Boston Celtics legend and current Indiana Pacers president of basketball operations Larry Bird was interviewed on "The Dan Patrick Show" last Monday to discuss about his team's new Hickorey jerseys for next season, and he was also asked about playing one-on-one with Michael Jordan.
Patrick was asking the question following a conversation about Jordan's statement last June in which he said he can beat every player on his Charlotte Hornets roster in a one-on-one game.
Jordan, who is the owner of the Hornets, told L'Equipe last month, "I'm pretty sure I can, so I don't want to do that and demolish their confidence, so I stay away from them. I let them think that they are good."
Once the question was asked Bird answered, "God, I hate to admit this, but he'd (Jordan) kill me."
The 58-year-old NBA legend added, "Dan, I'm 40 pounds more than I was when I played, I'm broken down. I really don't care like I used to. I have a fight in me, but it's not the fight I once had. But it would be a pretty close game."
Bird had a laugh when he heard about Jordan's comment about his ability to beat his Hornets players one-on-one and said, "He can believe whatever he wants."
Patrick also asked Bird if he thinks he was better than any player in the Indiana Pacers squad he coached from year 1997 to 2000 and he said he does not know.
But when asked about shooting Bird answered, "Oh yeah. When it came to shooting, ain't no problem."
Before his head coaching and front office stints in the NBA, Bird played for the Boston Celtics from 1979-1992.
He won three championships, two Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards, three MVP awards, and Rookie of the Year award (1980); and he was a 12-time All-Star and was part of the 1992 Olympic gold medal-winning Dream Team, making him one of the greatest in the sport.
Bird also cemented his legacy as a coach winning the NBA Coach of the Year Award in 1998 to become the only man in league history to capture both Coach of the Year and MVP awards.
