“My mother in law nicknamed his shot ‘Silent Death’” - Isiah Thomas says Larry Bird was a straight killer as a competitor

Larry Bird and his killer mentality on the court was mentioned in Tuesday’s episode of “75 Stories” on NBA. During the video, Isiah Thomas joins to give context to how great of a shooter Bird really was.

Larry Bird a killer competitor with lethal weapon, 'Silent Death'

Thomas explains:

“My mother-in-law nicknamed his shot, ‘Silent Death’ because when he shot, the ball just like rolled in the air and it was almost like, it was playing a song the way it just moved in the air and they it just swished through. As a competitor, I mean, he was a killer. I mean, just a straight killer.”

Larry Bird entered the NBA for the 1979–1980 season, where he led the Celtics to a 32-win improvement over the previous season before being eliminated from the playoffs in the Conference Finals. Larry played for the Celtics for his entire professional career (13 seasons), leading them to five NBA finals appearances and three NBA championships.

Bird was a 12-time NBA All-Star, winning two NBA Finals MVP awards and received the NBA Most Valuable Player Award three consecutive times (1984–1986), making him the only forward in league history to do so. Bird was also a member of the gold medal-winning 1992 United States men's Olympic basketball team known as "The Dream Team".

He was voted to the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1996, was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1998, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame again in 2010 as a member of 1992 Olympic squad he was a member of.

In October 2021, as part of the NBA's 75th Anniversary, Bird was honored as one of the 75 greatest players of all time, by being named to the NBA's 75th Anniversary Team.

The video in mention is an ode to the 75th anniversary of the NBA, as the league gathers stories recollecting large historical moments for each player chosen for the anniversary team. Larry Bird earned the nickname “Larry the Legend” for a reason, and leaving him off of any list of NBA’s greatest would be a mistake.

Larry Bird made notable waves in the league as one of the first players to take advantage of the newly adopted three-point line. Bird averaged 24.3 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 6.3 assists per game across 897 games in his career. The legend shot 49.6% from the field and 37.6% from the 3-point mark. Larry also averaged 1.7 steals per game, assisting on both ends of the court.

‘Silent Death’ truly is the perfect name for Larry Bird’s shot. It was a shot that at the time seemed much like Curry’s. Bird pulled up from places foreign to even the most veteran players, right in front of the defense.

He was so automatic, and like Isiah Thomas explained, his shot was almost hypnotizing. It did not just go into the net, it finessed itself through the air and through the mesh like it was dancing to Beethoven. Larry Bird’s shot truly was one of the most silent and deadly weapons in the NBA, to date.