Holland claimed that he had already seen Bird sink jumpers from every angle and that adding an arc to the court would not have changed anything.
Upon the NBA’s introduction of the 3-point line in 1979, some players gained prominence by making impressive baskets. As everyone knows, NBA Hall of Famer and Boston Celtics great Larry Bird—who was then participating in his first league season—was one of the players who stood out.
Larry doesn’t notice any lines.
Bird made an immediate impression on the NBA, averaging 21.3 and 10.4 rebounds per game in his first season. He concluded the season as the fifth-best three-point shooter in the league with a 40.6% shooting percentage. For a novice, how’s that?
But if anyone was unsurprised by Bird’s amazing first campaign in the league, it would be Gary Holland, one of his coaches at Spring Valley High School.
Holland claimed that he had already seen Bird sink jumpers from every angle and that adding an arc to the court would not have changed anything.
Larry would have been in the middle of the floor, anywhere, if there had been a three-point line. Anywhere, really,” Holland remarked to Golf Digest.
Not a big fan of treys
Despite Bird’s status as the best three-point shooter of all time, Larry Legend and the three-point line were not a match made in heaven, despite what many of us believed.
“I must admit that the three-pointer has been very good to me,” he admitted. “In the beginning, I didn’t really take that many three-pointers. In the NBA, nobody was quite sure how to interpret this tactic. Even though I created the first one in the All-Star Game’s history, it took some time for it to become a significant component of my entire strategy. The developments surrounding the three-point shot continue to fascinate me, as I had very little regard for it when I initially entered the league. It’s an excellent weapon.
Regardless of Bird’s true feelings on making 3-pointers, he cannot deny that they continue to play a significant part in his legacy as he looks back on it.
