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NBA stars of yesteryear demeaned by today's fans

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Time dulls our perceptions of the NBA stars of the 60s, 70's and 80s

Bill Russell would not star in today's game? Larry Bird is overrated? REALLY? I don't agree! I will focus mainly on the Boston Celtics since I have closely  followed them for 66 years.


Russell hasn't played since 1969 - when he earned his 11th Title ring. He was big (for his time), supremely athletic, and had one of the keenest basketball IQs ever. He was not a volume scorer (career 16.2 PPG) - but did not need to be. However, his rebounding (24.9 RPG), defense, team play and rim protection were phenomenal.

Russ just knew how to win. And he was the ultimate team player. His comrades knew if they slipped up on defense, "Big Bill" was there to correct their miscues. Could he play, or even star, in today's game? Yes on both counts. I immediately put him at the center spot of my all-time Celtics team - and probably on my all-time NBA starting quintet.

Ditto for Larry Bird. He joins Russ on both of my all-time teams - and for good reason. Despite being white and not highly-athletic, Bird's skills, basketball smarts and team play were phenomenal. Both Larry and Russ just screamed "TEAM BALL". Larry knew his teammates well. How many times did he anticipate where his teammates would be at any given time - flipping a no-look pass to McHale or Parrish for the dunk or layup?

Russell played against the likes of Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West, Oscar Robertson and Elgin Baylor and won most of the time. Bird went against Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Isiah Thomas, Moses Malone, Julius Erving, Dominique Wilkins and Hakeem Olajuwon and was feared by all of them. He was that good.

Time dulls our views of the stars of yesteryear. You have to be older than 57 to even have been alive when Russell played. For Bird, that number is 34 years of age or older. You can add at least 10 years to both numbers when discussing being a fan. 

Oh, and one more thing. I will add John Havlicek, Sam Jones, Dave Cowens and Jo Jo White to my list of "demeaned by time" Celtics stars - and apologize for the names I left out. The list is long.




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