Magic & Bird: A Courtship of Rivals (2010) on Netflix
NR20101h 28mDocumentaryDrama
The rivalry between Larry Bird and Magic Johnson began with the 1979 NCAA championship game and continued through their NBA careers. Bird despised the nickname the Great White Hope.
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- Netflix4.1/5
- IMDb8.2/102,530 votes
- Rotten TomatoesNot available
Plot summary
Larry Bird and Magic Johnson carry a rivalry from the 1979 NCAA championship game into the NBA. Johnson, out of Michigan State, goes first in the 1979 draft to the Los Angeles Lakers, while Bird, picked sixth by the Boston Celtics as an underclassman in 1978, returns to Indiana State for his senior season and then signs the richest rookie contract in team sports at that time. Bird takes Rookie of the Year in 1980 while Johnson's Lakers win the title and he is named Finals MVP. The two become unlikely friends away from the court. The documentary examines racial tension around the Celtics and Lakers matchup and the Great White Hope label Bird despised. It argues the attention on the rivalry helped the league survive the 1980s after the ABA merger.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Magic & Bird: A Courtship of Rivals (2010)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- The film argues that without the massive media attention on the Magic Johnson-Larry Bird rivalry, the NBA might not have survived the 1980s after the ABA merger.
