Springs Valley went 19-2 and young Larry became a local celebrity. Bird once again led the team in points (21.2 ppg), rebounds (10.9 rpg), steals (161), and minutes (3,239). When I started here, I wanted to see the high school, college and professional basketball worlds come together, and Bird symbolizes that. He thought he had been playing pretty damn good that day. 0%, great for twelfth throughout MLB between eligible remedies. Celtics Wire. Along with Magic, Bird was revitalizing the NBA, helping the league live up to its new slogan, NBA Action: Its FAN-tastic. After only two seasons, fans, coaches and players knew exactly what Bird was all about: big numbers and clutch performances. McHale just destroyed him. Mark Bird's college team, where he became one of the school's best all-time players. I could play baseball, Bird responded, taking the coach by surprise. Larry Joe Bird (Larry Legend, The Hick from French Lick, Kodak, The Great White Hope) Position: Small Forward and Power Forward Shoots: Right 6-9, 220lb (206cm, 99kg) . Finally, with the Celtics in a decline that hit bottom in 1996-97, Bird decided to take the plunge. This type of behavior was par for the course with Knight, but a new experience alltogether for Bird. 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. Bird and Johnson were already playing their first year in the NBA by then. Or write about sports? The former NBA player met his second wife, Dinah Mattingly, at Indiana State. And then there is a lesser known Bird, the college baseball . College basketball conference tournament predictions: Picks for every mens league. The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NCAA or its member institutions. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. 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.. Thanks Lincoln- nice post and pretty much confirms what my book about Knight, and how he thought Benson could "do no wrong" while at Indiana. Bird averaged 21.3 points, 10.4 assists, and 4.5 steals in 82 games during his rookie season in 1979-80. 0:49. When Bird maximized his potential at Indiana State in the 1978-79 season, he took a Sycamores team that had a first-year head coach and was picked to finish third or fourth in the Missouri Valley Conference in 1979 and carried it all the way to the national championship game with an undefeated record and the countrys No. He was brilliant against the Razorbacks with a a 31-point, 10-rebound game in the regional finals. Play Index. They teamed with Bird and veteran Cedric Maxwell in a frontcourt that carried the Celtics to the championship in 1981. 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. ", The New York Times' Dave Anderson: "[Bill] Hodges likes to say that his primary contribution to the Sycamores this season has been 'not messing up Larry Bird. In 1977-78 the Celtics had compiled a 32-50 record, their worst since 1949-50. The .500 batting average still exists in Indiana State history books as one of the highest ever recorded by a player for the team. Bird passed Otis Birdsong to become the NCAA's fifth-leading scorer of all-timewith a free throw early in the championship game. When the doubleheader was over, hed finished 1-for-2 with two RBIs while recording nine putouts from first base in the second game. (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. His Mom and Dad divorced while Bird was in HS, His dad shot and killed himself a year later. Theres no guarantee Bird wouldve stuck around for his senior season if he had stayed at IU, but doing so couldve allowed him to be the featured scorer on the Hoosiers if he wanted a larger share of shots after playing alongside Benson, the No. The three-time NBA champion played 94 games with the Sycamores. He is a graduate of Indiana University. Birth State: Indiana. He became only the third player (and the first non-center) to win three consecutive NBA Most Valuable Player Awards. The players looked up to see Coach Knight, just recently returned from an out of state trip, having an absolute cow and cussing up a storm, throwing shit and marching across the floor from the open doorway he had been peeking through. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. Larry Bird's accomplishments and stats make him one of the greatest pure shooters of all time. I'm going to assume this is legit because he lists about 20 million sources at the end of it. May 16, 2022. Even the mild mannered Kareem Abdul Jabbar once decked Benson square in the jaw during a pro game, after being delivered one too mant rib shots by him. The end of Birds career was at hand, but not before one last achievement: a gold medal with the 1992 U.S. Olympic Dream Team, which dominated the competition at Barcelona and won millions of fans for the sport with its brilliance. NBA.com is part of Warner Media, LLCs Turner Sports & Entertainment Digital Network, *Translations are limited to select pages, NBA Legends: Profiling the league's greats, Ex-NBA player Morrow facing assault charges, Durant passes 'Big O' for 13th in career points, NBA Fantasy: Under-the-radar additions for playoffs, Magic's Isaac (torn adductor) out for rest of season, Triple-double win streak shows Jokic dominance, NBA DFS Picks: Yahoo plays and strategy for March 3. Knight said that when Bird came to campus in the Fall of 1974, and the team would organize pick up games, that Bird would commonly get left out and would not be picked There is the Larry Bird people know, the Boston Celtics legend, the hick from French Lick, the Indiana State University basketball king. Complete NBA coaching record for Larry Bird, including regular season and postseason games. Odds & lines subject to change. IU had three one-possession losses in the 1976-77 season and three defeats by two possessions. . (. If I could, I'd like to play with him forever.". Larry Bird's journey began in the small rural community of French Lick, Indiana. '", 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. 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. Looking at his stats alone, he is known as one of the greatest pure shooters in . The Sycamores went 81-13 during Bird's three-year career. 'Can I stay in bed?' When Walsh moved on to a similar role with the Knicks before the 2008-09 season, Bird gained complete control of the teams basketball operations and helped the Pacers end a four-year playoff drought in 2010-11. Carr was his best teammate. 19 Minnesota showed the teams potential. 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. Three Things: Indiana womens basketball defeats Michigan State 94-85. As the 1992-93 NBA season approached, Bird decided he could not continue. Gambling problem? "Larry Bird finishes things," said Dick Ballinger, the varsity head baseball coach at West Vigo High School in West Terre Haute, Indiana during the spring of 1979. 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. Im new at this (coaching) game but I feel I can get the job done, he said. Anytime you have Bird on the floor, anything can happen, Portlands Clyde Drexler told theBoston Heraldafter the game. He was named the NL's Freshman of the Year after playing in his first All-Star game. Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. 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. It is amazing how extreme insecurity can drive a person. As freshman and junior varsity statistics do not count toward official NCAA records, three playersPete Maravich, Oscar Robertson and Elvin Hayesonly had three seasons to compile their totals. In regard to per game stats, Bird averages 6.8 assists and 9.6 rebounds. If you are having difficulty accessing any content on this website, please visit our Accessibility page. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Celtics Jamal Mashburn recalled how Larry Bird responded to trash-talk at a 'Dream Team' practice in 1992 "Hey Larry, you ain't hit a jumper since '84." For one day, Bird got to prove he wasnt just a basketball player icing up in the locker room; he was a star at anything he wanted to try. CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc. 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Nicknamed "The Hick from French Lick" and "Larry Legend", Bird is widely regarded as one of the greatest basketball players of all time.He was inducted in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1998..