Updated throughout the day with quick takes from staff.
Just by reading the last few paragraphs of this excerpt, I know I’ll enjoy this book. Let’s see… a book filled with behind-the-scenes anecdotes from the greatest rivalry in NBA history as told by two of the most magnetic figures of the past 25 years? Yeah, I guess I’ll check that out.
On the morning of June 13, 1984, Magic Johnson stood in the lobby with his bags packed. It was 6 a.m., but he was wide awake. In fact, like Bird, he never really went to sleep. “It was the worst night of my life,” Magic said. “I told myself, ‘Don’t ever forget how you feel right now.’ ”
The morning after Boston’s celebration, Bird finally went home for a little shut-eye. Around midafternoon, Buckner, who was experiencing his first-ever NBA title, drove to Bird’s Brookline home with the hope of celebrating all over again. Larry’s wife, Dinah, informed Buckner that Larry wasn’t there.
“He was out running,” Buckner said later. “When he got back, I said to him, ‘Man, what are you doing?’ ”
Bird looked at him quizzically before he answered: “I’m getting ready for next year.”
The book’s called When the Game was Ours, and it gets released November 4th. I’m excited.
(And no, this post wasn’t sponsored. But it should have been.)
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