Extremely high basketball IQ, pure heart and hustle. Larry Bird was a standout in Boston and one of the NBAs most iconic players ever. Cathie. Do you have a sports website? From his killer jump shot to his famous trash-talking, Bird could seemingly do it . That may have been to his detriment when he was a senior in high school. In reality, he spent most of the next five years in Florida, playing golf and taking it easy. He wasnt named to the Associated Press six-player All-State first team or nine-player second team, despite averaging 30 points and 20 rebounds, once putting up 55 points in a game for Springs Valley High School and 34 rebounds in another. Larry Bird's accomplishments and stats make him one of the greatest pure shooters of all time. The Top 11 Ranked. Bird has four siblings' all brothers named Mike . Boston won, 152-148, in double overtime. But Los Angeles won the series in six games. Add the best version of Larry Bird in college, one capable of averaging roughly 30 and 15 at Indiana State, and the Hoosiers might have had another title contender in 1978 if the Hick from French Lick was still in Bloomington. With Bird as the focal point of a well-rounded squad, the Celtics won three NBA titles and 10 Atlantic Division crowns. The 16th-leading scorer of all-time in NCAA mens basketball history scored 2,850 points in just three seasons an incredible 30.3 career scoring average after enrolling at Indiana University in the fall of 1974. Bird poured in 20 points in the final period to outdo his counterpart and lead the Celtics to victory even though he had bronchial pneumonia. Take an inside look at Larry Birds iconic steal from Isiah Thomas during Game 5 of the 1987 Eastern Conference finals. Gender: Male. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. An undefeated IU team with a healthy Scott May or Larry Bird, let alone both, wouldve made for a compelling matchup with Woodens final UCLA team. 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? Find out more. What if Larry Bird hadnt transferred from IU. As per reports, Bird made around $24 million over the course of his career. Here are some of the records and historical rankings that Larry Bird achieved at Indiana State: Michigan State coach Jud Heathcote after watching him in the Final Four: "I could not believe The Bird. The Boston Celtics had selected him in the 1978 NBA Draft, hoping that Bird, who had become eligible for the NBA after his junior year, might forgo his senior season-but knowing he was worth the wait even if he didnt. He was remarking to one of the players before the game that he just wanted to do well; he didnt want to let the team down.. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. As a senior at Springs Valley High School, Bird averaged nearly 31 points and 21 rebounds per game. Join us for a March Madness Webinar on Tuesday, March 7 at 8pm ET. Loved to watch him play. No shit! Bird also cites an instance during an off season open gym, soon after he arrived on campus, during a period of "no contact" between the players and coaches. TV stations showed film clips of Bird instead of commercials. "'You appear to be enjoying this,' one reporter commented. Bird did a fine job in his three seasons on the bench. the official stats partner of the NBA, NHL and MLB. What if Phil Dickens and IU football hadnt gotten the whole dang department sanctioned? He once saw to it that McHale went for 40+ against Benson, ordering the guys to just feed the ball into Mchale every time down the floor. The 1977 Hoosiers were led by senior center Benson (19.8 ppg, 10.5 rpg) and freshman guard Mike Woodson (18.5 ppg, 6.7 rpg), while just up the road, Bird was averaging 32.8 points on 54 percent shooting, along with 13.3 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 2.8 steals per night in his first season with Indiana State. 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 . Editors note: This is part of a series of stories revisiting the biggest what-ifs in IU history. 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? (Larry Legend, The Hick from French Lick, Kodak, The Great White Hope), Born: December 7, 1956 in West Baden, Indiana, High School: Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. 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. Born in 1956, in the state of Indiana, this player is known as the biggest reason behind why the Boston Celtics were led to the NBA championship in 1981, 1984, and 1986. One newspaper in Indiana vaguely described the reason as personal dissatisfaction. He then enrolled at Northwood Institute, a two-year school with roughly 200 students in West Baden, Indiana, near his hometown of French Lick. Their top eight scorers eventually played in the NBA and they were a 31-1 juggernaut that ran through the Big Ten gauntlet unscathed and suffered their only loss of the season against Kentucky, 92-90, in the regional final. You can watch the full replay of the '79 title game below. But Knight was not impressed. He just hammered him for being lackadaisical off of the screen and made him leave the open gym session. Data Provided By Larry Bird was born on 7 December 1956, making him 64 years old as of today, 2 August 2021. Everyone remembers Michael Jordans decision to leave the Bulls and pursue a career in baseball, but it was Larry Bird who tried his hand at the game on April 28, 1979, and became a one-day legend in the process. ; School Indiana State University; Born December 7, 1956 in West Baden, IN USA; Biographical Information []. ", Indiana State teammate Carl Nicks: "It's a tremendous feeling to play with him he brings out the best in everybody. Bird finished runner-up to Moses Malone for the NBA Most Valuable Player Award, as he would the following year. The Celtics won the physical, bitter series in seven games and advanced to the NBA Finals for the fourth consecutive year, meeting the Lakers for the third time. 10 attempts), Indiana State-record 83.3 free throw percentage in an NCAA tournament game (min. Best Known For: Basketball icon . Twelve of the top 14 picks in that years draft were seniors, with the other two non-seniors being juniors Kenny Carr and Bernard King, so staying all four years of college was still very much the norm then. So, what will Larry Bird's age, height, and weight be in 2021? The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. How does Larry Bird compare with other great NBA players? He was such a deadly shooter that he sometimes practiced 3-pointers with his eyes closed. They thought scoring was more important, but passing is important.". Although Johnson also turned in an impressive first season for the NBA-champion Los Angeles Lakers, Bird was named Rookie of the Year and made the first of his 12 trips to the All-Star Game. Sucker punch in OVC tournament leads to 3 ejections. Or write about sports? French Lick had a population of 2,059, most of whom came out to watch Springs Valley High Schools home games in a state that takes its schoolboy basketball very seriously. 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. Indiana State star Larry Bird makes his way through the crowd of players and fans getting congratulations after his team defeated Arkansas, 73-71, to win the NCAA Midwest Regional tourney crown in . While he wouldve competed for playing time with 6-7 forwards Steve Green (16.6 ppg), May (16.3 ppg) and Tom Abernethy to start the year, Bird grew taller than May at 6-9, 220 pounds, making him a viable replacement once May went down with his injury. If you buy something from an SB Nation link, Vox Media may earn a commission. Layed him out cold. Imagine Thomas, Bird and Magic on the same team. It was Bird's first experience with Knight in a gym setting. He was particularly hard on freshmen players, such as a young Larry Bird. On Aug. 18, 1992 he announced his retirement as a player. Han slutade spela i NBA 1992. Bird received a scholarship to play for the Indiana Hoosiers in 1974, but he dropped out after only one month at Indiana . 18 Alabama and No. Larry Bird was 1 of the NBA's most clutch players ever, amassing 3 MVPs while leading the Celtics to 5 Finals and 3 titles in the 1980s. And the rest is history. He was seemingly able to get almost any shot he wanted whether it was 30 seconds after the tip or with as much time left on the clock . "He was named an Indiana All-Star.". Bird nearly doubled the Sycamores win total year-over-year from 13 to 25 after sitting out just one year in 1975-76, rather than two, after IU signed papers for Birds release. Is there room for eight banners on the south wall of Assembly Hall? Net Worth, Salary & Earnings of Larry Bird in 2023. Larry Bird and Dominique Wilkins battled each other during a classic Game 7 in 1988. Do you have a sports website? College: University of Hoosiers: Religion: Christian: Nationality: American: Zodiac Sign: Sagittarius: Gender: Male: Sexual Orientation: Straight: Marital Status: Married: . 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