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Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is a former
NBA basketball player.
Larry Legend

Bird is generally considered to be one of the best
players in NBA history. He was inducted into the
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1998,
and was voted one of the 50 greatest NBA players
of the 20th century in 1996. Drafted sixth overall
by the Boston Celtics in 1978, Bird played small
forward for the team for his entire 13-year
career. He retired as a player from the NBA in
1992. After working as an assistant in the Celtics
front office from 1992 to 1997, Bird was the head
coach of the Indiana Pacers from 1997 to 2000. In
2003, he assumed the role of president of
basketball operations for the Pacers, a position
he still holds.

Early life

Bird was born in West Baden Springs, Indiana, the
son of Georgia and Joe Bird. He grew up in both
West Baden and the adjacent town French Lick.
Financial troubles would plague the Bird family
for most of Larry's childhood. In a 1988
interview with Sports Illustrated, Bird recalled
how his mother would make do on the family's
meager earnings: "If there was a payment to the
bank due, and we needed shoes, she'd get the
shoes, and then deal with them guys at the bank. I
don't mean she wouldn't pay the bank, but the
children always came first."[1] Bird sometimes
was sent to live with his grandmother due to the
family's struggles. Being poor as a child, Bird
told Sports Illustrated, "motivates me to this
day."[2]

The Bird family's struggle with poverty was
compounded by the alcoholism and personal
difficulties of Joe Bird. In 1975, after Bird's
parents divorced, his father committed suicide.

In spite of his domestic woes, by the time he was
a high-school sophomore, Bird had become one of
the better basketball players in French Lick. He
starred for the area high school team, Springs
Valley High School, where he left as the school's
all-time scoring leader.


Collegiate career

Bird recieved a basketball scholarship with
Indiana University in 1975. At the time, Indiana
was one of the premier college basketball programs
in the country, coached by esteemed head coach
Bobby Knight. However, Bird--homesick, short on
money and overwhelmed by the size and population
of the university--left the school after one month
and returned to French Lick. After briefly
attending a local community college and working
numerous odd jobs around the town (including a
stint as a garbage man), Bird enrolled at Indiana
State University. He carried the ISU Sycamores to
the NCAA championship game in 1979, his senior
season, only to lose to the Michigan State
University Spartans, who were led by his future
NBA rival, Magic Johnson. That year, Bird won the
Naismith and Wooden Awards, given to the year's
top male college basketball player. After playing
only three years at Indiana State, he left as the
fifth-highest scorer in NCAA history.


Early NBA career
Bird on a cover of TIME with Wayne Gretzky
Enlarge
Bird on a cover of TIME with Wayne Gretzky

The Boston Celtics selected Bird as their
first-round draft pick in 1978, even though they
were uncertain whether he would play his senior
season at Indiana State or enter the NBA. Bird
ultimately decided to stay another year at Indiana
State, but the Celtics retained their exclusive
right to sign him until the 1979 NBA draft.
Shortly before that deadline, Bird agreed to sign
with Boston for a $650,000 a year contract, making
him the highest-paid rookie in the history of the
NBA.

Bird's impact on the Celtics was immediate. The
Celtics were 32-50 during the 1978-79 season, but
with Bird the team improved to 61-21 in 1979-80,
winning the league's Atlantic Division. Bird's
collegiate rival, Magic Johnson, also had entered
the NBA in 1979, joining the Los Angeles Lakers.
Despite a strong rookie season from Johnson, Bird
was named the league's 1979 Rookie of the Year
and was voted onto the Eastern Conference All-Star
team (an honor he would receive for each of his 12
full seasons in the NBA). For the 1979 season,
Bird led the Celtics in scoring (21.3
points/game), rebounding (10.4 rebounds/game),
steals (143), and minutes played (2,955) and was
second in assists (4.5 assists/game) and
three-pointers (58).

Following the 1979-80 season, the Celtics acquired
power forward Kevin McHale and center Robert
Parish through a trade with the Golden State
Warriors. With Bird at small forward, the
additions of Parish and McHale gave Boston one of
the more formidable frontcourts in the game. The
three would anchor the Celtics throughout Bird's
career.

In the 1980-81 season, Bird led the Celtics to the
NBA Finals, where they defeated the Houston
Rockets in six games. It would be the first of
three championships for Bird's career, as well as
the first of his five Finals appearances.


1982-1987: MVPs, Championships and The Rivalry

The additions of Bird and Johnson rejuvenated the
NBA, which had suffered from low attendance and
minimal television interest through much of the
1970s. Immediately upon their entry into the
league, the two players became virtually annual
presences in the NBA Finals; Bird's Celtics won
the NBA title in 1981, while Johnson's Lakers
captured the championship in 1980 and 1982. Bird
and Johnson first dueled in the 1979 NCAA title
game; as professional basketball players, they
would face off numerous times during the 1980's,
including the NBA Finals of 1984, 1985 and 1987.
Lakers vs. Celtics, and specifically Bird vs.
Magic, quickly became one of the greatest
rivalries in the history of professional sports.

In 1984, the Celtics defeated the Lakers in a
seven-game Finals, winning game 7 111-102. Bird
averaged 27 points and 14 rebounds a game during
the series, earning the award of Finals Most
Valuable Player (MVP). Bird was also named the
league regular season MVP for that year. In 1985,
however, the Lakers avenged the loss, defeating
the Celtics in game 6 of the Finals in Boston
Garden. That year, the NBA again named Bird the
league MVP.

Boston would return to the Finals in 1986, albeit
not against Johnson and the Lakers, who lost in
the Western Conference Finals to the Houston
Rockets. The 1986 Celtic team, which finished the
regular season 67-15 and defeated the Rockets in
six games, is generally considered to be the best
of Bird's career. Bird again was named the
Finals' MVP for that year, averaging 24 points,
10 rebounds and 10 assists per game for the
series. He also won his third consecutive league
MVP award.

In 1987, the Celtics made their last Finals
appearance of Bird's career, fighting through
difficult series against the Milwaukee Bucks and
Detroit Pistons before losing to the Lakers in six
games. Johnson's Lakers would ultimately win the
Finals again in 1988. Between themselves, Bird and
Johnson captured eight NBA championships during
the 1980s, with Magic getting five and Bird three.
During the 1980s, either Boston or Los Angeles
appeared in every NBA Finals except 1983.

Throughout the 1980s, contests between the Celtics
and the Lakers--both during the regular season and
in the Finals--attracted enormous television
audiences. The historical rift between the teams,
who faced each other several times in championship
series of the 1960s, fueled fan interest in the
rivalry. Not since Boston's Bill Russell squared
off against the Lakers' Wilt Chamberlain had
professional basketball enjoyed such a marquee
matchup. The apparent contrast between the two
players and their respective teams seemed scripted
for television: Bird, the introverted small-town
hero with the blue-collar work ethic, fit
perfectly with the throwback, hard-nosed style of
the Celtics, while the stylish, gregarious Johnson
ran the Lakers' fast-paced "Showtime" offense
amidst the bright lights and celebrities of Los
Angeles. A 1984 Converse commercial for its
"Weapon" line of basketball shoes (endorsed by
both Bird and Johnson) reflected the perceived
dichotomy between the two players. In the
commercial, Bird is practicing alone on a rural
basketball court when Johnson pulls up in a sleek
limousine and challenges him to a one-on-one
match.

Despite the intensity of their rivalry, Bird and
Johnson became friends off the court. Somewhat
ironically, their relationship blossomed when the
two players worked together to film the 1984
Converse commercial, which depicted them as
archenemies. Johnson appeared at Bird's
retirement ceremony in 1992 and emotionally
described Bird as a "friend forever."


1988-1992: The Twilight Years

In 1988, the Celtics failed to reach the NBA
Finals for the first time in four years, losing to
the Pistons in six games in the Eastern Conference
Finals. Bird started the 1988-89 season with
Boston, but ended his season after six games to
have bone spurs surgically removed from both of
his heels. He returned to the Celtics in 1989, but
debilitating back problems and an aging Celtic
roster prevented him from regaining his
mid-1980's form. Nonetheless, through the final
years of his career, Bird maintained his status as
one of the premier players in the game. He
averaged over 20 points, 9 rebounds and 7 assists
a game in his last three seasons with the Celtics,
and shot better than 45 percent from the field in
each. Bird led the Celtics to playoff appearances
in each of those three seasons.

In the summer of 1992, Bird joined Johnson,
Michael Jordan and other NBA stars to play for the
United States basketball team in that year's
Olympics. It was the first time in America's
Olympic history that the country sent professional
basketball players to compete. The "Dream Team"
easily won the men's basketball gold medal.

Following his Olympic experience, on August 18,
1992, Bird announced his retirement as an NBA
player. He finished his career with averages of
more than 24 points, 10 rebounds and 6 assists per
game. For his career, Bird shot 49.6 percent from
the field, 88.6 percent from the free throw line
and 37.6 percent from three-point range. Following
Bird's departure, the Celtics promptly retired
his number, '33'.


NBA Career After Retirement

The Celtics employed Bird as a special assistant
in the team's front office from 1992 until 1997.
In 1997, Bird accepted the position of coach of
the Indiana Pacers. Despite having no previous
coaching experience, Bird led the Pacers to three
straight Eastern Conference finals appearances and
one trip to the NBA Finals in 2000. He was named
the NBA Coach of the Year for the 1997-1998
season.

Bird resigned as Pacers coach shortly after the
end of the 2000 season. In 2003, he returned as
the Pacers' President of Basketball Operations,
where he oversees team personnel and coaching
moves, as well as the team's draft selections.


Bird's Legacy

Bird's humble roots led to his most frequently
used moniker, "The Hick From French Lick." More
cynical or facetious observers called him "The
Great White Hope." As a Caucasian superstar in a
league dominated by African-American athletes,
Bird undoubtedly stood out because of his race,
but his skin color has little do do with his place
in NBA history. Despite having relatively few
athletic advantages (other than his height, at
6'9"), Bird possessed an uncanny and
unparalleled ability to anticipate and react to
the strategies of his opponents. His talent for
recognizing the moves of opponents and teammates
prompted his first coach with the Celtics, Bill
Fitch, to nickname him "Kodak," because he
seemed to formulate mental pictures of every play
that took place on the court.

Throughout his career, Bird was a fierce
competitor and outstanding team leader. Former
teammates of Bird frequently said that through his
selfless play and leadership, Bird elevated their
level of play. In addition to his offensive
proficiency, Bird made the simple task of passing
the ball an artistic feat. Of the players of his
era, only Johnson and Jordan could execute the
no-look or touch pass to a teammate as craftily
and creatively as Bird.

Bird is also remembered as an excellent defender,
as evidenced by his career 1,556 steals. He was
not fast or quick-footed, and rarely could shut
down an individual player one-on-one, but Bird
consistently displayed a knack for anticipating
the moves of his opponent, thereby reacting to
passes and creating turnovers. Unspectactular but
effective defensive moves, such as jumping a
passing lane to make a steal or allowing his man
to step past and drive to the hoop, then blocking
the opponent's shot from behind, were staples of
Bird's defensive game.

Above all, Bird is remembered as one of the
foremost clutch performers in the history of the
NBA. Few players before or since Bird have
performed as brilliantly in critical moments of
games. The following is merely a sample of the
notable clutch efforts of Bird's career:

    * In game 7 of the 1988 Eastern Conference
semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks, Bird shot 9
of 10 in the fourth quarter, scoring 20 points in
that quarter alone and lifting the Celtics to a
narrow series-clinching victory over Atlanta. Bird
outdueled the Hawks' Dominique Wilkins, who
scored 47 points in that game. Bird had previously
guaranteed to reporters that Boston would not lose
the game; his fourth-quarter performance delivered
his promise.

    * In the clinching game 6 of the 1986 Finals,
Bird recorded a triple-double (the basketball term
for double-digit numbers in three categories) of
29 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists.

    * In game 5 of the 1987 Eastern Conference
Finals against the Detroit Pistons, with five
seconds remaining in the fourth quarter and Boston
trailing the Pistons 107-106, Bird stole an
inbound pass from Isiah Thomas intended for Bill
Laimbeer. With the clock ticking down and with his
momentum carrying him out of bounds, Bird turned
and fired the ball to teammate Dennis Johnson, who
converted a layup with 2 seconds left to win the
game for Boston. The dramatic play--known simply
to Boston fans as "The Steal"--saved the series
for the Celtics, who, had they lost game 5, would
have had to win game 6 in Detroit (where they were
winless in the series) to force a decisive seventh
game. Instead, after losing in Detroit, Boston won
game 7 and advanced to the Finals.

    * In game 4 of the 1987 Finals against the
Lakers, Bird fought off defender James Worthy, got
the ball, turned and hit a three-point shot with
less than a minute remaining to give the Celtics
the lead. Magic Johnson would regain the lead for
the Lakers with a clutch shot of his own, but Bird
had one final chance to win the game. With only a
few seconds remaining, he recieved the ball behind
the three-point line and fired again. The shot was
on line, but glanced off the rim and missed as
time expired.

    * In the second quarter of game 5 of the
Celtics' 1991 first-round playoff series against
the Indiana Pacers, Bird slipped and fell,
crashing face-first onto the Boston Garden floor.
A hushed Garden crowd watched as Bird was escorted
to the locker room, then erupted in the third
quarter as Bird dramatically came up the ramp to
the court and rejoined his teammates. Despite a
concussion and a resultant severe headache, Bird
scored 32 points on 12 for 19 shooting, leading
Boston to victory for the game and the series.

    * In the 1988 All-Star Game Three Point
Contest, Bird--the winner of the event in both
years since its creation in 1986--faced Seattle
Supersonics guard Dale Ellis in the final round of
the competition. Ellis went first and scored 15
points. Bird started slowly, then ran off a series
of makes, needing to hit his final three shots to
beat Ellis. He did so. After Bird shot the last
ball in the rack, he raised his arm and index
finger as the ball was halfway to the rim, and
walked away. The shot went in, winning the
competition 17-15 and capturing Bird's
third-straight shootout title.
      Bird raises his arm in anticipation after
firing the winning shot of the 1988 Three Point
Contest
      Enlarge
      Bird raises his arm in anticipation after
firing the winning shot of the 1988 Three Point
Contest

Larry Bird embodied discipline in the NBA. A local
Indiana boy who makes it to the pros - he never
flinched, and he was always clutch.

Michael Jordan, who may have supplanted Bird as
the league's most feared clutch player through
his heroics with the Chicago Bulls, once was asked
who he would want to take a shot with the game on
the line, other than himself. Before the question
could be finished, Jordan quickly responded,
"Larry Bird."[Sports Illustrated, June 21,
2005]