As many observed, he would see plays not as they were developing, but before they developed. Couldn't have happened. His back was also hurting, but Bird came back in the third period to help lift the Celtics to an emotional 124-121 victory. As per reports, Bird made around $24 million over the course of his career. 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. He left campus not long after that and literally hithhiked home. And in the 2000 NBA Finals, the Pacers succumbed in a six-game series to the Lakers, led by Shaquille ONeal and Kobe Bryant, for the Lakers first of three consecutive titles. Real men play with balls this size, Warn said, glaring at Bird. Widely regarded as one of the greatest basketballers of all time, it . What if Phil Dickens and IU football hadnt gotten the whole dang department sanctioned? He won the Rookie of the Year award, 3 MVP awards, 2 Finals MVP awards and 3 NBA championships. 11 in the AP poll that season and finished the year ranked No. Larry Bird - net worth, private life. Bird scored a team-high 19 points for the Sycamores in the 1979 national championship game but it wasn't his most efficient performance as he was just 7-of-21 from the field and 5-for-8 from the free-throw line. Experience: 13 years. An offseason trade with Golden State which that many consider the most lopsided in NBA history brought center Robert Parish and a future first-round pick (which became Kevin McHale) to Boston. Hodges allowed Bird to sleep in, which annoyed the folks who sponsored the brunch and the award, and some in the media. There is no question about his eligibility.. 19 Minnesota showed the teams potential. Magic Johnson was in the class of 1977. Everyone knew Bird was destined for greatness in the NBA, but that didnt stop Indiana State baseball coach Bob Warn from roasting him. He and owner Herb Simon had discussed his eventual departure for a few years. The Celtics beat the Houston Rockets in '81 with Maxwell and Larry Bird leading the way and defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in 1984 when Maxwell confidently told his teammates "to get on my back, boys" in the decisive . Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Lost to most people in the basketball statistics for the Springs Valley team that year, however, was a short piece in a Bedford newspaper that noted, "The freshman free-throw trophy was presented to Larry Bird. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. RotoWire considers the best player values in Yahoo fantasy leagues for Friday's 10-game slate. He did some commercials and appeared in a few films, including Michael JordansSpace Jam. Larry Bird Comparisons: ( players sorted by last name ) - A-Larry Bird vs Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. '", Indiana State coach Bill Hodges on the notion that man-to-man defenses might slow Bird down: "If we go against a UCLA or a Notre Dame later on and they play man-to-man, that's when you'll see how tough Larry really is. He averaged better than 30 points and 10 rebounds for the Sycamores during his first campaign. Would an 18-year-old Bird have been ready to take a complementary, if not starring, role as a freshman in the second or third weekend of the NCAA tournament? See our ethics statement. Check out the detailed 1977-78 Indiana State Sycamores Roster and Stats for College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com A defensive maven who stifled some of the best stars, Dennis Johnson was an All-Star, a Finals MVP and won three NBA titles. He even plays defense, although that's not what's causing the NBA Boston Celtics to salivate over him.". Bird won 3 MVP Awards, was selected to play in 12 All-Star Games, and was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1998. Bird didnt let the team down. Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. 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. Mike Hayes, a Kentucky Wesleyan player, recounted the game, vividly remembering Birds bizarre, ungainly swing. Entdecke Spielplan College Basketball jhrliche Vorschau Menge 2 1977-78-1978-79 Vogel Magie in groer Auswahl Vergleichen Angebote und Preise Online kaufen bei eBay Kostenlose Lieferung fr viele Artikel! ", Indiana State teammate Carl Nicks: "It's a tremendous feeling to play with him he brings out the best in everybody. ", In Bird's own words, here's the value he placed on ball movement: "My feeling about passing is that it don't matter who's doing the scoring as long as it's us. The couple has two adopted children named Conner Mariah.. Family. Fans always seemed to be willing to give a ride to Birds parents, who couldnt afford a car of their own. View Comments. The next season, 1974-75, is where two of the greatest What ifs in IU basketball collide: What if Bird had stayed and what if Scott May, the teams second-leading scorer and second-leading rebounder, hadnt broken his arm against Purdue in late February? Benson was an all time great college player, but really just a servicable pro. Larry Bird vs Steven Adams. He was particularly hard on freshmen players, such as a young Larry Bird. Larry Bird was a standout in Boston and one of the NBAs most iconic players ever. I heard this story once and I believe it is true. Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? 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). As of 2023, Larry Bird's net worth is around $80 million; he has different income sources . All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. Play Index. Then one day, Warn called Bird a wuss for his seemingly endless postgame recovery and threw down the gauntlet when he picked up a baseball. Tiago Splitter solid in NBA playoff debut Beginning with favorable, Pagns TIME is normally 2 . Scott Horner. On Aug. 18, 1992 he announced his retirement as a player. Career information head-to-head including championships won, season and playoff stats, honors and awards and more. Sucker punch in OVC tournament leads to 3 ejections. He has accounted for 1,556 steals, as well as 755 blocks and 5,695 assists. But everyone knows why Indiana State is where it is. Attended Indiana University for only 24 days. Larry Bird was originally in the recruiting class of 1974. IU had three . Larry Bird, playing for Indiana State, and Magic Johnson, playing for Michigan State, were two of the best basketball players during this time and were about to go head-to-head in a competition that sparked a rivalry between them that lasted throughout the 1980s. 2 Notre Dame, No. How does Larry Bird compare with other great NBA players? Larry Bird's book is incredible. 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 thought he had been playing pretty damn good that day. ---------------------------------------------------- Larry Bird stats. Subscribe to Stathead Basketball: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Basketball Reference Database. He started out as an Indiana Hoosier but later left the school and team coached by the legendary Bobby Knight. During his career he shot .496 from the floor and .886 from the free-throw line, retiring as the fifth all-time free-throw shooter behind Mark Price, Rick Barry, Calvin Murphy and Scott Skiles. 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. College: Indiana State (1976-1979) NBA draft: 1978 / Round: 1 / Pick: 6th overall: . Bird was so self-confident that he was known to waltz up to the opponents bench before tipoff and predict a 40-point performance for himself. 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. The guy had absolutely nothing. Larry Joe Bird (Larry Legend, The Hick from French Lick) Bats Left, Throws Left; Height 6' 9", Weight 220 lb. That may have been to his detriment when he was a senior in high school. Its also fair to speculate that the south wall of Assembly Hall might be a little more crowded if Larry Bird had never transferred from IU. So it is a moot point. Hardly a change of clothes each day. Larry Bird. 1,400 points): 30.3 points, 16th all-time on the NCAA career scoring list: 2,850 points, Tied for 23rd all-time in career double-doubles: 68 double-doubles, Tied for 24th all-time in points in a season: 973 points (1979), Tied for 24th all-time in consecutive double-doubles in a season: 16 double-doubles (1979). Larry Bird was originally in the recruiting class of 1974. Hodges said of Bird, "His only personal goal this year was to lead the nation in rebounds. Their coach, Bill Hodges, is in his first year, the first rookie ever to take an undefeated team to the tournament final. We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. He pulls people together. 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? src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=674090812743125&ev=PageView&noscript=1"/>. Larry Joe Bird (Larry Legend, The Hick from French Lick, Kodak, The Great White Hope) Born: December 7, 1956 in West Baden, Indiana High School: Springs Valley in French Lick, Indiana College: Indiana State University Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 1998 As Player: 897 G, 24.3 PPG, 10.0 RPG, 6.3 APG (Full Record) Larry Joe Bird, "Larry legend", fdd 7 december 1956 i West Baden Springs i Indiana, r en amerikansk fre detta basketspelare och fre detta baskettrnare.. Draftad av Boston Celtics r 1978, spelade small forward och power forward i tretton ssonger. Here are some of the awards Larry Bird won in college: However, Bird was all business in spite of the awards he won and the fanfare he received. In 1987-88, Bird was the first Celtic ever to record a 40-20 game, with a 42-point, 20-rebound effort against Indiana. He said he was prepared to leave the team after the 2010-11 season with the Pacers headed in the right direction. Knight said.." I first saw him play for Spring Valley HS, about 60 miles south of Bloomington physically he wasn't the Larry Bird everybody remembers..as a HS senior he was about 6-'6" and around 180lbs. When the doubleheader was over, hed finished 1-for-2 with two RBIs while recording nine putouts from first base in the second game. May 12, 1997: Hired as Head Coach by the Indiana Pacers. If you are having difficulty accessing any content on this website, please visit our Accessibility page. He earned the Rookie of the Year honours and also led a mediocre team . In 1975, John Woodens last season, UCLA won its 10th national championship to cap off an NCAA tournament run in which it needed overtime to beat Michigan in the opening round and Louisville in the Final Four. 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. Name: Larry Bird. We present them here for purely educational purposes. He was named NBA Head Coach of the Year in 1998. Former professional NBA player, coach, and NBA executive Larry Bird is well known globally. 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. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. At one time I believe Knight had Bird, Magic Johnson and Isiah Thomas in for recruiting. His Mom and Dad divorced while Bird was in HS, His dad shot and killed himself a year later. The former NBA player met his second wife, Dinah Mattingly, at Indiana State. Indianapolis Star. 1 ranking. Drafted into the NBA by the Boston Celtics with the sixth overall pick in . Do you have a sports website? Neither Birds hometown of French Lick nor West Baden had a daily newspaper at the time, nor was either home to a radio or TV station. Home-game attendance hovered around 3,100 when Bird arrived at Indiana State, but as he had done in Springs Valley, Bird single-handedly packed the house and elevated his team to respectability and more. I think they may even have been on the floor together. Enter your information to receive emails about offers, promotions from NCAA.com and our partners. When Bird elected to return to Indiana State for one more year, the Celtics dipped to 29-53. Bird helped rebuild a Celtics franchise that had been suffering from sub-standard play and poor attendance in the late 1970s. They battled against Earvin "Magic" Johnson -- Bird's rival throughout his professional career -- and Michigan State in the championship game, falling 75-64. His NBA years : from 1980 to 1992 Larry Bird NBA Stats Summary : He initially enrolled at Indiana University in 1974 but dropped out before the season began. In the final, they played Michigan State, led by "Magic" Johnson, and together their rivalry would eventually be responsible for the resurgence of the NBA in the 1980s. IU peaked at No. 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 . In 1981-82, Bird made the first of his three consecutive appearances on the NBA All-Defensive Second Team even though he was relatively slow and not the greatest one-on-one defender, his anticipation and court sense made him peerless as a team defender. Find out more. (Larry Legend; The Hick from French Lick), Draft: Boston Celtics, 1st round (6th pick, 6th overall), 1978 NBA draft, Every Sports Reference Social Media Account, Site Last Updated: Saturday, March 4, 6:03AM. In regard to per game stats, Bird averages 6.8 assists and 9.6 rebounds. Career NBA statistics; Points: Rebounds: Assists: Stats at Basketball-Reference.com: . Bird, the Coach of the Year in 1997-98, resigned as Pacers coach after Indianas Finals appearance. But even those legendary players didnt fill Boston Garden, wowing fans and dominating games as Bird did. It's because of Bird. Finally, Bird enrolled at Indiana State, which had posted 12-14 records in each of the two previous years and where the pressure was not quite the same as at Indiana a perennial Big Ten power and national title contender. Larry Bird left IU in mid-September of his freshman year, citing too heavy of a course load and his desire to be closer to home. games played = 41.4 ppg This is going off of their college career . We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. Published Jan. 28 . His last-second heroics, ranging from seemingly impossible reverse layups to miraculous 35-foot bombs over multiple defenders, never ceased to amaze those who followed his career. Body Measurement Of Larry Bird. It determined the balance of power in the NBA throughout the 1980s, arguably the most important era in NBA history, helping to reestablish the Celtics as the best team in the Eastern Conference during this time. Player Season Finder . They thought scoring was more important, but passing is important.". He has compiled 1,556 steals, in addition to 755 blocks and 5,695 assists. Bird and Johnson were already playing their first year in the NBA by then. Springs Valley in French Lick, Indiana, Hall of Fame: Inducted as Player in 1998 (Full List), As Player: 897 G, 24.3 PPG, 10.0 RPG, 6.3 APG (Full Record), As Executive: IND franchise, 2003-2017 (Full Record). Logos were compiled by the amazing SportsLogos.net. Talking trash to Larry Bird rarely ever ended well, as former NBA player Rodney Rogers found out the hard way. At one point, Kentucky was the first school to do the heavy recruiting, according to The Heralds Jerry Birge.
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