Pacers' Larry Bird named NBA Executive of the Year - USA TODAY

By Rachel Shuster, USA TODAY

Updated

If he really leaves as president of the Indiana Pacers after this season as he has said, Larry Bird could not be going out in grander style.

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  Brian Spurlock, US Presswire

  Indiana Pacers president Larry Bird was named the NBA's executive of the year, with his team still very much alive in the playoffs, tied at 1-1 with the Miami Heat.

Brian Spurlock, US Presswire

Indiana Pacers president Larry Bird was named the NBA's executive of the year, with his team still very much alive in the playoffs, tied at 1-1 with the Miami Heat.

Not only was he named the NBA's executive of the year Wednesday, he becomes the first to win that award as well as having been named coach of the year (in 1998, with the Pacers) and MVP (1984-86 with the Boston Celtics) as a player.

Bird's first winning play as president this season was to remove the interim tag and name Frank Vogel as head coach. Vogel led the Pacers to the third seed in the Eastern Conference, a first-round playoff victory against the Orlando Magic and a 1-1 standing in the second round against the heavily favored Miami Heat.

The Pacers (42-24, .636) also finished with the league's fifth-best record.

Bird beefed up the squad by signing free agent-forward David West, who was second in scoring on the Pacers at 16.0 points per game and second in rebounds (10.0).

Vogel also got more help for the bench with the additions of forward Lou Amundson and guard Leandro Barbosa through trades. And three of Bird's recent draft picks played integral roles in their success this season: swingman Paul George (2010), forward Tyler Hansbrough (2009) and center Roy Hibbert (2008), forward tyler Hansbrough (2009) and swingman Paul George (2010).

Bird totaled 88 points and got 12 first-place votes from a panel of team executives and finished ahead of the San Antonio Spurs' R.C. Buford (56 points, eight first-place votes) and the Los Angeles Clippers' Neil Olshey (55 points, six first-place votes).

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