Superstition has nothing to do with it. At the half in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics were comfortably ahead of the Houston Rockets. They would win their third title of the tenth century if they were to hold on.
During halftime, in the locker room, Bird did something he would later say he never did. He swapped out his uniform. The Celtics easily defeated the Rockets 114-97, never posing a danger.
The 1985–86 season for Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics was incredible.
After overcoming the Los Angeles Lakers to win an exciting 1984 championship, the Boston Celtics were unable to repeat as champions in 1985. Before the 1985–86 season began, the Celtics took care of the center Kareem Abdul-Jabbar of the Lakers, who caused them a lot of trouble during the team’s quest for the championship in 1985.
The Celtics acquired veteran center Bill Walton in exchange for forward Cedric Maxwell. Walton was frequently injured even though he was a former MVP for the Portland Trail Blazers. The 6-foot-11 Walton’s foot issues kept him out of the game for three entire seasons, but the Celtics decided to take a chance and signed him.
Walton did not let us down. In 78 of his 80 appearances, he came off the bench. In 19.3 minutes, he averaged 7.6 points and 6.8 rebounds. The NBA awarded him the title of Sixth Man of the Year.
In the meantime, Bird won MVP for the third time in a row. He finished with 9.8 rebounds and 25.8 points. He led the Celtics to their third title in the last ten years and a record of 67-15. In six games, Boston defeated Houston in the NBA Finals of 1986. Bird was crowned the Finals MVP.
Bird explained his sudden outfit change during the halftime of Game 6 of the 1986 Finals.
In the Western Conference Finals, Ralph Sampson and the Rockets surprised the Lakers, which gave the Celtics a break. Boston was hoping for a third consecutive meeting with its West Coast rivals, but Houston ended up being a far easier opponent.
In Game 6, the Celtics comfortably led the Rockets, 55–38. Bird made the decision to change things up despite the 17-point lead. During the intermission, he changed out of his jersey.
He acknowledged that it was a first for him.
In his book Drive: The Story of My Life, Bird stated, “I changed up my uniform during halftime, and that’s something I never do.”
When things are going so smoothly, you usually don’t change a thing. Bird stirred things up for a rather self-serving motive, despite the fact that he and the Celtics were rolling.
Bird wrote, “I just took that uniform off, stuffed it into my bag, and got a new uniform out because I was playing so well and feeling so great.” “I would have two championship uniforms instead of just one that way.”
