30 For 30: Celtics/Lakers

[PhantomOnTour]

I understand that this was the big sports rivalry of the 80's with two iconic players in Magic and Bird, but does anyone think ESPN has gone just a little overboard here?
It's a three part series that last five hours...five hours !?!?!?


I was an 80's kid and this should be right up my alley, but can't this be thoroughly covered in less than five hours?
I've become less and less enamored with the 30 For 30 series, esp since there's got to be way more than 30 of them

They had some good ones though:
The Two Escobars
The Best That Never Was
The U
Once Brothers
Without Bias
Slaying The Badger
9.79

[MutuelClerk]

ESPN overboard? Never. Of course it's too much. Some of the 30 for 30's have been excellent. Selfishly I like the one on the Bad Boys best.

[Tom]

I don't think Magic and Byrd played against each other for 5 hours.

[Rise Over Run]

Originally Posted by PhantomOnTour

I understand that this was the big sports rivalry of the 80's with two iconic players in Magic and Bird, but does anyone think ESPN has gone just a little overboard here?
It's a three part series that last five hours...five hours !?!?!?


I was an 80's kid and this should be right up my alley, but can't this be thoroughly covered in less than five hours?
I've become less and less enamored with the 30 For 30 series, esp since there's got to be way more than 30 of them

They had some good ones though:
The Two Escobars
The Best That Never Was
The U
Once Brothers
Without Bias
Slaying The Badger
9.79

I thought that I Hate Christian Laettner and the one on John Daly Hit it Hard were well done.

[JustRalph]

I DVR'ed it.

Two hours in and they are really allowing some background characters lots of screen time. I find that interesting. But it is dragging some.

I think there is a shorter version that concentrates mostly on Bird and Magic. It ran last year.

I was surprised they went back through the 50's in the first hour. Some neat footage from the fifties with Bob Cousy et al.

Watching Hondo was cool too.

[kinznk]

I've like a lot of the 30 for 30s but I really enjoyed the 9 for ix about the free diver.

[cj]

Originally Posted by JustRalph

I DVR'ed it.

Two hours in and they are really allowing some background characters lots of screen time. I find that interesting. But it is dragging some.

I think there is a shorter version that concentrates mostly on Bird and Magic. It ran last year.

I was surprised they went back through the 50's in the first hour. Some neat footage from the fifties with Bob Cousy et al.

Watching Hondo was cool too.

I think the version you are talking about was an HBO show.

[JustRalph]

Originally Posted by cj

I think the version you are talking about was an HBO show.

maybe.......it was better....

[tophatmert]

Not a 30 for 30 but check out the documentary Disgraced about the Baylor basketball program and the murder of Patrick Dennehy. It is on HBO or Showtime I believe .

[Inner Dirt]

Where they went overboard was making LA vs Boston in the 80's a black vs white divide on who rooted for who. Bringing race in to it was complete nonsense. Where I was at during that time no such thing occurred.

[cj]

Originally Posted by Inner Dirt

Where they went overboard was making LA vs Boston in the 80's a black vs white divide on who rooted for who. Bringing race in to it was complete nonsense. Where I was at during that time no such thing occurred.

I think that is pretty naive. It may not have been a thing where you were, but it definitely was in many places.

[JustRalph]

Originally Posted by Inner Dirt

Where they went overboard was making LA vs Boston in the 80's a black vs white divide on who rooted for who. Bringing race in to it was complete nonsense. Where I was at during that time no such thing occurred.

I was in the Police Academy in Ohio during that 85 finals. It was a huge black versus white thing with our class. Mostly driven by a group of Officers from the Cleveland area. They hated Bird. It was all in good fun mostly.

I never knew the NBA was in such dire straits, or did they exaggerate that?

[cj]

Originally Posted by JustRalph

I was in the Police Academy in Ohio during that 85 finals. It was a huge black versus white thing with our class. Mostly driven by a group of Officers from the Cleveland area. They hated Bird. It was all in good fun mostly.

I never knew the NBA was in such dire straits, or did they exaggerate that?

The NBA was really struggling, and there was a rampant cocaine problem in the 70s. Bird and Magic definitely saved the league IMO. The Finals weren't even shown live many years, you had to watch on tape delay.

[jimmyb]

Originally Posted by Inner Dirt

Where they went overboard was making LA vs Boston in the 80's a black vs white divide on who rooted for who. Bringing race in to it was complete nonsense. Where I was at during that time no such thing occurred.

Being from Boston and having lived and died with the Celtics from the early '60's on, I never heard the 'white Celtics versus the black Lakers', or any other team for that matter.

[JustRalph]

Originally Posted by cj

The NBA was really struggling, and there was a rampant cocaine problem in the 70s. Bird and Magic definitely saved the league IMO. The Finals weren't even shown live many years, you had to watch on tape delay.

CBS did the same thing with NASCAR. Taped delayed Daytona 500 up until 79

I was a Celtics fan before Bird, because of Havlicek. That transferred right into Bird. I met Auerbach, Cowans and Bird in the Columbus Airport late one night in Birds first year. Spent ten minutes with them and really was excited about Cowans and Red. Bird didn't say three words in ten minutes.

Btw, Red spent the whole time talking about getting a new arena built.