Since we just did the famous 1965 John Havlicek steal, it seems like it ought to be bookended with the 1987 Larry Bird steal.
The two iconic Celtics made very similar plays years apart.
In Havlicek’s case, he was cleaning up after a rare Bill Russell error in crunch time.
In Bird’s case...he was cleaning up after himself.
Detroit had managed to contain Bird in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals to some extent. Bird had gotten into foul trouble, carrying five, and had only scored two points in the fourth quarter.
With time nearly out and Boston up 107-106, Bird got a pass from Dennis Johnson and tried to juke Rick Mahorn.