Former Indiana Pacers executive and first-round pick of the Boston Celtics (1978) is not a fan of a mural on the side of a multi-family house that shows him with a considerable number of tattoos. Bird’s lawyer has officially requested that the artist removes certain tattoos from the painting. This includes two mating rabbits, a spiderweb, a Cardinal on his cheek, and a knife.
According to the Chicago Tribune, attorney Gary Sallee says Bird “needs to protect” his brand and “doesn’t want to be seen as a tattooed guy.” The artist, Jules Muck, said that she adds things like tattoos to her art to avoid creating a complete copy of a photo.
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In this case, the mural is a recreation of the 1977 Sports Illustrated cover when Bird played for Indiana State.
Larry Bird spotted this mural of himself in Indianapolis and objected to the tattoos that were displayed on him in it.
Bird has since asked for the artist to keep the mural up, but removes the tattoos. pic.twitter.com/lrQbsAWdYI
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 21, 2019
According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the artist has conceded after meeting with Bird’s representatives. Muck says that she will remove most of the tattoos from the mural. The rabbits will soon be gone, as will the spiderweb. However, she will keep the tattoo on Bird’s forearm that says “Indiana.”
Bird is possibly one of the most famous NBA players in Indiana if not league history. A first-round pick out of Indiana State, he spent 13 seasons with the Boston Celtics and was named to the All-Star team 12 times. He was victorious in the NBA Finals three separate times (1980-81, 1983-84, 1985-86) and was named NBA Finals MVP twice in his career.
To cap off his career, Bird was a member of the gold medal-winning Olympic squad in 1992 that was known as “The Dream Team.” This star-studded roster also featured Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen of the Chicago Bulls, John Stockton and Karl Malone of the Utah Jazz, Charles Barkley of the Philadelphia 76ers, and Magic Johnson of the Los Angeles Lakers. Following his career, Bird was also named to the NBA’s 50th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1996.
The NBA legend’s “brand” may not be in any danger considering his wildly successful careers in both college and the pros, but that won’t change his mindset. He doesn’t want to be associated with mating rabbit tattoos.
