ROBERT PARISH

'Robert Lee Parish' (born in Shreveport, Louisiana) is a retired American basketball center. He was known for his strong defense and jump shooting, and was elected in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003. In 1997, Parish was also named as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History.
His nickname was '"The Chief"', after the mute Native American in the film ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest''. According to legend, former Celtics forward Cedric Maxwell gave Parish this nickname because of his stoic nature.

Contents

NBA career

Legacy

Notes

External links

NBA career

After a modest career at Centenary College of Louisiana, Parish was drafted in the first round of the 1976 NBA Draft by the Golden State Warriors, before being sent to the Boston Celtics, where he played his best years. He compared his transition from Golden State to Boston in a televised quote where he jokingly said it was like going from an outhouse to a penthouse. Playing 14 years with the Celtics from 1980 to 1994, Parish led the league in rebounding and blocks per game during his first three years with Boston. He also won three NBA titles (1981, 1984 and 1986) teaming with legendary small forward Larry Bird and power forward Kevin McHale. The trio is regarded by many as the best frontcourt in NBA history and was dubbed the "Big Three".^[1]
He played two more seasons with the Charlotte Hornets and then played his final season with the Chicago Bulls in 1996-97, which led to his fourth NBA title. At 43, he is the third oldest player to ever play an NBA game (to Nat Hickey of the Providence Steamrollers^[2], and Kevin Willis of the Dallas Mavericks and as of 2007 his 1,611 games played over 21 seasons are unmatched.
During Game 5 of the 1987 Eastern Conference Finals against the Detroit Pistons, Parrish and Pistons center Bill Laimbeer were fighting for a rebound underneath when Parrish decided he had had enough of the rough-playing Laimbeer and delivered several walloping blows that sent Laimbeer to the floor, bleeding. The referees completely missed the incident. Parrish was not given a technical foul and a personal foul was called on Darren Daye instead. Later, upon review of the rather damming video evidence, Parrish was eventually suspended one game - a small price to pay for the extra adulation he received from the Garden crowd.

Legacy

He was known as a versatile center, using his impressive 7'0 size in defense to contain opposing players, while being able to launch precise shots from outside and to finish s thanks to his speed, which was uncanny for a man of his stature. Fellow Hall of Famer Bill Walton once called Parish the "greatest shooting big man of all time", perhaps because of Parish's field goal and free throw shooting ability, an unusual talent among most centers. His trademark was his high release jump shot, which traversed a very high arc before falling.
In honor of his achievements, the Celtics retired Parish's famous #00 jersey number in 1998 at halftime of a Celtics-Pacers game (in order to allow Larry Bird, who was then head coach of the Pacers, to participate in the ceremony). He was enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003. In 1996, Parish, along with teammates Larry Bird and Kevin McHale, was selected as one of the 50 Greatest Players of All Time.

Notes

1. Kevin McHale NBA History bio
2. John Stockton: Still Going Strong at 41, published March 26, 2003

External links

★ NBA stats @ basketballreference.com

★ Where Are They Now?: Robert Parish @ NBA.com