Two months later, he signed his NBA contract with the Boston Celtics. Get to know Larry Bird: Stats, records and more, How the Celtics landed Larry Bird in the NBA Draft, 1988 NBA Playoff Highlights: Larry Bird and Dominique Wilkins epic showdown, Celtics 75th Season: Bird-Dr. J fight adds to 76ers rivalry, Celtics 75th Season: Bird's debut, Ford sinks first NBA '3', Looking back on Larry Bird's steal against the Pistons, Bill Walton on what made Bird the best he ever played with, Bird's gutsy performance vs. Pacers in '91 series clincher, Three-time NBA champion (1981, 1984, 1986), Three-time All-NBA Defensive Second Team (1982-84), Three-time NBA Three-Point Contest champion (1986-88). Stephen Curry has racked up 29,674 minutes and has played in 864 . Nicknamed "the Hick from French Lick" and "Larry Legend", Bird is widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players of all time.He is the only person in NBA history to be named Rookie of the Year, Most Valuable Player, Finals . Far from it. All rights reserved. His back was also hurting, but Bird came back in the third period to help lift the Celtics to an emotional 124-121 victory. Fans were filling not only Boston Garden, which sold out the final 541 games of Birds career, but arenas all over the country to witness Birds exploits. Bob Knights worst team at IU, by record, was the 1977, post-title team. You wont find much on Larry Birds short-lived baseball career, but those who were there wont soon forget. . He even plays defense, although that's not what's causing the NBA Boston Celtics to salivate over him.". Mark Bird's college team, where he became one of the school's best all-time players. When Bird elected to return to Indiana State for one more year, the Celtics dipped to 29-53. The former NBA player met his second wife, Dinah Mattingly, at Indiana State. Adding Bird to that IU team is almost an embarrassment of riches, giving the sports last undefeated champion a player who was named one of the top 15 players ever in the NCAA tournament during the 75 Years of March Madness Celebration in 2013. They teamed with Bird and veteran Cedric Maxwell in a frontcourt that carried the Celtics to the championship in 1981. At Springs Valley High, Bird scored 1,125 career points, averaged 30.6 points and 20.5 rebounds," Dana Hunsinger Benbow recounted in the Indianapolis Star. Real men play with balls this size, Warn said, glaring at Bird. Do you have a sports website? Bird, now 30 years old and with worsening back condition and foot problems as well, would not win a fourth championship ring. 18 Alabama and No. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. He was there to prove a point. Larry Bird then married Dinah Mattingly on September 30, 1989, who he met while studying at the Indiana State University. Looking at his stats alone, he is known as one of the greatest pure shooters in . Springs Valley went 19-2 and young Larry became a local celebrity. Not just some guy. Larry Bird's wife, Dinah Mattingly, is his high school sweetheart who got engaged and married the former NBA legend in 1989. Larry Bird was a standout in Boston and one of the NBAs most iconic players ever. He was brilliant against the Razorbacks with a a 31-point, 10-rebound game in the regional finals. Or does he simply become the most famous figure from the 1976 squad, adding another Indiana-to-NBA success story and making, I dont know, hand-me-down Larry Bird Sacramento Kings jerseys the most popular commodity at Goodwills in Monroe County in the 1990s and early 2000s? Even the mild mannered Kareem Abdul Jabbar once decked Benson square in the jaw during a pro game, after being delivered one too mant rib shots by him. Larry used BB tThe internet said that Bird's mother worked 2 jobs to care for Larry and his 5 siblings. / NBA. With five seconds remaining and the Celtics trailing 107-106, Bird stole an Isiah Thomas inbounds pass and fed Dennis Johnson, whose layup gave Boston the win. Isiah Thomas was in the high school class of 1979. By. Larry Bird's book is incredible. Larry Bird was a co-star of one of the greatest college basketball national championship games ever Bird vs. Magic, when the undefeated Indiana State Sycamores took on the co-Big Ten champion Michigan State Spartans in the 1979 championship. Bird enjoyed a phenomenal collegiate basketball career at Indiana State (30.3 points per game in a three-year career that included a trip to the national championship game). He averaged a career-high 29.9 points that year, falling just five points short of averaging 30 per contest. Bird won 3 MVP Awards, was selected to play in 12 All-Star Games, and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1998. I also really believe he can be a heck of a coach. His Mom and Dad divorced while Bird was in HS, His dad shot and killed himself a year later. The three-time NBA champion played 94 games with the Sycamores. No other player in his era was as good or as consistent a shooter as Bird. But there were plenty more heroics yet to come. Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP. Larry Bird was born on as Larry Joe Bird to parents: Georgia and Claude Joseph "Joe" Bird, a veteran of the Korean War.He attended Springs Valley High School. the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. Among Birds contemporaries, perhaps only Earvin Magic Johnson was considered a better passer and was a player who he would inextricably be linked with forever. Mike Hayes, a Kentucky Wesleyan player, recounted the game, vividly remembering Birds bizarre, ungainly swing. Benson, of course, was a God in Indiana. Birds status as an Indiana sports legend was cemented by the spring of 1979. IU had three one-possession losses in the 1976-77 season and three defeats by two possessions. Bird was too insecure for the atmosphere there and Magic hated how Knight yelled and screamed and bullied players so he went to Mich State. The story was news to me. Larry Bird. Larry Legend dragged a coach to the national championship game who later had a five-win season and a three-win season in something called the Trans America Athletic Conference while coaching Mercer. The Sycamores went undefeated and reached No. He scored zero points while wearing cream and crimson, however. Nicknamed "the Hick from French Lick" and "Larry Legend", Bird is widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players of all time.Growing up in French Lick, Indiana, he was a local basketball star. But Knight was not impressed. Learn more and register, International Stats at Basketball-Reference.com, College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com Blog and Articles. Thanks Jimmie. Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Saturday, March 4, 6:03AM. College: Indiana State (1976-1979) NBA draft: 1978 / Round: 1 / Pick: 6th overall: . What if Sam Wyche didnt leave IU after only 1 season? As per reports, Bird made around $24 million over the course of his career. His coaching career was shot out of a Larry Bird-sized cannon with the Sycamores going 33-1 and posting a .971 winning percentage in his rookie campaign. I could play baseball, Bird responded, taking the coach by surprise. Net Worth, Salary & Earnings of Larry Bird in 2023. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. That came in spite of Bird playing with a fracture in his left thumb in the Final Four after getting hurt against Arkansas. Talking trash to Larry Bird rarely ever ended well, as former NBA player Rodney Rogers found out the hard way. Larry Bird vs Magic Johnson Stats. Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. For 13 seasons with the Boston Celtics, from 1979-80 through 1991-92, Bird personified hustle, consistency and excellence in all areas of play as a scorer, a passer, a rebounder, a defender, a team player, and, perhaps above all, as a clutch performer. Larry Bird was such a player. How does Larry Bird compare with other great NBA players? The story behind the 1978 NBA draft, often known as the Larry Bird draft, is one of the most important in league history. Bird always held a chip on his shoulder over that, even decades later. Their coach, Bill Hodges, is in his first year, the first rookie ever to take an undefeated team to the tournament final. Best Known For: Basketball icon . Bird averaged 21.3 points, 10.4 assists, and 4.5 steals in 82 games during his rookie season in 1979-80. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. There are lecture halls in Ballentine Hall that are bigger than Northwoods entire student body at the time, and the school briefly landed one of the 20 greatest scorers in college basketball history. When the Celtics named Rick Pitino as the franchises new president and coach, Bird knew any role for him in Boston would be a limited one. He was such a deadly shooter that he sometimes practiced 3-pointers with his eyes closed. UNLV 77, Duke 79, Kentucky 103, Duke 104, Notre Dame 91, UConn 89, Texas A&M 63, Stanford 62. Despite losing leading scorer Steve Green and John Laskowski after the 75 season, IU got the band back together in 1976 and finished what the Hoosiers came three wins away from achieving the previous year: an undefeated, national championship season as they became the NCAAs #1 All-Time March Madness team. In an effort to stop Bird, Bradley coach Dick Versace installed what was referred to as the "Bird's Nest Defense," where two defenders would guard Bird and the other three defenders would cover the four other Sycamores. He initially enrolled at Indiana University in 1974 but dropped out before the season began. Do you have a blog? He's an impressive figure with incredible rivalries, but there are still tons of things that younger NBA fans should know about Larry Legend. However, he was eligible to be drafted without applying for "hardship" because his original college class at Indiana University had graduated. Gambling problem? I think they may even have been on the floor together. Bird would typically start offensive possessions on the right block, where he would utilize the right corner of the floor, the fre-throw line extended and the opposite wing. The highlight of Bird's three-year collegiate career came in 1979, when he led the Sycamores to a 33-0 record and their first NCAA Tournament berth in the program's history. Larry Bird was born on 7 December 1956, making him 64 years old as of today, 2 August 2021. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1998. Tiago Splitter solid in NBA playoff debut Beginning with favorable, Pagns TIME is normally 2 . not larry bird basketball shorts 9%, the greatest considering that 2019 plus great for 90th percentile amongst certified remedies in most associated with football. Kent Benson returned for his senior year, as did forward Wayne Radford for his junior season, but gone were May, Abernethy, Quinn Buckner, Bobby Wilkerson and Jim Crews. Even though he had never coached a game in his life, the Pacers had no qualms about turning over the reins to Bird. It's because of Bird. Bird literally despised him for the way he treated him at Indiana, and he has never been shy to remind people of the opposite trajectories of their respective careers. Gender: Male. Indiana State coach Bill Hodges, by the way, wasnt just in his first year as Indiana States head coach. Nicknamed "The Hick from French Lick" and "Larry Legend", Bird is widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players of all time.He was inducted in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1998.. Hall of Fame Boston Celtics forward Larry Joe Bird is considered one of the greatest to play the game (never mind for the Celtics) because of how clutch a player he was. Three-time NBA champion with Boston Celtics - 1981 . In order to finish his college degree, Larry Bird was working at Ballinger's school as a physical education student-teacher just weeks before becoming an . "He's a great passer and an excellent rebounder. Carr was his best teammate. src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=674090812743125&ev=PageView&noscript=1"/>. Drafted into the NBA by the Boston Celtics with the sixth overall pick in . From his killer jump shot to his famous trash-talking, Bird could seemingly do it . Larry Bird, in full Larry Joe Bird, (born December 7, 1956, West Baden, Indiana, U.S.), American basketball player who led the Boston Celtics to three National Basketball Association (NBA) championships (1981, 1984, and 1986) and is considered one of the greatest pure shooters of all time. The following year was Birds last. It was his first season ever as a college head coach. Subscribe to Stathead Basketball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Basketball Reference Database. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. Widely regarded as one of the greatest basketballers of all time, it . The Official Store of the Larry Bird Indiana State Jersey for College. But his arrogant attitude is hardly a big surprise to those who know about Benson. Larry Bird, AKA "Larry Legend," was selected by the Boston Celtics with the sixth overall pick in the 1978 NBA Draft. . Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. He missed 37 games because of the continuing back problems. As of 2023, Larry Bird's net worth is around $80 million; he has different income sources . Magic Johnson was in the class of 1977. Benson was an all time great college player, but really just a servicable pro. Sucker punch in OVC tournament leads to 3 ejections. Now the Sycamores are 33-0, they are ranked No. Lets pick a winner in every mens college basketball conference tournament. RotoWire considers the best player values in Yahoo fantasy leagues for Friday's 10-game slate. Check out the detailed 1977-78 Indiana State Sycamores Roster and Stats for College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com Celtics Jamal Mashburn recalled how Larry Bird responded to trash-talk at a 'Dream Team' practice in 1992 "Hey Larry, you ain't hit a jumper since '84." I could do that. Bird returned home to become the head coach of the Indiana Pacers in 1997 and led them to the conference finals.
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