The legend of Larry Bird is vast. By appearance, he looked to be an innocent man with ginger hair. It was hard to depict anything notorious. But that’s how Bird was. By heart, he was as fierce a competitor as one could be, and he relished letting his opponents know about the tough time they were going to have. In doing so, he left a flock of NBA legends with unforgettable stories.

Trash talking was Bird’s language. Byron Scott for one, didn’t hesitate to name him as the player who used his mouth the most. “I always say he was s–t talking, but he was backing it up. So really, he wasn’t s–t talking,” Scott said about his perspective of the Celtics legend. His guest, Mitch Richmond, had a similar vantage point.

Larry Bird never tried to make his mind games obvious. “He was a quiet s–t talker… He wasn’t loud with it ,” said the six-time All-Star. But the players guarding him knew exactly how degrading it felt. Richmond remembers Tom Tolbert playing suffocating defense on Bird during a Christmas Day game. There was practically nothing the Hall of Famer could do but shoot.

That’s where Tolbert made a mistake. He fell into Bird’s temptations.

“Larry picked up the ball and he couldn’t find no one and Tolbert was all over it you know. He couldn’t find it, he just turned around and launched it, and Tolbert say ‘off, that’s off’. He say all for good… I’m like, “Oh s–t.” Yeah, man. He was a tough cook. He was great, man. My grandmother, that was her favorite player,” Richmond admitted on Fast Break.

That’s how a lot of the Larry Bird stories end. Richmond, through his battles with Bird only ever won once. In four games, the Celtics forward averaged close to 28 points, imposing his dominance while subsequently giving Richmond’s grandmother a bittersweet moment. Sadly. Richmond never got to call Bird a teammate.

But he wasn’t the only fierce talker he played with. Charles Barkley did it just as much, but it wasn’t the same as Larry Bird.

Charles Barkley could never stay quiet

The 1992 ‘Dream Team’ had unprecedented allure. The Olympic team had a cluster of Hall of Famers, the NBA’s very best. That’s where Charles Barkley announced himself on the global stage. He set the objective during an iconic press conference. “I don’t know anything about Angola, but Angola’s in trouble,” said Chuck.

The 1988 Olympics, where Team USA finished third, was the catalyst behind the Dream Team. Mitch Richmond was a part of that disappointing group that finished with a bronze. “At that time, we felt that the European style of basketball had caught up,” he told Scott.

After that, Richmond wasn’t named to the Dream Team. But in 1996, he was the final selection, which is where he got to experience the intense scrimmages and practices. A part of that team once again was Charles Barkley, a shrewd and controversial figure who set the tone. The rest of the players’ profile was also nothing short of sensational.

The likes of Karl Malone, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Penny Hardaway went to the games. Richmond, an established star by then, recalls all the players talking trash. But one voice was still prominent after four years. “Charles was the loudest voice. How about that?” he revealed.

Barkley was louder, but his character was just like Larry Bird’s. In both 1992 and 1996, the Hall of Famer led Team USA in scoring and was a key part of their dominance. It’s also great to see that Charles Barkley hasn’t changed. He still takes digs at Shaq and the Inside the NBA crew. That might never change. But that’s the person the NBA community has come to love.