Larry Bird

Larry Bird was the greatest pure competitor the NBA has ever seen not named Michael Jordan. He could not jump as high, run as fast, or move as fluidly as most of his opponents — and he dominated them anyway through sheer skill, intelligence, and an unrelenting will to win. Bird saw the game in slow motion. His shooting, his passing, his rebounding, and his trash-talking were all weapons deployed with surgical precision to destroy opponents psychologically before the fourth quarter even started.

Bird won three consecutive MVPs from 1984 to 1986 — a feat matched only by Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain. His Celtics won three championships, and his individual performances in those playoff runs are legendary. The steal against the Pistons in 1987. The left-handed game against Portland. The 60-point game in New Orleans. Bird did things that were not supposed to be possible for someone with his physical limitations, and he did them while telling opponents exactly what he was going to do before he did it.

The Bird-Magic rivalry is the single most important storyline in NBA history. Their 1979 NCAA championship game — Michigan State vs. Indiana State — remains the most-watched college basketball game ever. Their NBA rivalry throughout the 1980s elevated both the Celtics and Lakers into cultural institutions and laid the foundation for the league's modern era. Bird was the blue-collar foil to Magic's Hollywood glamour, and basketball needed both of them.