Bird vs. jordan

[Patrick Goggin <gogginpd@email.uc.edu>]

	I have a confession to make.
	The other day a friend, a relative NBA novice by our standards,
asked me, "Do you really think Bird was better than jordan?"  I admit, for
the first time in my life, I doubted, I stammered, and I put forth a
half-hearted, unconvincing argument for Bird.  Then I watched the game.  I
watched the commercials.  I watched the refs.  I watched David Stern.
Here's what I saw:  jordan was magnificent as usual.  Stern smiles.  Be
like mike.  jordan fouled his opponent--there was no call.  he was defensed
cleanly--he goes to the line time and again.  Stern smiles.  he yells at
his teammate for tying the game with a 3 late in the fourth quarter.  Be
like mike.  jordan makes a rare mistake and lets the 24 second clock expire
in the final minute to help seal a Jazz victory.  The cameras don't show
Stern but I suspect he is no longer smiling.  jordan finishes with 35
points on 13-29 shooting with 1 assist, 3 rebounds, 0 steals.  jordan is
asked about the 24 second violation in the post-game conference and he
blames pippen for running the wrong play.  "We had to start the play over
and it really threw our timing off."  Be like mike.
    	After the game, I remember a Celtics' game in the '86 season in
which Bird shot far more than his usual and ended up with about 40 points,
few rebounds, few assists, and a loss.  Walton told him, "Everyone's going
to be patting you on the back tonight for scoring forty but I know that you
were the worst player out there tonight."  Bird replied, "You're right."
	I admire jordan's competitive spirit but where he berates his
teammates, Bird picked his up.  I admire jordan's scoring ability but Bird
shot a higher percentage, took fewer shots, shot foul shots better, and hit
more clutch baskets. . .people say jordan is a better scorer--I say Bird
was the better scorer, jordan is the more frequent scorer.  Bird rebounded
better.  He passed better.  He passed more.  He made his teammates better
and he won with his teammates.  jordan wins despite his teammates.  jordan
is better looking than bird, is more eloquent, craves the spotlight and for
all of this he has become the media darling and thus the darling of the
refs much more than Bird ever was.  jordan once retired from basketball
saying it was time to spend more time with his family--5 days later, he
takes up professional baseball in an obviously premeditated move.  Go ahead
and retire and play baseball if you want but don't stand up on national TV
and tell us you're retiring for your family you self-serving narcissist!
he won his championships in a league with 72 players playing who weren't
good enough to be on NBA rosters in Bird's day.  jordan is one of the best
players of all time--this is undeniable, but I realize once again that he
is no Bird and never will be.  I know I'm in the minority on this one but
I'll go to sleep tonight knowing that Bird was better, and the Celtics
would've crushed these new "champions."  There are only a handful of us
left these days who believe these heresies but if you're one of them, don't
doubt and hesitate like I did the other night.  I'll never falter again.

Goggin in Cincinnati