It's been a damn good month for hoops fans. The NCAA Tournament introduced us to St. Peter's and the mustached hero of our dreams. The NBA playoffs are already gifting us with drama (ahem). And Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty is reaching Showtime-esque heights. Show Meaning? The swirl of HBO-ified dramatizations of Jack McKinney's bicycle accident, Magic Johnson's what-if moment with Phil Knight and Nike, and Kareem Abdul Jabbar's crisis of faith have us reliving the '80s all over again. Now, we've reached Episode Seven of Winning Time, "Invisible Man." The monster of the week, so to speak? Bird, Larry Bird. At long last, after teasing us for nearly the entire season, the series gives us the Boston Garden showdown between Bird and Magic Johnson—and it didn't disappoint. In a game featuring plenty of taunting between the star rookies, major Red Auerbach antics, and some brilliant Jason-Clarke-as-Jerry-West-isms, the (fictional) Lakers pulled it out, winning 99-98. If you're curious how the game played out in real life, we have you covered. Turns out that the final score of the matchup wasn't too far off from what we witnessed in Winning Time. The history books logged 100-98, in favor of the Lakers. In the real-life game, Norm Nixon (not Michael Cooper, as Winning Time shows) made two late free throws to seal the lead. Johnson was hardly a factor in this face-off, scoring one point over 21 minutes, since he was dealing with an injury. But the environment was surely every bit as wild as the series teases, with Auerbach infamously making sure the visitors' locker room didn't have hot water in its showers, among other trolling. It's worth mentioning that Winning Time skips over Johnson and Bird's first NBA game against each other, at an early-season meeting at The Forum when the Lakers whooped the Celtics, winning 123-105. To the tune of 23 points from Johnson, no less. (Of course, the game at the Forum marked the first time Bird and Johnson faced each other since the 1979 National Championship, when Michigan State downed Indiana State.) That title game, by the way, likely inspired the beefing we see between the two future Hall-of-Famers in Winning Time. Just watch the highlights for yourself, and tell us how much their, let's call it, competitive spirit jumps out to you. This content is imported from youTube. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Larry Bird vs Magic Johnson COLLEGE DUEL Highlights (1979.03.26) Indiana St vs Michigan St (EPIC!!) Watch on This content is imported from OpenWeb. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site. Search CriteriaClick on the red text to pre-fill the form with various values Player 1 Javascript is required for the selection of a player. Choice is: Larry Bird Player 2 Javascript is required for the selection of a player. Choice is: Magic Johnson You have edited your search criteria or keep editing your search clear changes Fetching Results Regular SeasonRegular Season Table
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19 GamesWho won the first game between Magic and Larry Bird?AP Was There: Bird beats Magic in 1st Finals showdown.
When did Larry Bird and Magic Johnson's rivalry begin?A lot of people tuned in to see Larry Bird and Magic Johnson go at it in the NBA, but a lot of people never knew that the two men's rivalry began in college. In what was one of the most exciting college basketball games of all time, the two men squared off in the 1979 NCAA Championship game.
How many times did Larry Bird play against Magic Johnson?Magic Johnson - 37 Games, 15-22 (40.5%)
The player that owns the best overall record against Bird was Magic Johnson. During their heyday, the Lakers and Celtics met in the NBA Finals three times where the Lakers won two championships. The Celtics won one championship in 1984.
Who was better between Magic Johnson and Larry Bird?As in our debate of Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson, one cannot go wrong with either Magic or Bird as both belong in the top five players of all time. However, Magic ranks slightly higher than Bird for a few reasons. While Bird was the better shooter, Magic was the better playmaker so those advantages are a wash.
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Magic Johnson vs Larry Bird first game
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