NBA legend Larry Bird is considered one of the best forwards ever. Over the course of his career, he has won three NBA championships while playing for the Boston Celtics. Bird dominated his opponents on both ends of the court. Despite not having a huge vertical, Bird made sure he worked hard to get rebounds. He is someone that liked to get under the skin of his opponents. Although he is a very calm guy, he spoke with authority whenever he did.
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The Celtics legend came from very humble beginnings in French Lick, Indiana. His parents divorced and a year later his father committed suicide. He started spending long hours on the basketball court as an escape from troubles at home. Soon, he became the superstar of his varsity team and one of the best high school players in the country.
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During his time at Springs Valley High School, he started dating Janet Condra who ran the rule of the high school’s cheerleading squad. The two most popular people in the high school soon tied the knot.
Larry Bird doesn’t want to talk about his private life
Larry Bird married high school sweetheart Janet Condra in 1975 before he joined Indiana State University. Coming from a small town, Bird struggled with his college life. So much so that he dropped out. However, he returned to the school the next year and played for four years. The couple welcomed their daughter in 1977. Unfortunately, the marriage did not last long despite multiple attempts to reconcile and they eventually divorced.
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Even though Bird is patient with the media, he did not like answering about his private life. “My private life is nobody’s business,” he points out. ”Besides it ain’t interesting.”
He then married Dinah Mattingly in 1989, and they adopted two children.
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Bird joined the Celtics in 1979 and famously won the Rookie of the Year award over rival Magic Johnson. He soon became one of the best players in the league. Magic and Bird competed hard against each other as the Los Angeles Lakers tried to dethrone the Celtics. There are some very interesting and intense battles between the two legends over the years.
The two faced each other in a final for the first time in 1984. The Lakers had never won a final against the Celtics in their previous seven meetings. This record continued as Bird and the Celtics won the title. However, the Lakers came back strong and won the 1985 and 1987 titles defeating the Celtics in the finals.