The Hall of Fame forward and three-time NBA MVP Larry Bird wore this pair of white Converse sneakers during the 1992 Barcelona Summer Olympics basketball tournament. Bird, whose NBA career ended after the 1991-92 NBA season, averaged 8.4 points and 3.8 rebounds per game in three starts for the Dream Team. Team USA easily claimed the gold medal, blowing past a strong Croatia team by a score of 117-85. Bird was a co-captain of Team USA and one of 11 Hall of Famers on the Dream Team roster.

Offered in this lot is a pair of game used white, blue, and red Converse sneakers worn by Bird during the 1992 Summer Olympics. Larry Bird personally gifted these Dream Team shoes to his friend Don Smith from his home town of Terre Haute, Indiana. Don was a prominant banker who worked for First National Bank, a small local bank, and he built that into what is now a $3 billion publicly traded corporation – the only one based in Terre Haute that is traded on NASDAQ. These shoes come from the Don Smith estate.

The shoes feature a USA Basketball tag sewn on the tongues and “CONS” sewn in navy lettering on the outside of the heels. Bird’s number “7” is sewn on the upper ankles in navy and red. Converse tags are sewn on the inside of the tongues. An approximately seven-inch long fissure is present wrapping around each heel, likely due to improper storage and not game use, according to Sports Investors Authentication. Please note that there is significant deterioration on the heels, with pieces missing and/or loose. Bird has signed the toe of each shoe in black marker, inscribing “To Don Best Wishes” on the right shoe and “To Mary Best Wishes” on the left shoe. The shoes are accompanied by a Christmas card signed by Bird with the inscription “To Don & Mary Hope They Fit! Merry Christmas”. The shoes come with a LOA from Sports Investors Authentication for the game use, and individual LOAs from PSA/DNA for the signatures on the shoes (AE71332, AE71333). 

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