Larry Bird was one of the highest-paid NBA players of his era, but his approach to money remained as old-school as his jump shot.
A quote from Bird in a 2021 Boston Globe article is making the rounds again on social media following the Celtics’ recent playoff exit. The reigning NBA champions were eliminated by the New York Knicks in the Eastern Conference semifinals on May 16, sparking renewed interest in Bird’s legacy.
Larry Bird’s Thrifty Mindset
Bird played professional basketball for 13 seasons, from 1979-1992, with the Boston Celtics.
The Knicks are now set to face the Indiana Pacers — a franchise Bird coached from 1997 to 2000. Under his leadership, the Pacers reached two conference finals and made a trip to the NBA Finals in 2000.
Bird’s frugal mindset has always stood in contrast to the lifestyles of many modern athletes. The Celtics Hall of Famer does not see the value of paying for a car when, back in his day, a house — presumably in his rural hometown of French Lick, Indiana, during the 1960s and 1970s — cost him around $10,000.
In an interview with Dan Shaughnessy, a longtime sports columnist for the Globe whose interview was back in 1985 but was reused and republished again for a reflection piece in 2021, Bird casually explained his thoughts about inflation during that time.
“I really don’t need anyone to build my ego,” Bird told Shaughnessy. “When I’m home in Boston, I want to go out and eat, pay my bill, and get the hell out. Back in French Lick, I don’t have those problems, and that’s why I go back there. It’s the same with nice cars, Mercedes and all that. I can’t see putting $50,000 or $60,000 into a car when our house growing up was worth $10,000. I just can’t buy that. And clothes never did catch my eye. I never really enjoyed ‘em. I always wore what I felt comfortable in. I’ll wear pretty much anything if I get it for free.”
“When I was at [Indiana] State, finishing to get my degree, they had me teaching special-needs kids in a high school. That was tough. It gave me a lot of respect for people who do that,” Bird described. “I thought I’d wind up being a construction worker, pouring concrete. I wasn’t very good at shop in school, but I’d been around construction. As far as basketball goes, I just wanted to be the best player on my high school team.”
Bird’s stance may have contributed to his fortune continuing to grow while he was a player and afterward, with his current net worth estimated at $75 million to date, having made $24 million in his NBA career as an active player, and once $6 million in one season. This salary from 1979-80 to 1991-92 was huge for that era.
When other players of his caliber, some of whom were ex-teammates, would mock his saving habits, they would wind up facing bankruptcy while Bird managed to keep his wealth.
“When I first started playing, we bought a nice little house in the French Lick/West Baden area. It cost $125,000,” Bird wrote in his 1999 book, “Bird Watching.” “We didn’t run out and spend all our money because we knew there would be a time when it was over, and I wanted to have options on what we could do with our future. I never thought about retiring. I just assumed I would always work.”
“Some of the guys who made far less than me bought the $700,000 homes, and the Rolex watches, and the big luxury cars. I used to tell them, ‘You’re crazy, you should be saving your money.’ They’d just laugh and make jokes about me stashing my money away,” the book continues.
“But I could see what they were doing,” he added. “They were throwing away their future. So many of them were living for today and not even stopping for a minute to think about ten years down the road when their playing careers were over and the money stopped pouring in. And by the time they realized what I was telling them was true, it was too late. I can’t tell you how many ex-teammates have asked me for money. It’s heartbreaking for me to say no, but I do because I warned them. I told them to save,”