Larry Bird Joins Legends in Denouncing Lebron's Decision

Larry Bird, or Larry Legend as he was known even during his playing days with the Boston Celtics during the 1980 and 1990's, is on record having voiced his disapproval of Lebron James' "Decision" to join Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami, which is in line with the sentiment voiced recently by his Hall of Fame contemporaries, Michael Jordan and Earvin "Magic" Johnson.

Although a decade and a half of fierce competition has given way to a great friendship built on mutual admiration and respect, Bird had this to say about the idea of playing alongside Johnson:

"I remember back in my days, I'd rather play against Earvin Johnson than play with him. He's a guy I always compared myself to. I'd rather stay in Boston and let him stay in L.A. and just compete every year in the Finals. That's what made me a better player."

Bird's statement follows closely on the heels of Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson's statements criticizing Lebron James decision to join the Miami Heat. By doing so, James, the most coveted free-agent of the decade, joined with the next two most talented free-agents in arguably the greatest free-agent class ever in the NBA. Essentially, the joining of James, Wade, and Bosh, though not as epic as a Magic, Bird, and Jordan triumverate, is about the closest thing that has, in fact, come to pass.

The Legends (Bird, Magic, and Jordan), the first-ballot Hall of Famers who were responsible for the international explosion in popularity of the NBA and basketball, have voiced their displeasure with "The Decision" because of what it may mean to the future of NBA. The competition between Bird and Magic defined an era in the NBA, and the dominance of Jordan through the 1990's was a tribute to the will and perseverance of the greatest player of all time.

Old-school fans of the NBA were treated to epic battles between the fiercest competitors the game has ever seen, however the Lebron decision was an admission of surrender and an inexplicable act of submission to another star in Wade.

When asked about Lebron's decision following a celebrity golf tournament in Nevada, Michael Jordan's reply to NBC Sports was this:

"There's no way, with hindsight, I would've ever called up Larry, called up Magic and said, 'Hey, look, let's get together and play on one team, but that's ... things are different. I can't say that's a bad thing. It's an opportunity these kids have today. ... In all honesty, I was trying to beat those guys."

And in sports, it is that competitive fire that athletes are measured by, and that is why Bird, Magic, and Jordan have the legacy and legend that they do.

Magic Says That Lebron's Choice Was Not What His Generation Was About

Magic Johnson, NBA great and former point guard and leader of the Showtime Lakers of the 1980's, joined a growing number of fans and NBA legends in criticizing the Decision of Lebron James to join forces with Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami.

The long awaited and anticipated NBA Free Agenct Class of 2010, which saw quite possibly the most talented free agent class of all time become available to NBA teams with adequate cap space to sign them, dragged on for a week passed the first day of signing and ended with a Shyamalanian-twist, some of the most questionable choices by "grown" men, and the worst examples of poor judgment seen in any sport, ever.

Mere days after the debacle that was the ESPN-produced "The Decision", NBA greats have been approached about their opinions about Lebron's Decision.

When asked, Magic Johnson, who won five NBA championships playing for the Lakers after he led Michigan State to an NCAA title victory over Larry Bird and Indiana State in 1979, said it was never a real possibility for him to play with Michael Jordan and Bird.

"We didn't think about it 'cause that's not what we were about," Johnson said at Baruch College in New York, according to Bloomberg News. "From college, I was trying to figure out how to beat Larry Bird."

"It was never a question in our mind because nobody has ever done that," Johnson said when looking back to his era.

Johnson's comments come only days after Michael Jordan told reporters at a weekend golf event that he'd rather beat Johnson and Bird than become their teammates.

"There's no way, with hindsight, I would've ever called up Larry, called up Magic and said, 'Hey, look, let's get together and play on one team', " said Jordan, the majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats who led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships.

"But that's ... things are different. I can't say that's a bad thing. It's an opportunity these kids have today. In all honesty, I was trying to beat those guys."

Of James, Johnson concluded, "I think he will be, one day, a great businessman. The first order of business for LeBron is to win championships. If you build your brand on the court, then that will take care of the off-the-court brand."

It doesn't seem that Johnson feels that James is a great businessman yet, and certainly not with his Decision.

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The high of winning the Olympic Gold Medal in 1992 and the NBA Championship in 1993 was followed by the tragic murder of Michael Jordan's father leading to a nearly two year hiatus from basketball, during which Jordan applied his trademark focus, determination, and perseverance to the sport of baseball. Jordan's switch to the sport of baseball was in honor of his father, for it was the sport that his father envisioned him playing. Although he met with limited success in his short professional baseball career and eventually returned to basketball, basketball fans gained some insight into the greatness of Michael Jordan.

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He is His Airness, Michael Jordan. Drafted by the Chicago Bulls third overall in the 1984 NBA Draft, and immediately put the League on notice with a first year campaign that included a selection as an NBA All-Star and culminated in the 1985 Rookie of the Year Award.

By the prime of his career, Jordan and his Chicago Bulls teams were a perennial fixture in the NBA Finals having overcome the challenge of the "Bad Boy" Detroit Pistons teams of 1989 and 1990. From 1991 to 1993, the Chicago Bulls established their dynasty by appearing in three consecutive NBA Finals, and Jordan powered the team to victory in all three.

During the summer of 1992, Michael Jordan was the star of the greatest basketball team ever assembled, the original Dream Team. Despite the marquis names of Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, Jordan was the in his prime, and he was the unchallenged best player in the league. The Dream Team dominated the 1992 Olympics winning their games by an average of 42 points, and we caught a glimpse of the boom in the global popularity of basketball that Jordan had catalyzed.

The high of winning the Olympic Gold Medal in 1992 and the NBA Championship in 1993 was followed by the tragic murder of Michael Jordan's father leading to a nearly two year hiatus from basketball, during which Jordan applied his trademark focus, determination, and perseverance to the sport of baseball. Jordan's switch to the sport of baseball was in honor of his father, for it was the sport that his father envisioned him playing. Although he met with limited success in his short professional baseball career and eventually returned to basketball, basketball fans gained some insight into the greatness of Michael Jordan.

The world saw that despite being the greatest basketball player in the world, when it came to baseball, he worked hard to become better and he stayed late to put in extra batting practice, the same way he worked on his basketball skills after being cut from his high school basketball team when he was a Junior at Laney High. It was his incredible work ethic was what made Jordan a success.

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Jordan lead the Chicago Bulls back to the NBA Finals in 1996, and again, he fueled his team to the NBA Championship. The Chicago Bulls dynasty was back on top, and following 1997 and 1998 campaigns that ended in two more Bulls Championships, Michael Jordan retired in his prime, from the game he loved, promoted, and dominated.

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The long-awaited Banner 17 was raised at the home of the Boston Celtics only after a championship drought of 22 years and two blockbuster trades in the summer of 2007.

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