Palm Beach Post Staff Writer
MIAMI â€" Indiana Pacers President Larry Bird did not need to see LeBron James join a fraternity of which Bird and just six others belonged to recognize the Heat forward's greatness.
Bird was impressed long before James became the eighth player in NBA history to be named Most Valuable Player at least three times.
"With his body, his skill, his ability to outrun and jump, I don't think we've quite seen anybody that plays his position that can do what he can do," Bird said Monday before the Pacers practice AmericanAirlines Arena.
"We've seen scorers, we've seen rebounders, we've seen defenders, to have the total package. I always say, it's fun to watch him. I always just sit back and watch him play."
James equaled Bird's three MVPs last week, earning his third (in four years) at the age of 27. Bird was 29 when he won his third straight MVP. Bird also topped that year with his third title.
Bird knows the feeling of going into a title chase knowing you probably cannot be stopped.
"He's our best player in the league, this is his time of year," Bird said. "It's the best time to go into a playoffs knowing you're the best player in the league."
James had 32 points and 15 rebounds in the Heat's 95-86 Game 1 victory Sunday, his first 30-15 postseason game. But it was his defensive effort that Bird noticed, holding Pacers leading scorer Danny Granger to seven points.
"He took Granger completely out of it, he didn't know what to do," Bird said. "He's a special player."
James' career averages of 27.6 points, 7.2 rebounds and 6.9 assists stack up to Bird's 24.3 points, 10.0 rebounds and 6.3 points.
James holds the all-time greats in high esteem. He said Monday that players like Bird, Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, Jerry West and Oscar Robertson "paved the way for me to be in this position." He said he grew up reading about them and watching their classic games.
"Seeing some of the things they were able to do as individual players and were able to do to help their teams win. ... It means a lot (what Bird said.) It's very humbling."
But James has felt former players have not embraced him and has wondered why. Early this season Bird said he'd rather play with Kobe Bryant because of his "desire to win," adding, "If you want to have fun you play with LeBron. He'd be probably more fun to play with. But if you want to win and win and win, it's Kobe."
James brushed aside the comments at the time saying that's because Bryant has five titles. And Bird changed his tune some Monday.
"We all know he wants to win," Bird said of James. "Championships don't come knocking on your door and (they) hand them to you, you got to go get them. We all know how focused and how hard he works. You don't get that good unless you work hard."
James sent Bird a text message last summer telling him one day he'd like to speak with the Hall of Famer. Bird hopes that day comes sooner, too, but said any conversation now would have to be cleared by Heat president Pat Riley.
Bird and Riley have had several duels when Bird played for the Celtics and Riley coached the Lakers, including three memorable meetings in the finals. Both have seen the gamesmanship that can take place in the postseason, similar to Pacers coach Frank Vogel's attempt to make the officials aware of the Miami's defensive tactics by calling the Heat floppers.
Vogel was fined $15,000 for his comments.
Bird said Monday he never paid attention to what coaches said during series and knows it will have no impact on the outcome of the series.
But Bird does agree that flopping has become an issue, something NBA Commissioner David Stern acknowledged Sunday, saying the league should be giving out "Oscars rather than MVP trophies."
"I'm not big on floppers," Bird said. "I think there is too much of it in the league. Even a lot of our very, very good players do it. It's like acting. This is not acting."
Vogel did not blame the officials for the foul discrepancy in Game 1 - the Pacers had 31, nine more than the Heat - saying his team "fouled unnecessarily" way too much.
"We understand loud and clear the officiating didn't beat us in Game 1, the Miami Heat beat us," Vogel said. "Part of winning on the road in the playoffs is overcoming that."
Vogel was then asked what he thought about Stern's concern about flopping.
"Call me this summer, we'll go to lunch and I'll tell you everything I feel about flopping," Vogel said. "Until then I'm going to keep my mouth shut."
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