Born in West Baden Springs, Indiana, Larry Joe Bird was raised in the nearby community of French Lick. Even as a youth it was apparent that Bird had an incredible talent of the game of basketball, being the all-time scoring leader at Springs Valley High School. His record in high school won him a basketball scholarship to the University of Indiana.
Bird felt intimidated by the size of the campus and dropped out immediately. After taking a year off, he returned to college at Indiana State and became part of their Sycamore team. As a senior in 1979, he led Indiana to the NCAA Championship, where they faced off against the Magic Johnson-led Michigan State Spartans. Indiana State finished this season with a 33-1 record; while at Indiana State, Bird was the 5th highest scorer in NCAA history with a 30.3 points per game average.
The number one choice of the Boston Celtics in 1979, Bird was paid a record salary of $650,000 per year. Making an average of 21.3 points per game, Bird won the Rookie of the Year award in a season which saw a 61-21 record for the team and Bird gaining a lot of popularity with fans.
In the next year, the Celtics got a new home (the Robert Parrish Center) and a new teammate, Kevin McHale; together, the two were one of the greatest frontlines in NBA history. In this season, the Celtics went to the NBA finals and defeated the Houston Rockets in six games to take the victory. The Celtics would continue to appear in the finals throughout the 1980s, usually against the Lakers.
Celtics coach Bill Fitch gave Bird the nickname Kodak, explaining: it's for his ability to picture how a play would unfold. He can turn a play into points.". IN the 1981-1982 season, Bird's tallies made it into the double digits and the Celtics became even more formidable with the addition of guard Dennis Johnson and new coach KC Jones.
The end of the 1983-84 season brought victory to Bird and his Celtic teammates with a seven-game series and win over the Lakers; they won the seventh game in a close but exciting 111-102 score. Larry averaged 27 points and 14 rebounds during this amazing series and won the coveted Most Valuable Player (MVP) and the NBA's regular season MVP for the 1983-84 season. A loss to the Lakers in the 1984-85 season still brought Larry the NBA's MVP award. Fans of basketball everywhere still feel the match-up of Bird versus Magic was and is the best match-up in basketball and the most exciting to watch.
The 1985-86 season also brought the Celtics back to the NBA Finals with a record season of 67-15; they defeated the Houston Rockets in just six games. Bird saw his third championship victory and was named the series MVP with an average of 24 points per game, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists. He also won the league's MVP award, being only the third to do so behind Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain. Indeed Larry was becoming a synonym for basketball. Season 1986-87 would see the Celtics champion the Lakers once again, beating them in six games.
The 1987-88 statistically, was Larry's biggest season where he averaged 29.9 points per game playing 39 minutes per game with a .527 field goal percentage and a .916 free-throw percentage. After a bone-spur operation, Larry returned to the Celtics for the 1989-90 season but sadly, even Larry knew, it may be time to retire. He joined Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan, among others playing on the 1992 US Olympic Dream Team where they won gold and his place in destiny was set in stone. Throughout his stoic career Larry played 13 years and averaged more than 24 points per game, 10 rebounds, and 6 assists per game. He had a career field goal average of 49.6% and was at an 88.6% on free throws. Perhaps his biggest statistic was his 37.6% three-pointers or perhaps it was his twelve All-Star games-whatever the reason, Larry Bird is synonymous with basketball and will forever be in the hearts of basketball fans
Bird felt intimidated by the size of the campus and dropped out immediately. After taking a year off, he returned to college at Indiana State and became part of their Sycamore team. As a senior in 1979, he led Indiana to the NCAA Championship, where they faced off against the Magic Johnson-led Michigan State Spartans. Indiana State finished this season with a 33-1 record; while at Indiana State, Bird was the 5th highest scorer in NCAA history with a 30.3 points per game average.
The number one choice of the Boston Celtics in 1979, Bird was paid a record salary of $650,000 per year. Making an average of 21.3 points per game, Bird won the Rookie of the Year award in a season which saw a 61-21 record for the team and Bird gaining a lot of popularity with fans.
In the next year, the Celtics got a new home (the Robert Parrish Center) and a new teammate, Kevin McHale; together, the two were one of the greatest frontlines in NBA history. In this season, the Celtics went to the NBA finals and defeated the Houston Rockets in six games to take the victory. The Celtics would continue to appear in the finals throughout the 1980s, usually against the Lakers.
Celtics coach Bill Fitch gave Bird the nickname Kodak, explaining: it's for his ability to picture how a play would unfold. He can turn a play into points.". IN the 1981-1982 season, Bird's tallies made it into the double digits and the Celtics became even more formidable with the addition of guard Dennis Johnson and new coach KC Jones.
The end of the 1983-84 season brought victory to Bird and his Celtic teammates with a seven-game series and win over the Lakers; they won the seventh game in a close but exciting 111-102 score. Larry averaged 27 points and 14 rebounds during this amazing series and won the coveted Most Valuable Player (MVP) and the NBA's regular season MVP for the 1983-84 season. A loss to the Lakers in the 1984-85 season still brought Larry the NBA's MVP award. Fans of basketball everywhere still feel the match-up of Bird versus Magic was and is the best match-up in basketball and the most exciting to watch.
The 1985-86 season also brought the Celtics back to the NBA Finals with a record season of 67-15; they defeated the Houston Rockets in just six games. Bird saw his third championship victory and was named the series MVP with an average of 24 points per game, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists. He also won the league's MVP award, being only the third to do so behind Bill Russell and Wilt Chamberlain. Indeed Larry was becoming a synonym for basketball. Season 1986-87 would see the Celtics champion the Lakers once again, beating them in six games.
The 1987-88 statistically, was Larry's biggest season where he averaged 29.9 points per game playing 39 minutes per game with a .527 field goal percentage and a .916 free-throw percentage. After a bone-spur operation, Larry returned to the Celtics for the 1989-90 season but sadly, even Larry knew, it may be time to retire. He joined Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan, among others playing on the 1992 US Olympic Dream Team where they won gold and his place in destiny was set in stone. Throughout his stoic career Larry played 13 years and averaged more than 24 points per game, 10 rebounds, and 6 assists per game. He had a career field goal average of 49.6% and was at an 88.6% on free throws. Perhaps his biggest statistic was his 37.6% three-pointers or perhaps it was his twelve All-Star games-whatever the reason, Larry Bird is synonymous with basketball and will forever be in the hearts of basketball fans
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