{"id":150500,"date":"2026-02-20T16:20:50","date_gmt":"2026-02-20T21:20:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/?p=150500"},"modified":"2026-02-20T17:12:55","modified_gmt":"2026-02-20T22:12:55","slug":"larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics","title":{"rendered":"Larry Bird and Kevin McHale: Not Best Friends \u2014 Just Champions"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>When people think of the 1980s Boston Celtics, they think of banners.<\/p>\n<p>They think of Larry Bird <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/DrpDJsKKJck\">diving on the parquet<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>They think of Kevin McHale\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/X0n7mnFhMYw\">unstoppable low-post moves<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>They think of <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/iRqliOeTV8s\">championships<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h4>What they don\u2019t always think about?<\/h4>\n<p>The fact that Bird and McHale weren\u2019t exactly best friends.<\/p>\n<p>In our <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/TPUdE72wGTc\">latest CLNS History episode<\/a>, Bob Ryan does one of his legendary <em>deep dives<\/em> on one of the most fascinating dynamics in Celtics history \u2014 a relationship built on respect, tension, and relentless competitiveness.<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Larry Bird vs. Kevin McHale? The TRUE STORY You\u2019ve Never Heard w Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe\" width=\"788\" height=\"443\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/TPUdE72wGTc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h3>Different Personalities. Same Standard.<\/h3>\n<p>Larry Bird and Kevin McHale were wired differently.<\/p>\n<p>Bird was intense. All business. Laser-focused from the moment he stepped into the building.<\/p>\n<p>McHale? More relaxed. Looser. He could laugh and joke until the ball went up.<\/p>\n<p>As Bob Ryan explains, Bird didn\u2019t always understand how Kevin could flip that competitive switch so casually. And McHale, at times, felt Larry needed to loosen up.<\/p>\n<p>They weren\u2019t \u201cbuddy-buddy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But they didn\u2019t need to be.<\/p>\n<h3>The Edge That Built a Dynasty<\/h3>\n<p>Here\u2019s the part that matters:<\/p>\n<p>They respected each other.<\/p>\n<p>Deeply.<\/p>\n<p>Both understood something fundamental \u2014 those championship rings don\u2019t happen without the other.<\/p>\n<p>Bird\u2019s passing unlocked McHale\u2019s offense in ways few players in NBA history could replicate. Entry passes delivered exactly where they needed to be. Timing. Precision. Chemistry.<\/p>\n<p>In an era where the paint was more clogged then Boston traffic at rush hour, McHale\u2019s post dominance forced defenses to collapse, giving Bird space to operate. Early offense for Boston was to establish McHale and Robert Parish in the low, mid post early to open up the perimeter for Danny Ainge and Larry-Legend.<\/p>\n<p>Different personalities. Same obsession with winning. They needed each other.<\/p>\n<p>That tension? It wasn\u2019t weakness, it was fuel.<\/p>\n<h3>Celtics Mystique Wasn\u2019t Accidental<\/h3>\n<p>The Celtics of the 80s weren\u2019t built on friendship alone. Hell, I\u2019m not even sure they liked each other very much.<\/p>\n<p>They <em>were<\/em> built on accountability.<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-150515\" src=\"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_2234-300x300.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_2234-300x300.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_2234-1024x1024.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_2234-150x150.jpeg 150w, https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_2234-768x768.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_2234-1536x1536.jpeg 1536w, https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_2234-450x450.jpeg 450w, https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_2234-1200x1200.jpeg 1200w, https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_2234.jpeg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>Strong personalities. Sacrifices. Players who knew they could score more or play more \u2014 but committed to winning instead. The perfect standard for the perfect big-three.<\/p>\n<p>Bird and McHale embodied that standard.<\/p>\n<p>As <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/TPUdE72wGTc\">Bob Ryan reflects<\/a>, what made that era special wasn\u2019t harmony \u2014 it was alignment.<\/p>\n<p>They didn\u2019t like everything about each other, they chased the same goal and they did it relentlessly.<\/p>\n<h3>Why This Still Matters<\/h3>\n<p>In <a href=\"https:\/\/youtube.com\/@clnsmedia?si=atenGigadg2fQYEB\">today\u2019s NBA<\/a>, we often talk about \u201csuperteams\u201d, softness and friendships.<\/p>\n<p>The 80s Celtics were different.<\/p>\n<p>They were competitive in practice. Competitive in games. Competitive in spirit.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes greatness isn\u2019t comfortable.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes it\u2019s forged in friction.<\/p>\n<p>Though Larry Legend and Kevin McHale haven\u2019t worn Celtics green in nearly 35 years, there\u2019s something familiar about the story Mr. Ryan shares with us.<\/p>\n<p>Dynasties aren\u2019t always built on comfort. They\u2019re built on standards, sacrifice, and often times, friction.<\/p>\n<p>As this current Celtics team sits on the precipice of reintegrating its superstar talent \u2014 with <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/PU7Rd_JF0m8?si=0qQjhxksT3Cgqfnr\">Jayson Tatum poised to return<\/a> to a group that has already found its rhythm \u2014 it wouldn\u2019t be surprising if there are moments of adjustment. Moments of tension. Moments of recalibration.<\/p>\n<p>History reminds us that friction doesn\u2019t have to fracture a team.<\/p>\n<p>Sometimes, it forges a champion.<\/p>\n<p>And if the 1980s can teach us anything about today, it\u2019s this:<\/p>\n<p>We\u2019ve seen this before.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Note from Nick G.<\/h2>\n<p>Hey all, I\u2019d be so honored to have you check out my last feature on the Celtics Top Five Trades in franchise history. There\u2019s some really wild stories and I think you history nuts would enjoy it.<\/p>\n<p>Check it out here:<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"Top 5 Trades in BOSTON CELTICS History &amp; How they Changed NBA FOREVER\" width=\"788\" height=\"443\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/JEIWZmTufbw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When people think of the 1980s Boston Celtics, they think of banners. They think of Larry Bird diving on the parquet. They think of Kevin McHale\u2019s unstoppable low-post moves. They think of championships. What they don\u2019t always think about? The fact that Bird and McHale weren\u2019t exactly best friends. In our latest CLNS History episode,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":150504,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[24807,3333,48,7905],"tags":[25219,25221,2684,1468,25222,25220,8180,2029,2030,2820],"class_list":["post-150500","post","type-post","status-publish","format-video","has-post-thumbnail","category-featured","category-featured-videos","category-nba","category-nba-history-featured-banner","tag-1980s-nba","tag-bird-and-mchale","tag-bob-ryan","tag-boston-celtics","tag-celtics-big-three","tag-celtics-championships","tag-celtics-dynasty","tag-kevin-mchale","tag-larry-bird","tag-nba-history","post_format-post-format-video"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Larry Bird and Kevin McHale: Not Best Friends \u2014 Just Champions - CLNS Media<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Bob Ryan reveals the real relationship between Larry Bird and Kevin McHale \u2014 tension, respect, and how it fueled the Celtics\u2019 80s dynasty.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Larry Bird and Kevin McHale: Not Best Friends \u2014 Just Champions - CLNS Media\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Bob Ryan reveals the real relationship between Larry Bird and Kevin McHale \u2014 tension, respect, and how it fueled the Celtics\u2019 80s dynasty.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"CLNS Media\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CLNSmedia\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/facebook.com\/nick.gelso\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-20T21:20:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-02-20T22:12:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0002.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Nick Gelso\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@clnsmedia\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@clnsmedia\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Nick Gelso\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Nick Gelso\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5c958fb88efee58eaf9af7893ee4ea17\"},\"headline\":\"Larry Bird and Kevin McHale: Not Best Friends \u2014 Just Champions\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-20T21:20:50+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-20T22:12:55+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":644,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/IMG_0002.jpeg\",\"keywords\":[\"1980s NBA\",\"Bird and McHale\",\"bob ryan\",\"Boston Celtics\",\"Celtics Big Three\",\"Celtics Championships\",\"celtics dynasty\",\"Kevin McHale\",\"Larry Bird\",\"nba history\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Featured\",\"Featured Videos\",\"NBA\",\"NBA History Featured Banner\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/\",\"name\":\"Larry Bird and Kevin McHale: Not Best Friends \u2014 Just Champions - CLNS Media\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/IMG_0002.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-20T21:20:50+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-20T22:12:55+00:00\",\"description\":\"Bob Ryan reveals the real relationship between Larry Bird and Kevin McHale \u2014 tension, respect, and how it fueled the Celtics\u2019 80s dynasty.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/IMG_0002.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/IMG_0002.jpeg\",\"width\":1920,\"height\":1080},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Larry Bird and Kevin McHale: Not Best Friends \u2014 Just Champions\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"CLNS Media\",\"description\":\"Covering Boston Sports Since 2009\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"CLNS Media Company\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/12\\\/clns.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/12\\\/clns.jpg\",\"width\":512,\"height\":512,\"caption\":\"CLNS Media Company\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/CLNSmedia\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/clnsmedia\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/clnsmedia\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/channel\\\/UCTNMXdUDhy_ivZkhbsQ_7ZA\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5c958fb88efee58eaf9af7893ee4ea17\",\"name\":\"Nick Gelso\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/bazaart1-96x96.png\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/bazaart1-96x96.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/02\\\/bazaart1-96x96.png\",\"caption\":\"Nick Gelso\"},\"description\":\"Pioneer and award-winning podcaster, Nick Gelso founded the CLNS Media Network in 2009. Spearheads the network\u2019s sales, business development initiatives by day, while moonlighting as an NBA personality on game-nights at TD Garden in Boston.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/facebook.com\\\/nick.gelso\",\"https:\\\/\\\/instagram.com\\\/nbahistoryclns\",\"https:\\\/\\\/linkedin.com\\\/clnsmedia\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/channel\\\/UCWJOKseXd--YsDaUsOt06gA\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.imdb.com\\\/name\\\/nm6155764\\\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.clnsmedia.com\\\/author\\\/nickgelso\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Larry Bird and Kevin McHale: Not Best Friends \u2014 Just Champions - CLNS Media","description":"Bob Ryan reveals the real relationship between Larry Bird and Kevin McHale \u2014 tension, respect, and how it fueled the Celtics\u2019 80s dynasty.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Larry Bird and Kevin McHale: Not Best Friends \u2014 Just Champions - CLNS Media","og_description":"Bob Ryan reveals the real relationship between Larry Bird and Kevin McHale \u2014 tension, respect, and how it fueled the Celtics\u2019 80s dynasty.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/","og_site_name":"CLNS Media","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CLNSmedia\/","article_author":"https:\/\/facebook.com\/nick.gelso","article_published_time":"2026-02-20T21:20:50+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-02-20T22:12:55+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1920,"height":1080,"url":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0002.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Nick Gelso","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@clnsmedia","twitter_site":"@clnsmedia","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Nick Gelso","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/"},"author":{"name":"Nick Gelso","@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5c958fb88efee58eaf9af7893ee4ea17"},"headline":"Larry Bird and Kevin McHale: Not Best Friends \u2014 Just Champions","datePublished":"2026-02-20T21:20:50+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-20T22:12:55+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/"},"wordCount":644,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0002.jpeg","keywords":["1980s NBA","Bird and McHale","bob ryan","Boston Celtics","Celtics Big Three","Celtics Championships","celtics dynasty","Kevin McHale","Larry Bird","nba history"],"articleSection":["Featured","Featured Videos","NBA","NBA History Featured Banner"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/","url":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/","name":"Larry Bird and Kevin McHale: Not Best Friends \u2014 Just Champions - CLNS Media","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0002.jpeg","datePublished":"2026-02-20T21:20:50+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-20T22:12:55+00:00","description":"Bob Ryan reveals the real relationship between Larry Bird and Kevin McHale \u2014 tension, respect, and how it fueled the Celtics\u2019 80s dynasty.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0002.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_0002.jpeg","width":1920,"height":1080},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/larry-bird-kevin-mchale-relationship-celtics\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Larry Bird and Kevin McHale: Not Best Friends \u2014 Just Champions"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/","name":"CLNS Media","description":"Covering Boston Sports Since 2009","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/#organization","name":"CLNS Media Company","url":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/clns.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/clns.jpg","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"CLNS Media Company"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CLNSmedia\/","https:\/\/x.com\/clnsmedia","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/clnsmedia\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCTNMXdUDhy_ivZkhbsQ_7ZA"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5c958fb88efee58eaf9af7893ee4ea17","name":"Nick Gelso","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/bazaart1-96x96.png","url":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/bazaart1-96x96.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/bazaart1-96x96.png","caption":"Nick Gelso"},"description":"Pioneer and award-winning podcaster, Nick Gelso founded the CLNS Media Network in 2009. Spearheads the network\u2019s sales, business development initiatives by day, while moonlighting as an NBA personality on game-nights at TD Garden in Boston.","sameAs":["https:\/\/facebook.com\/nick.gelso","https:\/\/instagram.com\/nbahistoryclns","https:\/\/linkedin.com\/clnsmedia","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCWJOKseXd--YsDaUsOt06gA","https:\/\/www.imdb.com\/name\/nm6155764\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/author\/nickgelso\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150500","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=150500"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150500\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":150520,"href":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150500\/revisions\/150520"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/150504"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=150500"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=150500"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.clnsmedia.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=150500"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}