Before the 1985–86 season, when Boston won another championship, the Celtics traded Maxwell for veteran center Bill Walton. While Maxwell always valued his teammates, he left Boston with strained relationships, including that of Bird. When Maxwell, Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish returned to Boston in April 2024, Maxwell revealed on his podcast that he now valued Bird even more following their most recent meeting.
Before the 1985–86 season, which would have seen another Boston title, the Celtics traded Maxwell in exchange for seasoned center Bill Walton. Maxwell left Boston on bad terms with all of his teammates, including Bird, even though he always valued his colleagues on the Celtics. Maxwell, Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish got back together in Boston in April of 2024. Maxwell acknowledged on his podcast that following their most recent meeting, he now values Bird even more.
Cedric Maxwell Is Delighted About Larry Bird For Another Reason.
Before Bird arrived, Maxwell played for two seasons in Boston. Prior to Bird’s arrival, in Maxwell’s second NBA season, he set a record for the NBA’s highest field goal percentage (58.4%) for the first of two consecutive seasons. In addition, he averaged 9.9 rebounds and 19.0 points. In the NBA Finals in 1984, Maxwell outplayed the rival Los Angeles Lakers in Game 7 and won the 1981 MVP award.
That is when Maxwell started experiencing knee pain in February 1985. He learned that he need surgery for a hard-torn cartilage. As per Maxwell’s book “If These Walls Could Talk,” he was supposed to be out for four weeks, but ended up being absent for considerably longer.
“Everything changed once I got hurt, especially my relationship with my teammates and the team,” Maxwell wrote. It seemed to Bird and a few of my teammates that I didn’t want to return. That hurt me a lot. This is a man that I played championship sports and grew up with. Well, that certainly hurt. That was probably the lowest point of my life—just getting injured and having people not get it.”
Even if that hurt, Maxwell undoubtedly had a great deal of respect for Bird—who led the NBA in MVP awards three times in a row from 1984 to 1986. Maxwell claimed his admiration for Bird reached new heights when he met him in April 2024, during the tens of thousands of people in attendance for the Boston Dick’s Sporting Goods Store grand opening.
In an interview with “The Cedric Maxwell Podcast,” Maxwell stated, “It was great being in company with those guys.” We haven’t been together since 1984, I believe.
It was crammed. Although I’ve been in situations similar to this previously, it only serves to highlight how special Larry Bird is. There was a camera in his face at every turn. Screams of “LA-RRY, LA-RRY” are heard. It was simply kind of bizarre to observe.
