Re: Bird-like

[Mike Dynon <mdynon@ix.netcom.com>]

Josh Ozersky wrote:
> 
> That was a great play Pierce made, but the pass part was the least of
> it.  There was nobody in the backcourt, so anywhere he flipped it
> would have led to a basket.  Pierce's best pass by far (and most
> Bird-like) was his fake shot/fade/dump off to Riley.  Larry used to do
> that five or six times  a game.
> 

Let me clarify my point. IMHO, Pierce's pass was Bird-like because he
had the awareness, the poise, the presence of mind to know what to do
with the ball even before he picked it up. As Heinsohn always said, Bird
was "two steps ahead of everyone else" in the thinking department.
That's the trait that Pierce demonstrated on this play. Furthermore,
there was "no wasted motion," as Cousy would say. There are point guards
who wouldn't/couldn't have made that pass, so to see a ROOKIE SMALL
FORWARD do it, as I recalled Bird had done, was startling. I literally
yelled out loud in reaction to Pierce's move.

What makes certain players rise to the status of "the greatest"?
Physical talent is a given, so usually the difference is in the
intangibles: work ethic, determination, competitive spirit,
fearlessness, "basketball IQ." No coach can teach these things. Bird had
all those characteristics, and from what I've observed, so does Pierce.
Don't get me wrong--PP has a long way to go to reach Legend status, but
he has to start somewhere, and so far it appears he has all the
attributes.

Just my opinion based on a lifetime of watching Celtics basketball.

Mike D.