Is Sue Bird Related to Larry Bird? WNBA Fans Curious About 4x Champ's Ties To NBA Legend During her UConn Jersey Retirement

While she attended her jersey retirement at UConn on Sunday, fans had a big question. Is Sue Bird related to Larry Bird? The WNBA and the NBA legend are not related to each other. They just happen to share the famous last name.

The former WNBA star was born to Herschel and Nancy Bird. Her mother, Nancy, was born in Ukraine, and her father, Herschel, was born in Italy but grew up in Russia. The four-time WNBA champion was born on Oct. 16, 1980, in Syosset, New York.

On the other hand, Larry Bird was born to Georgia Marie and Claude Joseph Bird on Dec. 7, 1956. Both of Bird's parents were born in America. The Boston Celtics legend was born in West Baden Springs, Indiana.

However, the NBA legend was Sue Bird's uncle, at least that's what she told people when she was very young. When she was growing up in Syosset, people wondered if Sue Bird was related to Larry Bird. People often mistook her for Larry Bird's niece or daughter.

The Seattle Storm legend made a habit of telling people that she was related to the three-time NBA champion.

"It's like a famous story in my childhood school and neighborhood that I lied and I would tell people he was my uncle like all the time," Bird told Business Insider in 2022. "I mean, I was like 6 or 7, so I feel like that's excusable."

She revealed that years later, when she met him for an ad shoot, she shared the hilarious story with him. The Celtics legend told Bird that he was "honored" to be the "honorary member" of her family.

Does WNBA legend Sue Bird have children?

Sue Bird doesn't have children. However, the WNBA legend hasn't ruled out the idea of starting a family in the future.

Bird has spent most of her life playing basketball. She had been dating soccer legend Megan Rapinoe since 2016. With the couple having spent most of their lives focused on careers, having children was never an easy option for them.

Previously, Bird discussed the idea of family in her life when she was still playing in the WNBA. In 2019, she told the Washington Post that after years of consideration, she had chosen to freeze her eggs. She said that although having children wasn't on her list, she was open to the idea for the future.