Barros, though, said he not only knew the Celtics legend, but the two used to have impromptu shooting contests during Bird's stint as a team executive.
"He used to come to practices and we used to have shooting games for money all the time," Barros told campers. "I used to take his money all the time."
Barros went on to sing Bird's praises as one of the great players of all time, even though Bird wasn't a high-flying, fast athlete like Michael Jordan or LeBron James.
"Larry Bird was probably the slowest player ... had a two-inch vertical leap, but put numbers up across the board," Barros said. "What LeBron does now, Larry Bird was doing for 10 years straight."
Later, Barros gave Bird a little more credit for his hops ... or lack thereof.
"Maybe three (inches). I'll give him three," he said with laugh.
Not unlike Bird, Barros didn't have the prototypical NBA body, but Barros stressed that basketball success isn't always the product of physical domination.
"It's not height, it's heart," Barros said. "And Larry Bird is a classic example."
1 comment:
At 5-foot-11, slower than Heinz coming out of one of the old glass bottles and equipped with the leaping ability of a slug, that gives me hope as a basketball player.
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