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Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Ten-Year Dynasty: David Stern
Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Decade Dynasty: Fierce Confrontation
Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Ten Years: The Big Three in Boston
Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Decade Dynasty: Savior
Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Ten Years: Twins
In the American sports world, race is always a central issue. And when Magic Johnson and Larry Bird were born 30 years ago, the NBA can be said to be in an intermediary zone where the old and the new alternate. They not only redefine the basketball game (the so-called big-time entertainment ), and was also unknowingly marked with the American black and white race representative label.
In the NBA from the 1950s to 1980, the composition of players on the court has changed from all white to almost all black. Of course, there are still white superstars such as Jerry West, John Havlicek and Peter Maravich who have emerged, but after all, they are very few. The years when white players dominated the NBA are indeed never going back. Some commentators blamed this on the reason for the decline of the NBA at the time, because white fans would not support a “black” league, not to mention that black players are always more “selfish” and do not focus on teamwork like white players on the court.
This is the general situation encountered by the league when Magic and Bird entered the NBA together. The so-called mere knowledge, the situation of the sports league, of course also reflects the broader urban economic and social political situation outside. The reason why the Magic and the Big Bird’s confrontation became a classic is also largely due to the teams they joined, the most historic Lakers and Celtics. These two teams have been since the 1960s. The fierce confrontation, coupled with the hostility of the two cities on the west coast of Los Angeles and the east coast of Boston towards each other, mixed with various factors, it is difficult not to sparkle!
In the 1979-80 season, rookie Larry Bird flipped Celtic’s record from 29 wins and 53 losses the previous year to 61 wins and 21 losses. After reaching the Eastern Conference Finals, he lost to Philadelphia led by the famous Dr. J. Seven or six; and Magic Johnson, the other side of the team, assisted Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the leader in the formation, to charge for the Lakers 60 wins and 22 losses. Even more amazing was the sixth game of the championship series against the 76ers. Magic replaced Jabbar, who had a severely injured ankle, as the team center. He scored 42 points, 15 rebounds and 7 assists to lead the Lakers to victory and take the lead. Season championship! In the following year, Larry Bird led the Celtics in a Jedi counterattack and defeated the Houston Rockets in the final to win the first championship of his career. At this point, the scenery presented by the NBA has begun to be different. More and more people feel that something special is happening in the NBA. TV ratings have risen. Even the Lakers and Celtic’s away games have sold out tickets. …
In 1980, Ronald Reagan was elected president of the United States. He and Mrs. Margaret Thatcher, the British Prime Minister across the ocean, opened the prelude to the so-called Neo-Liberalism, and many civil rights in the United States The movement or even earlier major social initiatives have been backlashed. Reagan cancelled many subsidies such as food or social welfare (most of which were given to blacks). He has stated more than once that he should not waste a lot for these “welfare queens” Taxpayers’ money has widened the gap between rich and poor, and race has become more tense. In the early 1980s, Boston was still a gathering place for many white blue-collar classes. For them, Larry Bird, a white, hard-working basketball player from the countryside of Indiana, happened to be their perfect representative and symbol. In addition to the other white stars who have moved in, such as Kevin McHale and Danny Ainge, people will regard Celtic as a representative team of white basketball (but in fact, when we look back on history, we can know that Celtic has entered history. Chuck Cooper, the first black player to enter the NBA through the draft, appointed the first black coach Bill Russell, and was also the first NBA team to start all five blacks); and relatively, owned Magic Johnson, Michael The Los Angeles Lakers of Cooper, James Worthy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Jabbar’s black power awareness is well known) are regarded as the representative team of blacks.
In 1984, 1985 and 1987, when the two teams were head to head in the championship game, Bird and Magic also reached the peak of their racial representation (though not voluntary). The white fans were Celtic and Larry. Cheer Bird, and black fans cheer for the Lakers and Magic Johnson! I still remember the Celtics in the 1987 Eastern Conference Finals against the Pistons. With only 5 seconds left in the fifth game, Bird copied Isiah Thomas’s pass and passed it to teammate Dennis Johnson for a layup. After winning the layup, it was still the Pistons. The rookie Dennis Rodman, after such a hard-to-swallow defeat, he wanted to express his opinion, to be precise, his opinion of Bird. He said Bird is an overrated player. The reason why he can win three MVP trophies is only because he is white. These remarks caused an uproar. Everyone hoped that the Pistons Captain could stand up and say a few words. As a result, Thomas not only did not make up for Rodman’s gaffe, but said: I have to agree with Dennis’s opinion. Larry Bird is a very, very good Player, but if he is black, then this is probably not the case.
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