When the Game Was Ours (40 page)

"It was the most fun I've ever had playing basketball."

Two days after that epic scrimmage, the Dream Team arrived
in Barcelona and practiced lightly before Magic gathered them in a semicircle and reminded them of their duty, both as Americans and as representatives of the NBA. He stressed the need to focus despite all the alluring distractions and encouraged the young players on the squad to come to him with any questions or concerns.

"I don't know what was more impressive—his wealth of knowledge or his willingness to share it," Stockton noted.

Bird was cautiously optimistic about his prospects in Barcelona. Earlier during the Celtics season, his team doctors had prescribed oral steroid pills to alleviate the inflammation in his back and the burning pain down his leg. Although he took them only intermittently, once he committed to playing in the Olympics he stopped taking them altogether. Even though he was taking them for proper medicinal purposes, steroids were one of the many banned substances in the Games, and Bird was concerned that any remnants of his treatment in his system would automatically disqualify him.

The Olympic drug-testing techniques were surprisingly archaic. Moments after each game, officials approached the trainer, Lacerte, and had him randomly draw three numbers from a box. Bird's number 7 came up both the first and the second time. He submitted his sample with some uneasiness; for a moment, the worst-case scenario of being sent home fleetingly crossed his mind. He ended up passing both tests without incident, but admitted, "That was the most stressful part of the Olympics."

The actual basketball games turned out to be a mere formality. It was a foregone conclusion that the Dream Team would advance to the medal round, and they rarely practiced once they got to Barcelona. Jordan routinely played 36 holes of golf a day, sometimes finishing up 10 minutes before the team bus pulled out of the hotel.

Because they were the most high-profile athletes in the Games, the Dream Team was housed at the Ambassador during their entire stay. The hotel was roped off and patrolled by gun-toting security guards around the clock, and entrance to the building required a special ID issued by USA Basketball. The United States was roundly criticized for providing elite accommodations for their elite athletes, particularly since the Ambassador had amenities that were not available to other competing basketball teams in the Olympic Village, such as air conditioning and oversized beds to fit the seven-foot frames of Ewing and Robinson.

Daly was unmoved by the complaints. He was aware of death threats that had already been made against some of his players and worried about his multimillionaire "amateurs" clubbing in Barcelona at night. The players joked about the unmarked cars that always flanked their team bus, but there were reasons the extra security was in place.

The night before their first game, the Dream Team held a private dinner in a downtown restaurant, with Barkley as their toastmaster. His job: to keep the guys loose and happy.

"Hey, Larry," Barkley said. "You used to be a great player, but now you're sitting on the bench waving a towel like M. L. Carr!"

"Laettner! You are forbidden to talk!" Barkley roared. "Finish college, then maybe we'll listen to you."

"And Drexler," Barkley said. "Your college team [Houston] was the dumbest in the history of basketball. How can a team that had you and [Hakeem] Olajuwon on the same team lose to N.C. State in the championship?!"

The night before the opening ceremonies, Magic Johnson lay awake, too excited to sleep. His crested blue blazer, white straw hat, and star-spangled red, white, and blue tie, the designated outfit for all the male American athletes who would be marching, was laid out carefully in anticipation.

Down the hall, Larry Bird also lay awake, unable to sleep because of a flurry of back spasms. He wanted desperately to march with his team, but as the night wore on and his discomfort increased, he knew his chances were diminishing with each hour.

The following morning, when told he would be standing around a minimum of two hours before the procession began, Bird put his straw hat and blue blazer back in the hotel closet and watched the ceremonies from his customary prone position on the floor.

Hardly anyone expected the Dream Team to lose, including their competition. It was not uncommon for opposing players to ask
Bird, Magic, and Jordan to pose for pregame photographs, and often, after being shellacked by 30 points or more, the other team would politely request postgame autographs. Before each game, teams exchanged flags or pins from their native country. There was often a mild scrum among the opposition as they tried to line up opposite Jordan, Bird, or Magic.

"You could tell they got a little disappointed if they got stuck with one of the rest of us," Stockton said.

The Dream Team beat Angola 116–48 in its opening game and put the game away with a resounding 46–1 spurt. Magic had 10 assists, and Bird chipped in with 9 points and 3 rebounds in 16 minutes of playing time. When he stepped onto the court for that first game, Bird's goal in Barcelona had been accomplished.

"I really don't care what happens after this," he told Magic.

The margin of victory for the Dream Team in Barcelona was an average of 45.8 points. Jordan occasionally toyed with opponents before applying suffocating full-court pressure that usually generated a turnover, fast-break lay-up, or both. Bird felt that Jordan's defensive pressure was the single biggest reason the United States dominated, and he wasn't surprised to see in 2008 that Olympic coach Mike Krzyzewski (an assistant on the Dream Team) employed the same tactics using Kobe Bryant.

Although Bird's friendship with Ewing generated the most attention in Barcelona, he also enjoyed the chance to connect with Michael Jordan. They had met for the first time in 1984, when Jordan was playing for the Olympic team and Bird was part of a group of NBA players scrimmaging them at the Hoosier Dome. Both clubs were warming up before the game when Jordan's ball rolled over half-court toward Bird.

"He came running after it with a big smile on his face," Bird said. "I threw it over his head. I don't know why I did that. He looked kind of ticked off. I guess I embarrassed him."

As Jordan prepared to play against Bird for the first time in his NBA rookie season, he sat in the Bulls locker room listening to veteran teammates Orlando Woolridge and Sid Green rev themselves
up for the game. Woolridge's assignment was to check Bird, while Green would be guarding McHale.

"Larry Bird's not that good," Woolridge said. "He's slow. I can take him."

"Yeah, McHale's overrated too," Green added.

As Bird warmed up before the game, he approached Bulls coach Doug Collins.

"What's the record for an opposing player in this building?" Bird asked.

"Why, are you going for it?" Collins said.

"They messed up my tickets, so someone's got to pay," he said.

Forty-five minutes later, Bird and McHale had combined for 35 points and 28 rebounds in a routine Celtics victory.

"Larry absolutely destroyed us, but he never said a word," Jordan said. "He didn't have to."

One year later, Jordan hit a jump shot over Bird's outstretched hand and then, as he backpedaled on defense, told Larry, "Take that, All-Star."

"Come on, you little bitch, bring it back here," Bird said, then went down and drained a perimeter shot of his own.

"You know, you are the biggest prima donna I've ever seen," Jordan said.

"What the hell is a prima donna?" Bird asked.

In later years, Bird and Jordan collaborated on a number of McDonald's commercials and appeared together in the movie
Space Jam
alongside Bill Murray and Bugs Bunny. The groundwork for their friendship was laid in Barcelona, around a pool table, a conversation, and a couple of beers.

While Jordan and Magic ventured out to watch track and field, swimming, and women's basketball during their free time, Bird limited his activities because it was too difficult for him to sit in the stands. He also dreaded walking through the front entrance of the hotel, where hundreds of fans kept a vigil around the clock, patiently awaiting a Dream Team sighting.

One morning as Bird stood in the lobby, warily taking stock of
the crowd, he asked the security guard, "Is there any other way out?"

The guard directed him to a side door that led to a vacant street. Bird jammed a baseball cap over his head, slipped out the exit, hopped on the subway, and went to the U.S. baseball game. He walked in with a small group of Americans who had ridden the subway with him and took turns buying beers at the concession stand. Bird happily talked balls and strikes, Major League Baseball, and even a little Dream Team gossip with his new friends. When the game ended, one hopeful fan said, "See you tomorrow, Larry?"

"You bet," he answered, and showed up the next day with his wife Dinah.

Bird appeared back in the hotel lobby the same time as Magic, who, flanked by four security guards with machine guns, was preparing to go to the boxing venue. For a moment, Bird considered telling Magic about his little side door, but then thought better of it.

"He was having fun doing it his way," Bird said.

Magic awoke each morning to a full docket of plans, whether it was a media interview, pushing baby E.J. in his carriage, an Oscar de la Hoya boxing match, or yet another act of charity.

One year earlier, Johnson and the Lakers had played in the McDonald's Open in Paris during the exhibition season, and the Make-a-Wish Foundation had asked Magic if he would meet with a seriously ill young European boy. Magic agreed, but the boy was so sick that the meeting had to be canceled. The boy was feeling stronger when the Dream Team arrived in Barcelona, but the Make-a-Wish Foundation hesitated to ask Magic to spare some time in the middle of the Olympic competition.

"I can always find time for kids," Magic answered. He took the boy to lunch, played video games with him for hours, and invited him to visit the locker room that housed the best players in the world. The boy died three months later, his own Olympic dream fulfilled.

The United States disposed of Puerto Rico 115–77 in the Olympic quarterfinals, then trounced Lithuania and its legendary center,
Arvydas Sabonis, 127–76, in the semifinals. As they were warming up for the gold medal game against Croatia, Bird began to consider how to commemorate the final game of his career. He decided to dunk in the lay-up line, but when he went to lift off, his limited mobility prevented him from getting high enough to slam it through.

"Hey, leave that stuff to me," said Jordan.

The next time down the court, Bird held his breath, extended himself as high as he could, then stuffed the ball through.

"Larry, what are you trying to do?" Magic said.

Daly had tried to conjure up some urgency before the United States played Croatia in the gold medal game. The Dream Team had already crushed the Europeans in an earlier round by 33 points, and the coach was guarding against overconfidence. When the United States trailed Croatia 25–23 early in the first half, his fears appeared somewhat justified. He was about to call his first time-out when Jordan and Johnson led them on a quick run.

The Dream Team led 52–46 at the half, but Bird still hadn't taken off his warm-ups. Assistant P. J. Carlesimo grabbed him and said, "Hey, Coach forgot about you in the first half. He's going to start you in the second half."

Bird laughed. He wasn't concerned with minutes. His goal—to step on the court in the Olympic Games representing his country—had already been reached. But he did find it amusing that Chuck Daly, who had spent much of his career in Detroit attempting to dethrone Bird and the Celtics, forgot him.

"As many times as I had broken that guy's heart, you'd think he'd remember," Bird said.

The fans wanted Bird in the game and would not stop chanting "Larr-eee, Larr-eee!" until he entered. The United States coasted to a 117–85 win, and as the buzzer sounded, Bird and Magic turned to one another and embraced. Amid cameras flashing and confetti flying, Ewing tapped them both on the shoulder.

"They had been battling each other for so long, it was nice to see them finally on the same side," he said.

As Bird stood on the medal stand with Ewing at his side and
Magic in front of him, he remembered his father, Joe Bird, a veteran of the Korean War who loved his country and stood straight and proud whenever the national anthem was played.

Magic's eyes were moist as he faced his country's flag. The Olympic Games had exceeded all of his hopes and expectations and given him one final chance to enjoy the precious gift of being part of a team that was as close to perfect as he had ever experienced.

"You had to thank Larry and Magic and Michael for making it work," Barkley said. "They were the ones who checked their egos at the door. Nobody big-timed anyone in Barcelona."

Barkley couldn't help but notice the contrast between the 1992 Olympians and the 1996 Olympic squad, which he also played on. Unlike the Dream Team, which managed to sidestep any incidents regarding minutes, the 1996 Olympians bickered over everything from who started to who wore which uniform numbers.

"It was one big ego fest," Barkley said. "Guys actually boycotted practice because they weren't happy with their playing time. It was ridiculous."

One afternoon when his '96 Olympic teammates were complaining about their minutes, Barkley finally snapped. "You should be ashamed of yourselves," he berated them. "Michael and Magic and Larry shared the ball. They shared the spotlight. And because of that, it was the experience of a lifetime. You guys are a bunch of selfish jerks."

After Barcelona, Jordan backed up his bravado from the game room of the Ambassador Hotel by winning six titles—one more than Magic, three more than Bird. He proved to be the most recognizable NBA star ever, but playing alongside Magic and Larry on the Dream Team remains one of the most cherished memories of his career.

"It was," Jordan said, "the best time I've ever had."

In the final hours before they jetted back home from Barcelona, Magic and Larry emptied their lockers and packed their bags.