The NBA regular season is long.
So long, in fact, that Boston Celtics great Larry Bird talked trash during the regular season just to keep his mind in the game, according to a former teammate.
Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge made his regular appearance on 98.5 The Sports Hub’s “Toucher & Rich” on Thursday, and amid updates on the upcoming season and his affinity for Marcus Smart, Ainge said Bird would trash-talk during games because he was bored.
“Larry did it out of boredom, I always thought; I always thought he did it to keep himself interested,” Ainge said. “He didn’t usually trash-talk when we were in the NBA Finals or big playoff games. It was mostly during the regular season games.”
With 82 games, and some of them against inferior opponents, it’s no surprise that Bird needed some extra motivation to stay focused.
All of the trash-talk helped generate some awesome NBA moments, though, such as when Bird dropped 42 points on the Philadelphia 76ers on Nov. 9, 1984, and told Julius Erving to retire. The quip angered Dr. J enough to start a full-on brawl.
Photo via Steve Mitchell/USA TODAY Sports Images
