Bird May Win First MVP

1983-84 Boston Celtics
Record 34-9
January 30, 1984


Most nights, his contributions are taken for granted, and Larry Bird understands this. He knows as team captain and floor leader for the Celtics, there is a kind of invisibility that comes with a uniform that has been worn by so many stars before him. People have been saying for weeks that there is no way he can improve on a record of consistency and excellence built in his first four NBA seasons. But even his teammates say that his performance this season has reached a higher plateau, and they are not quite sure if they've seen his best.

It was the same for John Havlicek and Dave Cowens. Jo Jo White and Bob Cousy. Bill Russell and Tommy Heinsohn. As Celtics, each reached a level of play that most thought could never be topped. Then they'd do something a little better. Bird's numbers this season are about the same as his career averages. But he is having the best all-around year of his career, by his own admission. "Overall," says Bird, "I feel I'm having a lot better season than in the past because I have more confidence in my shooting. I'm passing the ball and getting more assists, and the ball is moving a lot better than in the past.

"I seem to be a lot freer on the court. Compared to the last two years, I'm not rebounding as well. But it's always fun to play when everybody is playing well. Just as long as you move the ball and play as a team, things are going to happen to your benefit. When I get the ball in my hands, I can do more." That Bird has a lot to do with the Celtics' holding a 6 1/2 -game lead in the Atlantic Division goes almost without saying. Boston will be seeking its ninth victory in a row this afternoon at the expense of the dangerous Detroit Pistons, led by Isiah Thomas and Bill Laimbeer.

But in his fifth full season, Bird is at peace with himself. He no longer has contract worries, which he says distracted him greatly a year ago. He is financially secure and has the respect of his peers. "I feel I'm an asset to this team," says Bird, "and I can't play basketball worrying about my contract and my future. Now that I'm settled, I can relax and I can play ball." The coaching change from Bill Fitch to K. C. Jones has helped, Bird says. And that is no knock on Fitch. Bird says he respects him very much.

"What I mean is that the players this year have greater input," says Bird. "If we see something we like, we tell K. C., and he sort of lets us do it. Not that Coach Fitch wouldn't. But we feel freer to talk about things and give more input than we did in the past. I think that has brought us closer together. "I never felt I had to carry this club because we've always had an abundance of talent. We always had the shooters. But sometimes I felt I had to hit the outside shot. Sometimes I felt like I had to score some points to win because, in the past, we didn't have that outside shooter we needed. This year, we have Dennis Johnson, Danny Ainge and Gerald Henderson and are shooting better as a team. The pressure on me to shoot from the outside is not there anymore."

The changes in Bird this year, even for the most ardent Bird watchers, are hard to detect from the numbers. Only his rebounds are below his career average (9.4). In the other departments - shots (18.8), assists (6.3) and points (23.7) - he is slightly ahead. But one theory is that under Jones, Bird is benefitting a return to an offensive philosphy of years past. Under Fitch, Bird often took his shots in traffic. This year, he is finding picks set up for him all over the floor. Bird has led the Celtics in scoring in 23 games this year. But he's also led the club in assists 25 times, steals 22 times and rebounds 12. He is far and away the leader in minutes played, an average 25 per game to 16 for Robert Parish.

" Right now, he's taken control," says Jones. "He's become the leader out there where before he might not have been all the time. He's leading us in all those categories. If that's not leadership, I don't know what is." Being in first place helps, adds Bird. "Once you're there, everything seems to go smoother," said Bird. "We can't play 100 percent of our potential every night, but we feel we're playing good basketball and belong in first place. Everybody going to have peace of mind when you're doing that."