Many would disagree with that statement, of course, because there's a lot of guys, notably Michael Jordan, who were, if not better players, certainly more exciting to watch.
Others have racked up better statistics in one category or another, won more MVPs, and have more "rings" as a world champion.
Yet I maintain that when one looks at Bird's entire body of work, the whole package over the years, he stands alone as #1.
During his playing years for the Celtics, Bird could shoot as well as anyone in the NBA, from anyplace on the court. At the free throw line, he was lights out. He grabbed his fair share of rebounds, could pass with the best of them, and played very good defense. No, he was never the fastest guy on the court, but oftentimes he was the most cerebral. He saw things before they happened. No one seriously doubts he was tough, because it's well known he had a chronic back injury, but he always found a way to play through the pain.
Still don't believe he's the best? Let's narrow the field. How many guys were multiple world champions, won MVP awards, and played on a gold medal winning USA Olympic basketball (original dream) team?
Not convinced? How about after retiring as as player, going back to his home of Indiana, and winning coach of the year with the Pacers? How many other guys can match that resume so far? None I can think of.
If that wasn't enough, fast forward a few years and Bird was just named "Executive of the year" in his role as president of basketball operations for the same Pacers. Since Bird has been in charge of personnel at Indiana, he's very quietly assembled a young, terrific team. Like Bird, they seem to fly "under the radar", but they've been very good all year, and are currently giving the Miami Heat, replete with their superstars, all they can handle in the NBA playoffs. While high-profile teams like Miami, the Lakers, and the Celtics dominate the headlines, Bird sits back, pays attention, and plots his next move. Quietly. The two teams to look out for in the next few years are the Okla City Thunder, who are already receiving much attention -- and the shhh, quiet, Indiana Pacers with Bird pulling the strings behind the scenes.
It's doubtful Bird would ever have an interest in owning a team. Not his style. At that, consider some other guys that have tried their hands at management. The aforementioned Jordan was a disaster as an executive for the Washington Wizards. Having bought into ownership of the Charlotte Bobcats, they are now the laughing stock of the league. Isiah Thomas, and his many stops while wearing a suit? What comes after disaster? Magic Johnson has been quite successful over the years, and he wound up investing in baseball as a partial owner of the LA Dodgers. The Dodgers will always have their faithful following, and the money will roll in. Pretty slick when you think about it. Guess he's called Magic for a reason.
But when it comes to the guy being the most all-around winner, in any and everything he's attempted in the NBA, during a career which is in it's fourth decade and still setting a standard of excellence every step of the way -- one man stands alone.
Larry Bird. The best of all time.
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