Born in 1956 and raised in rural Indiana—a place where basketball has been popular as a spectator sport since the 1910s and 1920s, well before the establishment of successful professional leagues in the 1940s—Larry Bird emerged as one of the premiere sports superstars of the 1980s, as well as one of the most marketable athletes in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Often credited with helping to revive a then-troubled league—along with Earvin "Magic" John-son—Bird's discipline, unselfish playing style, and enthusiasm for the game made him a hero to basketball fans around the world and a driving force in the NBA's growth.

Bird attained celebrity early in his career; four thousand people, twice the population of his hometown of French Lick, Indiana, attended his final high school game there in 1974. After a short stint at Indiana University, Bird...