Saturday, May 22, 2010

May 22, 1988: "What greatness is all about"

BOSTON - Larry Bird got the pass along the sideline, smoothly went up to shoot a 3-pointer, watched it fall cleanly through the net, and ran back upcourt. The Boston Garden erupted - his 3 had given the Celtics a 112-105 lead in the fourth quarter of Game 7, effectively ending the Atlanta Hawks season.

The story, though, was happening behind him, on the Atlanta bench. After Bird made the killer 3, one Hawks player can be seen clapping, for just a moment, before catching himself. His team had just effectively been elminated, and he was clapping.

That, in a nutshell, describes how good a show Larry Bird and Dominique Wilkins put on in the fourth quarter. The fans were screaming, the announcers were gushing, and even the opposing players couldn't help but clap when they saw what was happening.

Entering the fourth quarter, Boston held an 84-82 lead. Atlanta's Wilkins had been sensational, scoring 31 points through three quarters, while Bird had scored a more pedestrian 14. But then Bird caught fire. He made two straight jumpers for Boston, then on his next trip down made a lefthanded, underhanded scoop shot high off the backboard despite being fouled and knocked to the ground. The subsequent free throw gave Boston a three-point lead. But that was only the beginning.

Wilkins came down on the next possession to drain a 3, tying the game. Bird responded on the other end, helping Boston reclaim the lead. Wilkins responded. Bird answered.

The fourth quarter continued this way seemingly forever. Bird would give Boston the lead, and Wilkins would answer to tie it. Neither team could stop the other's top player. It became a duel, a two-man play, with the other eight players becoming mere props in the drama.

By the time Bird drove around Wilkins to score in the lane with 26 seconds left, giving Boston a five-point lead, he had scored 20 points in the fourth quarter alone. Brent Musburger, announcing for CBS, punctuated the night with the call "You are watching what greatness is all about."

Bird's incredible quarter gave him 34 points for the game. Wilkins had been even better - though he scored "only" 16 points in the fourth, he finished with 47 for the game. Wilkins might have single-handedly prevented Boston from winning the title that season. While the Hawks didn't knock Boston out, the tired Celtics were no match for the rested Pistons in the next round. Regardless of what happened next, though, the Bird-Wilkins duel in the Garden remains the defining game of those playoffs.

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