were playing on gritty determination at that point, with the Lakers being the deeper, more rested and healthier squad.  The Lakers won all three of their home games in that series fairly easily, but perhaps if there's a Game 7, the Celts would have stepped up.  I think Vegas would have favored the Lakers by a pretty good margin, but as another thread says, "never underestimate the heart of a champion".

Not sure but I think he was citing a jinx becasue of the possibility of a similar situation this year. Still, a bit of a stretch as far as jinxes go.

[TitleMaster]

The Lakers won all three of their home games in that series fairly easily, but perhaps if there's a Game 7, the Celts would have stepped up.

Only their first two games were easy. After that, the Celts had started to warm up but really, it was that Game 6 where DJ got his legs back, went back into his Sonics form, and kept that last game close. Sure, a healthy Mychal Thompson basically neutralized the effectiveness of our frontline, after a few quarters w/o rest, but you never know, since our guard situation was improving on a per game basis.

[Roy Hobbs]

The Lakers won all three of their home games in that series fairly easily, but perhaps if there's a Game 7, the Celts would have stepped up.

Only their first two games were easy. After that, the Celts had started to warm up but really, it was that Game 6 where DJ got his legs back, went back into his Sonics form, and kept that last game close.

The game was only close in the first half.  The Lakers came out early in the second half, went on a huge run, and pretty much cruised home.

[cordobes]

Lakers in 7.

[greg683x]

Ugh.  I hate always playing 'What If?' games when it comes to 1987 because I always think the same thing...

Why Len, Why?

[tenn_smoothie]

forget bird's 3 - how about all we had to do was grab a simple defensive board off a missed free throw - which mchale was inexplicably able to do before magic hit that [dang] little hook shot that we still have to keep seeing to this day !!!!

i drove around town (knoxville) for 3 hours in the middle of the night after that game trying to calm down.