When Chuck Person arrived in Indiana in 1986, the Pacers hadn't won a playoff game since 1976—they made just one postseason appearance and were swept by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1981. However, all of that would change with The Rifleman in town.
Not only did Person win the 1987 Rookie of the Year award, but he also led Indiana back to the playoffs in 1987 and 1990. Although they did not make it out of the first round during both years, the Pacers were starting to build something special, and it was only a matter of time before they would take that next step. That nearly happened in 1991, when Indiana pushed the Boston Celtics to the brink of elimination in their first-round series.
"Before I got there and before Reggie got there, the only time the Pacers would have sellouts was if the Lakers came to town or if Larry Bird came to town," Person said . "We felt a responsibility to say, 'Hey, Market Square Arena, Indianapolis is the Pacers' hometown and not Larry's.' We took on that attitude (during the series) and said we're going to take our city back."
Pacers take Celtics to a Game 5
After the Celtics took the series opener, Chuck responded with a 39-point explosion as the Pacers stole Game 2 at the fabled Boston Garden. The C's took back the home-court advantage with Kevin McHale scoring 22 in Game 3. But Person and Co. refused to go away as The Rifleman scored 30 points in Game 4 to send the series to a winner-take-all Game 5 in Boston.
The Pacers looked like they would pull off an upset, especially when Larry Bird left the game in the second quarter after hitting the floor with his face—it was later revealed that he suffered a broken cheekbone. But to everyone's surprise, the Celtics forward came back and had a performance for the ages.
"He came back, and then the myth of Larry Bird, the legend of Larry Bird, just continued to grow after he pressed his face on that floor," added Person. "Man, I'll tell you, he came back out, and it was like a superhuman person reemerged. He just resurrected his game."
Larry's last legendary playoff performance
With the Pacers looking to take control of the game, Bird resurfaced midway through the third quarter. He scored a dozen points in the period as the Celtics seized a 100-91 going into the final 12 minutes. Bird would finish the game with 32 points, matching Person's output as the Celtics survived Indiana's late rally to win the series.
"We had the shot to win it and that's all you can ask for going up against a storied franchise with such Hall of Fame players that they had. We really played our hearts out, and the better team won," Chuck concluded.
Despite being the underdogs, the Pacers played like the better team in that series—the same goes for Game 5. However, the Celtics had more experience—and they had Larry Legend.
Interestingly, that game was Bird's last masterclass in the playoffs, and fittingly, it was in Boston Garden and against the Pacers.
Related: Ainge on what if Bird played in today's era: "I'm pretty confident that he would be shooting nine or ten 3-point shots per game"
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