Larry Bird
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Position | Forward |
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| Nickname | "Larry Legend", "The Hick from French Lick" |
| Height | 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) |
| Weight | 220 lb (100 kg) |
| Nationality |  United States |
| Born | December 7, 1956 (age 50) West Baden Springs, IN |
| College | Indiana State |
| Draft | 6th overall, 1978 |
| Pro career | 1979–1992 |
| Former teams | Boston Celtics (1979–1992) |
| Awards | 1979 USBWA College Player of the Year 3-time NBA MVP 3-time NBA Champion 2-time NBA Finals MVP 12-time All-Star 1982 All-Star MVP 1980 NBA Rookie of the Year 1992 Olympic gold medal |
| Hall of Fame | 1998 |
Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is an American former NBA basketball player, widely considered one of the greatest players to ever play, and one of the best clutch performers in the history of sports. Drafted into the NBA sixth overall by the Boston Celtics in 1978, Bird played small forward and power forward for thirteen seasons. Due to back problems, he retired as a player from the NBA in 1992. Bird was voted to the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team[1] in 1996 and inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame[2] in 1998.
After working as an assistant in the Celtics front office from 1992 to 1997, Bird served as head coach of the Indiana Pacers from 1998 to 2000. In 2003, he assumed the role of president of basketball operations for the Pacers, which he currently still holds.
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[edit] Biography
Bird was born in West Baden Springs, Indiana, the son of Georgia Kerns and Claude Joseph "Joe" Bird.[1] He grew up in both West Baden and the adjacent town French Lick, which earned him the nickname "the Hick from French Lick" in his later basketball career. 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."[3] 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."[4]
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 French Lick/West Baden's high school team, Springs Valley High School, where he left as the school's all-time scoring leader. His picture hangs in the school, which is located on what is now Larry Bird Boulevard in French Lick.
[edit] Collegiate career
Bird received a basketball scholarship to Indiana University in 1974. At the time, Indiana was one of the premier college basketball programs in the country, led by esteemed head coach Bobby Knight. However, Bird—homesick and overwhelmed by the size and population of the university—left the school after one month and returned to French Lick. After briefly attending Northwood Institute in West Baden and working numerous odd jobs around the town (including a job with the French Lick Street Department—which did much more than just pick up garbage), Bird enrolled at Indiana State University, where he was coached by Bob King.
King suffered a heart attack prior to the 1978–79 season and assistant Bill Hodges was promoted to head coach. Bird led 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, Earvin "Magic" Johnson. The Sycamores finished the season 33–1. That year, Bird won the USBWA College Player of the Year, 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. Bird finished his collegiate career with averages of -334 PPG.
[edit] 1979–1981: Early NBA career
The Boston Celtics selected Bird 6th overall in the 1978 NBA Draft, even though they were not certain whether he would enter the NBA or remain at Indiana State to play his senior season. Soon after being selected Bird had a son name Chris Bird. Bird ultimately decided on the latter, but the Celtics retained their exclusive right to sign him until the 1979 NBA Draft. Shortly before that deadline, Bird agreed to sign with the Celtics for a USD $650,000 a year contract, making him at the time the highest-paid rookie in the history of the NBA.
Larry Bird's impact on the Celtics was immediate. The Celtics were 29–53 during the 1978–79 season, but with Bird the team improved to 61–21 in the 1979–80 season, winning the league's best record. Bird's collegiate rival, Magic Johnson, also had entered the NBA in 1979, joining the Los Angeles Lakers. In 1980, despite a strong rookie season from Johnson, Bird was named the league's 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 1980 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). Though Boston would be upset by the more athletic Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference finals that year, the promise of Celtic glory had been renewed through Bird.
Following that season, the Celtics acquired center Robert Parish and the 3rd pick in the 1980 NBA Draft via a trade with the Golden State Warriors (in exchange for the 1st and 13th picks in the draft). After the Warriors took Joe Barry Carroll with the 1st pick and the Utah Jazz took Darrell Griffith with the 2nd pick, the Celtics selected University of Minnesota power forward Kevin McHale. 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 Bird's first few seasons with the Celtics, his and their immediate rivals were Julius Erving and the Philadelphia 76ers, with whom they would battle each year in the Eastern Conference finals.
In the 1980–81 season, Bird led the Celtics past the 76ers 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.
[edit] 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 an Eastern Conference championship in 2000 and two Eastern Conference runner-up finishes the previous two seasons. He was named the NBA Coach of the Year for the 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.
[edit] Coaching record
Indiana Pacers
- 1998: 58-24, Eastern Conference Runner-Up
- 1999: 33-17, Eastern Conference Runner-Up (note: season was shortened due to lockout)
- 2000: 56-26, Eastern Conference Champions
[edit] Bird's legacy
Bird's humble roots led to his most frequently used moniker, "The Hick From French Lick". Other observers called him "The Great White Hope". As a White American superstar in a league dominated by African American athletes, Bird undoubtedly stood out because of his race, but his skin color has little to do with his place in NBA history. 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. His former teammates frequently said that he elevated their level of play through his selfless play and leadership.
Bird's competitive nature is also shown through by his constant trash-talking on the court. Some notable examples:
- During one game on Christmas Day against the Indiana Pacers, before the game Bird told Chuck Person that he would give him a Christmas present. During the game, when Person was on the bench, Bird shot a three-pointer on the baseline right in front of Person. Immediately after the shot, Bird said to Person, "Merry f***in' Christmas!", and then the shot went in.
- During the three-point shooting contest on All-Star Weekend 1986, Bird entered the locker room, looked around without saying a word, then finally said "I'm just looking around to see who's gonna finish up second." He indeed won the shooting contest
- Late in a tied game against the Seattle SuperSonics, Bird told Supersonics forward Xavier McDaniel, who was guarding him, exactly where he would hit the game winning shot. After a timeout, Bird made two baseline cuts, then posted in the exact spot he had indicated to McDaniel, paused and turned and hit the shot in his face.
- On a night in 1984 versus Philadelphia where he was outscoring Julius Erving by a margin of 42–6, he continuously informed Erving of their tallies every chance he got, which resulted in first a shoving match, then swings taken by both players and culminated in a bench-clearing brawl.
In addition to his offensive proficiency, Bird made the simple task of passing the ball an artistic feat.
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 he consistently displayed a knack for anticipating the moves of his opponent, allowing him to intercept passes and create turnovers. Unspectactular but effective defensive moves, such as jumping into 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.
[edit] Player profile
- Once every generation or so, a player comes along who can truly be called a superstar. Larry Bird was such a player.
- — introductory line of Bird's nba.com/history biography[2]
Larry Bird was a versatile wing man who played the power forward and small forward positions. He is considered as one of the greatest cornermen of all time, proven by his twelve All-Star callups. The versatile, sharpshooting Bird made his name for stepping up his game in critical situations, credited with a long list of dominating games, buzzer beaters and clutch defensive plays (see section below). He won two NBA Finals MVP and three regular-season MVP awards. His competitiveness was also visible in his trademark trash talk.
Bird scored 24.3 points per game in his career on a high .496 field goal average, a stellar .886 free throw average (9th best all-time) and shooting .376 from beyond the arc. Bird was also a good rebounder (10.0 rebounds career average) and an excellent playmaker (6.3 assists career average). His multidimensional game made him a legitimate triple-double threat; Bird currently ranks fifth all-time in triple-doubles with 59, not including the 10 he recorded in the playoffs. On his own half of the hardwood, Bird was a capable defender, proven by his three All-Defensive Second Team callups. He was not known for his ability to shut down opponents, but rather play the passing lanes and jumping in to steal the ball (1,556 career steals, 27th all-time) [5]. Bird's all-around game is also testified by the fact that his lifetime PER rating is 23.5, 16th all-time. [6]
Bird was also known for being an excellent teammate and leading by example. In his nba.com page, he is stated as the "Embodiment of 'Celtics Pride.' (...), a classy, confident, hardworking player who thrived on pressure and inspired teammates to excel (...) (Bird) brought out the best in the players around him."
[edit] Memorable moments
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 1981 Eastern Conference finals against the rival Philadelphia 76ers, Boston and Philadelphia were tied 89-89 when Bird sank a fast-break mid-range pull-up bank shot, a very difficult shot to execute under intense pressure. That basket won Boston the game and the series and they would go on to win the NBA championship in the Finals. In the late stages of the game Bird also had two key steals, two free throws made, a rebound, and a blocked shot.
- In the series-clinching Game 6 of the 1986 Finals, Bird recorded a triple-double 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 that was 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 1 second left to win the game for Boston. The dramatic play 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 received 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 a game in Washington against the Bullets in 1987, the Celtics trailed the Bullets by 3 points with 6 seconds remaining in regulation. A three-pointer by Bird had been waved off because their coach, K. C. Jones, had already called a timeout. Bird then successfully made another three-pointer to send the game into overtime. When the Celtics trailed by two points near the end of the first overtime, Bird was fouled and converted both free throws. With 2 seconds remaining in the second overtime the Celtics trailed by one. Bird sank a buzzer-beating runner to win the game, 140-139.
- In the 1988 All-Star Weekend 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 made baskets, needing to hit his final three shots to beat Ellis, which he did. 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 earning Bird's third-straight shootout title.
- In Game 7 of the 1988 Eastern Conference semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks, Bird shot 9 of 10 from the floor 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.
- On March 31, 1991, the Boston Celtics fought hard with the Chicago Bulls in their last meeting of the season, which went into double overtime. Bird almost won the game for his team at the end of regulation when his 30-foot 3-point shot just missed after getting a high bounce on top of the rim. In the second overtime period, Bird scored 9 points on 4 of 5 shooting from the field and helped the Celtics beat the Bulls, 135-132. Many called this particular game Bird's finest performance against Michael Jordan, considering that it came at a time when Bird's physical durability had eroded (Bird was suffering from debilitating back problems).
- In the second quarter of game 5 of the Celtics' 1991 first-round playoff series against the Indiana Pacers, Bird lost the ball and dove after it, 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 last seconds of his a nationally-televised regular season game with the Portland Trail Blazers in March 1992, Bird saved the Celtics as his desperation one-handed three-point shot went in and sent the game into overtime. Bird tallied 49 points, 14 rebounds, 12 assists and 4 steals for his 59th and final career triple-double in what many fans called his last great game in the NBA. The Celtics won in double overtime over the Blazers, 152-148. Bird's 49 points stands as the NBA record for most points scored while registering a triple-double.
- Michael Jordan, who may have followed 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]
[edit] Memorable games
- On March 30, 1983, Bird scored 53 points against the Indiana Pacers to set the Celtic record for highest scoring output in a game by an individual player (the previous record belonged to Sam Jones who scored 51 points against the Detroit Pistons on October 29, 1965). Bird would also set the franchise record for most points scored in a quarter with 24 points in the third quarter which has since been equaled by Todd Day against the Minnesota Timberwolves on December 22, 1995.
- On November 9, 1984, Bird was ejected along with Julius Erving in the third quarter after an on court scuffle. At the point of both ejections, Bird had outscored Erving 42 to 6.
- On February 18, 1985, Bird registered a triple double (30 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists) in only three quarters of play against the Utah Jazz. Despite being only one steal shy of recording a quadruple-double, Bird sat out the fourth quarter. After the game, Bird commented "I already did enough damage. Why go for it if we're up by 30?" The Celtics led the Jazz 90–66 after the third quarter and won the game 110–94.
- On March 12, 1985, Bird scored 60 points against the Atlanta Hawks to reclaim the record for highest scoring output in a game by a Celtic. This feat occurred just nine days after teammate, Kevin McHale, broke Bird's previous record by scoring 56 points against the Detroit Pistons.
- On April 1, 1987, Bird registered a triple double (17 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists) by halftime against the Washington Bullets. He would finish the game with 30 points, 17 rebounds, and 15 assists prompting then-Bullets coach Kevin Loughery to say "He's playing in his own league. Maybe it's a league other guys can't get to."
- On November 11, 1987, Bird completed the first 40 point–20 rebound game in Celtics history against the Indiana Pacers.
- On November 10, 1989, Bird scored 50 points against the Atlanta Hawks to register his fourth and final 50 point game in his career. Bird's four career 50 point games stand as the record for most 50 point games by a Celtic.
- Bird would register three 40 point triple double games throughout his career. The first occurred on February 14, 1986 in an overtime win against the Portland Trailblazers. He would finish that game with 47 points, 14 rebounds, and 11 assists. The second occurrence was on December 13, 1989 in a win over the Seattle Supersonics (40 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists). The last occurrence was in a double overtime win against the Portland Trailblazers on March 15, 1992 where Bird finished with 49 points (the record for most points scored while recording a triple double), 14 rebounds, and 12 assists. Throughout his career, Bird recorded 69 triple doubles (59 in the regular season and 10 in the postseason) which stands behind Oscar Robertson, Magic Johnson, Wilt Chamberlain, and Jason Kidd for 5th most all-time.
[edit] Trivia
- According to an Indiana Farm Bureau Insurance commercial that ran in the late 1990s, Larry himself says that when he was a boy, he used to shoot 200 free throws before school, every day.
- In October 2005, a man in Oklahoma City, Eric James Torpy, was convicted of shooting with intent to kill and robbery asked that his sentence be changed from 30 years to 33 years so that it would match Bird's jersey number. His request was accommodated.
- Larry Bird also has his own shoe brand named "33's" or Birds. They have a logo of him shooting in the back and the number 33 on each side.
- Larry has appeared in three movies, Blue Chips, released in 1994 by Paramount, the Warner Brothers film Space Jam with Michael Jordan and Bill Murray in 1996, and Celtic Pride with Dan Aykroyd, Daniel Stern, and Damon Wayans, which was also released in 1996.
- Larry Bird appears in as a member of the 80's Legends Team in NBA 2K and NBA Live Series and in NCAA College Hoops 2K7 and NCAA March Madness he appears as a member of the 1978 Indiana State Sycamores as a member of the historic team.
- Larry Bird has always said that Michael Cooper was the only player who could shut him down.
- Bill Simmons of ESPN's Page Two column refers to Bird as "the Basketball Jesus."
- The indie rock band Vermont references and praises Larry Bird in their song "Ballad of Larry Bird", including, among many lines, "I will be there/Say the word/I'm a straight shooter like Larry Bird."
- His wife, Dinah, is the sister of former New York Yankees first baseman Don Mattingly.
- There is a reference to "the great Larry Bird jersey, 33" in pop music group LFO's hit song "Summer Girls."
- Larry Bird is referenced to being "clear," not white, by Bill Murray in the movie Space Jam.
[edit] See also
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ http://www.wargs.com/other/bird.html
- ^ nba.com/history, nba.com Larry Bird, accessed January 25, 2007
[edit] External links
- Larry Bird biography provided by hoophall.com
- Sportscentury's 30th greatest athlete of all time provided by ESPN.com
- Famous Quotations by Larry Bird
- NBA.com: Where Legends Are Born
- NBA History
- CNN/Sports Illustrated: A Player for the Ages
- 1979 Oscar Robertson Trophy USBWA College Player of the Year
- Career Stats, courtesy of basketball-reference.com
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.wargs.com/other/bird.html
- ^ nba.com/history, nba.com Larry Bird, accessed January 25, 2007
| Preceded by Alfred Lee |
Naismith College Player of the Year (Men) 1979 |
Succeeded by Mark Aguirre |
| Preceded by Phil Ford |
NBA Rookie of the Year 1979-80 |
Succeeded by Darrell Griffith |
| Preceded by Nate Archibald |
NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player 1982 |
Succeeded by Julius Erving |
| Preceded by Moses Malone |
NBA Most Valuable Player 1983-84 1984-85 1985-86 |
Succeeded by Magic Johnson |
| Preceded by Moses Malone Kareem Abdul-Jabbar |
NBA Finals Most Valuable Player 1984 1986 |
Succeeded by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Magic Johnson |
| 1992 Olympic Champions Men's Basketball – "Dream Team" |
|---|
| Charles Barkley | Larry Bird | Clyde Drexler | Patrick Ewing | Magic Johnson | Michael Jordan Christian Laettner | Karl Malone | Chris Mullin | Scottie Pippen | David Robinson | John Stockton |
| Coach: Chuck Daly |
| Preceded by Butch Lee |
Naismith College Player of the Year (men) 1979 |
Succeeded by Mark Aguirre |
| Preceded by Phil Ford |
John R. Wooden Award (men) 1979 |
Succeeded by Darrell Griffith |
| Preceded by Larry Brown |
Indiana Pacers Head Coach 1997–2000 |
Succeeded by Isiah Thomas |
Categories: 1956 births | American basketball coaches | American basketball players | Basketball Hall of Fame | Basketball players at the 1992 Summer Olympics | Boston Celtics players | Indiana Pacers coaches | Indiana Pacers | Living people | National Basketball Association executives | Olympic competitors for the United States | Olympic gold medalists for the United States | People from Indiana | Junior Chamber International
