Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird is one of the biggest icons of the sport. It is only natural that he has millions of fans around the world. Whenever he was out in public, Bird would get mobbed by passionate fans asking for the NBA champion’s autograph.

While Bird tried his best to attend to as many fans as he could, sometimes the interactions did not go as planned. Fans would badmouth him for refusing to sign an autograph and Bird would hit back at them sometimes. For instance, when the Celtics were on the road in Phoenix, a ‘frisky’ Larry Bird lashed out at some of his fans.

Larry Bird once bashed a fan after refusing an autograph

Thanks to the immense popularity of the game and the league, NBA stars are nothing less than stars. This applies especially to athletes like Larry Bird who was one of the best players in the league during his time.

Naturally, fans would go to any lengths to even catch a glimpse of the superstar. Autographs are a very popular mode of fan interaction at the time, and was despised by Bird.

He hated the ‘hypocrisy’ of the autograph seekers who would hurl abuses at the Boston Celtics legend whenever he refused them. Bird was not one to just sit back and tolerate the abuses.

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There have been moments where the three-time NBA champion has lost his cool. During one such interaction, a ‘frisky’ Bird brutally bashed a fan. 

The team was on the road in Phoenix and hordes of fans surrounded Bird and the team outside of a Jewish Community Center. “Excuse me, but don’t you have a job?“, said Bird to a fan who tagged along although he had been rejected.

Bird remembered the faces of the fans he signed autographs for

Larry Bird had exceptional basketball skills that made him one of the best players ever. Moreover, he had an exceptional memory too. Despite being hounded by thousands of fans on a daily basis, Bird remembered the faces of some of them.

“I just signed for you in Denver“, he said to a fan leaving him open wide. Considering his popularity, Bird’s signature was invaluable in the open market. Due to this reason, many fans would take his autograph so that they can sell it later.

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What is your favorite memory of Larry Bird? Let us know in the comments down below.