2) Chicago Bulls opponents Jordan torched offensively: Larry Bird
Although most of the regular season and playoff meetings between the Boston Celtics and Bulls during the days of Larry Bird fell didn’t fall in favor of Jordan, it was a big point of growth for him. The 12-time NBA All-Star selection, 10-time All-NBA Team selection, three-time champ, three-time NBA MVP, two-time Finals MVP, and 1979-80 Rookie of the Year, was a huge part of the Celtics in the 1980’s.
Bird played in 28 regular season meetings against Jordan and the Bulls. Of those 28 regular season tries, 17 fell in favor of Bird. And those two met in the playoffs in six games, and two different series. There was never a single time that Jordan and the Bulls overcame Bird and the Celtics in the playoffs. Bird was 6-0 against Jordan and the Bulls in the playoffs.
Nevertheless, Jordan averaged an impressive 33.5 points per game, 6.1 rebounds, and 5.8 assists, in those 28 regular season meetings against Bird. He shot 50.6 percent from the field and 87.0 percent from the free-throw line.
Meanwhile, Jordan averaged an insane 39.7 points per game, 6.7 rebounds, and 5.8 assists, in the six playoff meetings against Bird and the Celtics. He shot 46.4 percent from the field, 50.0 percent from beyond the arc, and 88.5 percent from the free-throw line in the playoffs against Bird too. All three of the individual games between Bird and Jordan in the playoffs that saw one of them score at least 40 points all went in favor of the Bulls great.