Back In The Day NBA

Debate Heats Up After Chandler Parsons Says Luka Doncic Already A Better Player Than Larry Bird

Shandel Richardson

Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

Today's generation never got to experience the legend of Boston Celtics great Larry Bird.

That's why it has been so much easier for them to forget him.

Former NBA player Chandler Parsons had yet to turn four when Bird retired from the game. So Parsons only watched him on highlight tapes but still believes Luka Doncic is a far superior player than Bird.

Parsons made the claim while speaking on the Run It Back podcast.


"Luka is already better than Larry was," Parsons said. "He doesn't have the resume, he doesn't have the championships. As a basketball player, Luka Doncic can do everything Larry Bird did and more."

The subject was at the forefront this week when several continued to compared Doncic to Bird. That prompted former Celtic Paul Pierce to chime in. He said it was time to stop putting Doncic in the same category as Bird.

On Wednesday, Doncic was named first-team All-NBA for the fifth straight time. Bird made nine consecutive appearances from 1980-88. He also has three championships and three MVPs, which Doncic has neither.

But Doncic is just 25 with plenty of time left in his career. After leading the Dallas Mavericks past the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals, he is seven wins shy of his first title.

"Luka Doncic is absolutely in a class with Larry Bird," said former NBA guard Lou Williams, who appeared on Run It Back with Parsons. "Larry Bird had people around him. He had champions, Kevin McHale, Dennis Johnson, Robert Parrish. I can go on and on about the supporting cast that Larry Bird had and assisted him in being who he was to get championships to create his legacy."

Shandel Richardson is the publisher of Back In The Day NBA. He can be reached at shandelrich@gmail.com.

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Shandel Richardson

SHANDEL RICHARDSON

Shandel has covered the NBA since 2010, with previous stops at The Athletic and South Florida Sun-Sentinel.  He has covered six NBA Finals, one Super Bowl, the NCAA basketball tournament. He has also been a beat writer for the Miami Hurricanes and contributed on every major beat in South Florida since 2003, including the Miami Dolphins and Miami Marlins. He can also be read in the Sportsbook Review for gambling coverage from around the NBA. A native of Bloomington, Illinois, Shandel attended Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. He's also worked for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Kansas City Star.  TWITTER: @ShandelRich EMAIL: shandelrich@gmail.com