Larry Bird will be here for museum opening

May 17—Larry Bird will attend and speak at the May 30 grand opening of the Larry Bird Museum in downtown Terre Haute.

The outdoor ceremony will take place at 10:30 a.m. on a stage on Wabash Avenue just east of 7th Street, the Capital Improvement Board announced Friday in a press release. A ribbon-cutting will be part of the event.

Bird's appearance will be part of a Hoopsfest on May 30 running from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and featuring live music, family-friendly activities, food trucks, inflatables and a three-on-three basketball tournament featuring local high school athletes.

The Bird museum will open its doors to special guests May 30, offering an exclusive preview before opening to the general public May 31.

For the public opening, people must reserve a time slot in advance through the museum's website, larrybirdmuseum.com.

Bird, from French Lick, played college basketball at Indiana State from 1976 to 1979, leading the Sycamores to the 1979 NCAA Men's Division I Championship game against Earvin "Magic" Johnson and the Michigan State Spartans. He was named national college player of the year in 1979.

Bird was the sixth overall draft pick in the first round of the 1978 NBA draft. His achievements as a player with the Boston Celtics included three NBA championships, two NBA Finals MVPs, three regular-season MVP awards and 12 NBA all-star team appearances.

He played on the 1992 Olympic basketball team (the "Dream Team") and was selected to the 50th and 75th NBA anniversary teams. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame twice as a player — first in 1998 as an individual, and again in 2010 as a member of the "Dream Team."

Later, as a coach and executive with the Indiana Pacers, his honors included NBA Coach of the Year (1998), NBA All-Star Game head coach (1998) and NBA Executive of the Year (2012).

The Larry Bird Museum is inside the Terre Haute Convention Center downtown near Wabash Avenue and Eighth Street.