Luka Dealt to Lakers: Nico Harrison is a Basketball Terrorist

[F Gump]

Larry Bird ate cake and drank and did all of that stuff while MJ took care of his body. Larry retired due to injuries after 12 years. (He played 13 but 1 year only played 6 games)

There is no comparison at all between Bird and Luka. About the opposites, really. Bird's off-court work ethic on his conditioning and on his skills was legendary.

The "cake" stuff was not his habit at all -- it was what happened during his year off for back surgery due to injury, and was noteworthy because he abandoned the good eating and conditioning habits he had due to being "bored" as he tried to heal at home and had nothing to do. 

Also, the injury itself was not a result of lack of conditioning, but rather resulted from him shoveling gravel in the 1985 off-season and hurting his back in doing so. Despite the injury, he worked and conditioned his way through the injury, winning the MVP in that ensuing season while playing all 82 games at 38 mpg, and he finished 3rd and 2nd the following 2 seasons while playing no less than 74 games each season. The season after that, at age 32, was when he was finally forced to have back surgery because it was so bad, missing that season.

After the year off, he worked back into top shape to try to win another title. He gritted it out for 3 more seasons with more and more games being missed because his back was hurting too bad, until he gave up. Even at the end, he was a great player when he could take the court.