Who's the greatest Celtic of all-time, Paul Pierce, Larry Bird, Bill Russell, McHale, Parish, or Walker?

Question

I have to say Larry Legend.... He played in a tougher era then Russell, he was Parish's & McHale's team captain, his numbers are better then Walkers, and Pierce never won them a title...and plus he's a better clutch shooter & all around shooter then all of them...Larry Legend!

Answer 1

FINALLY !!

Now you're starting to talk some sense. I can't believe you and I actually agree on something.

Larry Bird was not only the greatest Celtic of all time, he was the greatest all-around player in NBA history, in my opinion.

But, what the hell are Pierce and Walker doing up there?

Anyone can make a good case for Russell too, including myself. But yes, Bird did play in the 1980's, the best decade for the NBA , took over a team that won only 29 games the year prior and turned them into 61 game winners ( without Parish & McHale). As a matter of fact, Bird's Celtics won at least 60 games in 6 of his first 7 seasons.

He's the only non-center to win league MVP three consecutive years. And yes, he was undoubtedly one of the greatest clutch shooters ever.

He was also the consummate teammate. Sorry folks, but without Larry Bird, McHale and Parish don't go to the hall of fame. And the Celtics don't win their 3 1980's championships.

What is really scary is the numbers this guy COULD HAVE put up, if he wanted to (at his teams expense). He was an unselfish player which winning meant more than personal statistics.

And Smitty, that comment was unnecessary. Even the great Bill Russell aknowledged Bird's greatness. You should know better.

Answer 2

Larry played in a tougher era? Larry Legend? Team Captain to only two Hall of Famers?....Russell...Lets see, played in an era where they still had segragated diners, bussed not flew to other courts, 6'9'' had to play against 7'1'' Big Dipper. Not a team captain first few years cause of a guy named Cousy. Larry can account for 3 of Boston's 16 titles. Russell is only responsible for 11. Look dude, I'm a Laker Fan but more importantly a Hoop fan. Larry Bird is all that! But Bill Russell is so much more than that. In fact whenever anyone ask me who the greatest player was or is, its not Michael Jordan to me its Mr. Russell. 13 out of 15 years he led his teams to Championships. Different players and he made them all better. He is not a statistical giant but he made his teams and team mates great. The only person that could challenge Russell as the greatest Celtic would be Auerbach. I am assuming you are talking about players. Cause if its just by being a Celtic then Auerbach.

Answer 3

It's hard to be a Celtic nowadays. Just think about it, it must be really hard for Paul Pierce, being drafted by, and playing for a team with so much history and so many championships in the past. It must be enormous pressure. Paul Pierce is a great player, but he will always be in the shadow of the legends like Russell and Bird. (Russell being the biggest legend, by far) Sometimes I wish PP had been drafted by another team, because it seems like he's a forgotten star because the Celtics which came before him set such an impossibly high standard. Pierce will always be underrated and blamed for the Celtics losing and lack of success in recent times. Someone said that in thirty years, everyone will still remember Larry Bird, but no one will remember Paul Pierce or Antoine Walker. It's sad, but I think it just may be true. However, it's not about how many championships a player wins. There are great players who never win championships. Larry Bird has already secured his place in history as a legend, but Paul Pierce is still great in my book.

Answer 4

The Greatest Celtic of All Time many would argue was Red Auerbach, because he assembled (I think) the teams that had all of the players you have mentioned. Player wise, I would say Russell because he won something like 11 titles and most of his accomplishments went unrecorded because certain stats were not kept. Bird is a close second if not a tie with Russell because as you mentioned, he did play in a tougher era. Besides his competitiveness with Magic probably kept the NBA from folding, which says a lot about Bird the player not only the Celtic and I'm not a Celtic fan.

Answer 5

Although Bird may be the face of the franchise, the greatest Celtic would be Bill Russell.

Look at how many championships he has vs. all the others. The majority of those wins partially had to do with his smarts and defensive prowess. Also consider all of the other players he competed with at his positions C/PF.

And finally, he was even a player/coach. He was the only person that actually made this experiment work albeit short lived.

Answer 6

You're definitely right. Russell is a close second just because of all the titles, but Bird was such a great all-around player. He had the greatest shot of all time, he was a very good passer and a tough defender. Parrish and McHale were all right but never would have been as good if Bird wasn't there drawing the defense. I love KU, but Pierce has to be one of the most overrated players in the game right now. Great, you can score 25-30 points a game, but are you winning any games?

Answer 7

Bill Russell.He won 11 titles in 13 years, had to go thru a powerhouse named Wilt Chamberlain to get many of them.Larry Bird was a great player, and it's close, but I think without Russell, the Celtics would not have won that many titles.

Answer 8

Larry Bird

Answer 9

Larry Bird is probably the consensus for best, but look how many championships Bill Russell brought. He dominated his time and I feel that makes him the best, even though I love Larry

Answer 10

It's Larry Bird. He made all the players on his team better. He could have easily averaged over 30 points per game if he wanted too.....but he was too much of a team player.

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