"It's still in me a little bit" - Larry Bird admitted coaching in the NBA again crosses his mind
There are some things a person never shakes, no matter how many years pass or how far they wander from the game.
Larry Bird, at 68, wears that truth plainly.
His coaching days are behind him now, but the gym still calls to him — faintly, stubbornly — in a way that only the hardwood can.
A return to the sidelines?
Sitting back and reflecting on his time running teams, Bird didn't talk like a man haunted by unfinished business. He talked like a man who loved the work, knew when to walk away.
And still catches himself feeling the pull when summer rolls around.
"I enjoy watching the guys work out all summer, so it's still in me a little bit," Bird said, probably with a quiet grin. "But as far as a full-time gig with a GM or a coach or something like that, I don't have no energy, man."
His words carry the weight of someone who's seen everything — championships, collapses, the frenzy of an NBA Finals run and the quiet indignity of rebuilding seasons.
Bird coached the Indiana Pacers to the Finals in 2000 and though they came up short against Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant's Los Angeles Lakers, he thinks the strength of that Lakers' team didn't allow his guys to show their true worth.
"Well, you build teams hopefully to get an opportunity to play in the Finals and they were definitely good enough," he said. "Even though we went to the Finals in 2000, I think that team was better. They didn't get to show us how good they were."
Those words hang heavy because Bird has always spoken about his teams the way a craftsman speaks about his tools with both affection and a hint of frustration over what they could have been.Coaching days
Through the years, the Boston icon has developed a kind of gentle philosophy about the role he wants basketball to play in his life. He enjoys popping into practices, spending time at summer workouts, catching up with players and coaches. But he's careful not to let that enjoyment turn into obligation.
"Well, I enjoyed all that," Bird once explained of his time with the Pacers' front office. "I knew my time was going to come when we needed a change, a fresh voice, just like a coach and I've always felt that. A lot of guys like to hang around for the last minute. But I enjoy my life and I feel good and I don't have to be there all that time. I can go out and do other things."
Bird's "other things" are simple and quiet.
Winters in Florida, summers back home, trips to basketball camps and events around the world.
Every so often, he'll drop by a gym and watch younger players — his eyes still sharp, still scanning the floor like the old days — and then leave just as easily, satisfied to watch from a distance.
He doesn't need to pace the sidelines anymore. He doesn't need the clipboard or the long nights of film. But anyone who's ever known Bird can still see it — the faint glint in his eye when the ball hits the floor, the way his gaze lingers just a little longer when a player makes the right cut.
"It's still in me a little bit," he said.
And you believe him.
Because he's Larry Legend. And when he puts his mind to something — ask the Showtime Lakers; ask Magic; ask Jordan; ask Isiah; ask Barkley — he'll get it done.This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 21, 2025, where it first appeared.
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