Larry Bird

Larry Joe Bird (born December 7, 1956) is an American retired NBA basketball player. He won three NBA championships in 1981, 1984, and 1986 with the Boston Celtics. He has also won the NBA MVP award three times, in 1984, 1985, and 1986 as a Celtic. He played college basketball at Indiana State University where he developed a rivalry and friendship with Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson when he faced him in the 1979 NCAA national championship game and three NBA championship series (1984, 1985 and 1987). He has been described as one of the greatest basketball players and greatest shooters of all time.  Bird was nicknamed Larry Legend and The Hick from French Lick, after his hometown in Indiana.  He was also called Kodak by his first NBA coach, Bill Fitch, because Bird could form pictures in his head of the plays on the basketball court. Finally, he was nicknamed The Great White Hope.

In 1992, Bird was a member of the United States men's national basketball team. The team was one of the most famous teams in US Olympic history, known as "The Dream Team." The team captured the gold medal after going undefeated.

In 1997, Bird became the head coach of the Indiana Pacers. He was also President of the Pacers (2000-2012, 2013-2017).

He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006. 

He was also inducted into the American Basketball Hall of Fame in 2024. The induction ceremony was held on the campus of Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan. 

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Category:1956 births
Category:Living people
Category:American basketball players
Category:Boston Celtics players
Category:Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics
Category:Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductees
Category:National Basketball Association coaches
Category:National Basketball Association players with retired numbers
Category:Olympic gold medalists for the United States
Category:Power forwards
Category:Small forwards
Category:Sports executives and administrators
Category:Sportspeople from Boston
Category:Sportspeople from Indiana