Latest news with #RobertParish
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
What happened to Boston Celtics forward Reggie Lewis?
What happened to Boston Celtics forward Reggie Lewis? The Celtics dynasty of the 1980s that started under Boston Hall of Famers Larry Bird, Robert Parish, and Kevin McHale looked poised to continue with the rise of Lewis after the Celtics drafted him out of the NCAA ranks. But a hidden health issue would take the young Boston star from his family, friends, team, and fans far too soon, Lewis collapsing on a court with a rare heart issue that would ultimately take his life. Celtics beat writers from that era Bob Ryan and Dan Shaugnessy took some time on a recent episode of the "NBA History and Storytellers on CLNS" show to talk over his untimely loss. Take a look at the clip embedded below to hear what they had to say about what was lost -- and what might have been. If you enjoy this pod, check out the "How Bout Them Celtics," "First to the Floor," and the many other New England sports podcasts available on the CLNS Media network: This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: What happened to Celtics forward Reggie Lewis?
Yahoo
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
"You see him look like a homeless person and then the next game a rockstar" - Robert Parish on why playing with Dennis Rodman bizzare
"You see him look like a homeless person and then the next game a rockstar" - Robert Parish on why playing with Dennis Rodman bizzare originally appeared on Basketball Network. Everyone who encountered Dennis Rodman during his active years in the NBA will have different ways of describing him. But one thing that will stick out is that he was a wildcard, unpredictable and impossible to figure out. Advertisement Whether on the court or off it, Rodman existed in his own chaotic orbit, and for a player like Robert Parish, whose game and lifestyle thrived on structure, silence and dependability, those few months they shared in Chicago left an unforgettable mark. Rodman's personality Parish joined the Chicago Bulls in the 1996–97 season, at age 43, already a three-time champion with Boston and a nine-time NBA All-Star. He was near the twilight, content to anchor the bench behind Luc Longley, offer leadership and quietly chase a fourth ring. Rodman, on the other hand, was deep in the most colorful chapter of his post-Detroit Pistons life, swerving from court dominance to Vegas trips between games, with hair changing almost every week. The two coexisted on one of the greatest teams in NBA history, yet their personalities couldn't have been more distant. Advertisement "He looks like a homeless person," Parish said of Rodman. "You never know that though. People on the outside never knew that. You see him look like a homeless person and then the next game a rockstar … He's one of the strangest personalities to ever be around." That was his description, delivered years later with the kind of baffled respect that follows a man like Rodman wherever he goes. It was never about basketball IQ or toughness; Rodman had both in spades. But for veterans like Parish, who had come up in an era ruled by order and repetition, being around Rodman's mercurial energy was like learning a new language on the fly. Rodman would arrive at practice looking like he had been sleeping in a subway tunnel, clothes askew, hair wild and eyes unreadable. But once the game tipped, he'd rebound like a man possessed, log 40 minutes with elite defensive rotations and dive into the crowd with zero concern for his limbs. Advertisement In that 1996–97 season, The Worm led the NBA in rebounds for a sixth straight year, averaging 16.1 per game. He was 35 years old and still out-jumping 25-year-olds, still creating second-chance possessions, still wreaking havoc in the paint. His contribution to that Bulls squad, which finished with a 69–13 record and went on to win its fifth title, was monumental. But the cost of that brilliance was often absorbed in the locker room, where the team had to endure his quirks, his abrupt absences and the sheer unpredictability of his presence. Related: "After much consideration, I am now prepared to rule" - When Utah judge ruled Michael Jordan pushed off in his final shot in '98 The calm giant and the chaos storm For Parish, who had a stoic demeanor and ability to lead without speaking much, adjusting to Rodman's rhythm was tough in all senses. Advertisement The Boston Celtics icon had shared locker rooms with Larry Bird and Kevin McHale and helped shepherd a young Golden State Warriors squad before that. But nothing quite prepared him for the circus that followed Rodman, whose off-court choices often made headlines faster than his rebounds. Whether it was the high-profile relationships in the early '90s, the impromptu wedding dress photoshoot to promote his autobiography, "Bad As I Wanna Be," or the 1997 mid-Finals Vegas bender with Hulk Hogan, he was constantly pushing the boundaries of what the league and teammates could tolerate. Yet the brilliance never faded. Rodman knew how to get under opponents' skin without fouling out, how to front-post players twice his size and still win the rebound battle, how to screen and cut and disappear into the margins of a play until it mattered. He was a master of the little things and that's where Parish had no choice but to respect him. Advertisement But it was also draining. The Bulls had veterans. Scottie Pippen knew how to navigate Rodman's mood swings. Jordan, by then on his fifth title mission, had already accepted that Rodman was a necessary inconvenience. But for Parish, who was new to that Bulls ecosystem, it took some recalibrating. He wasn't alone. Even Phil Jackson would find ways to work Rodman's instability into his triangle offense and mindfulness rituals. And still, the team kept winning. Parish played just 43 games that season and saw limited minutes in the playoffs. But he got his fourth and final ring, an elegant bookend to a Hall of Fame career. Rodman, true to form, got another championship, another year of leading the league in rebounds and another reason to believe that his methods, however bizarre, worked. Advertisement Related: "One of the most interesting personalities" - Robert Parish on how playing with Dennis Rodman made the Chicago dynasty feel a lot different than Boston's This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 6, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
"If you are a yeller and screamer, your players tune out what you got to say" - Robert Parish on why Bird's leadership style was much better for him than MJ's
"If you are a yeller and screamer, your players tune out what you got to say" - Robert Parish on why Bird's leadership style was much better for him than MJ's originally appeared on Basketball Network. Leadership was everything in the old NBA era. Advertisement It was the foundation of every dynasty, and it came in different ways: some silent, some relentless and some so commanding that it bent the locker room into its orbit. However, for the players who lived through those dogfights of the '80s and '90s, few opinions carry as much weight as Robert Parish's. The Hall of Fame center played alongside Larry Bird for over a decade, won three titles with him and battled Michael Jordan through the tail end of his prime. When he speaks about leadership, he offers experience. Bird's leadership The game was different then — not just slower or more physical, but more reliant on internal chemistry, respect and an unwritten code. Stars set the tone in practice, defined the culture and shaped the identity of a franchise. Advertisement For the Boston Celtics of the 1980s, that tone came from Bird, cold-blooded in the clutch, ruthless on the glass and brutally efficient in every decision. "Larry led by example," Parish said. "He wasn't a vocal leader. He let his play dictate how we play and I think Larry's style and philosophy makes the best leaders, because if you are a yeller and screamer, after a while, your voice falls on deaf ears and players kind of tune out what you got to say." Bird, a three-time MVP, averaged 24.3 points, 10.0 rebounds and 6.3 assists over his career, often while playing through back pain and battered knees. His approach didn't need words. His teammates watched him throw elbows for rebounds, drain daggers with a flick of the wrist and talk just enough trash. Advertisement But within the Celtics' locker room, Bird didn't need to bark. He didn't lean on intimidation. The message came in between plays, in how hard he ran the floor, how he took charges and how he dove for loose balls both in the regular season and the playoffs. Bird's body language alone could shift the mood of a game. Coaches trusted him like a floor general. Opponents feared him not just for his scoring but because he controlled the tempo without drawing attention to himself. That's what Parish was pointing to: a leadership born from consistency, sacrifice, and unshakable poise. Related: "We only needed one more guy" - Patrick Beverley says the Clippers lost SGA because Kawhi thought he needed more help Different styles of Bird and MJ The Celtics made five NBA Finals appearances during Bird's prime and never missed the postseason in his 13-year career. His leadership style didn't come across as controlling every voice in the room; it was about giving them space to match his standard. Advertisement "I respect both leadership styles," Parish said, "But I prefer Larry's style a bit because sometimes you don't want to hear what he got to say. Speaking of Michael, he up all in your face speaking trash." Jordan's leadership was ferocious and it didn't come with brakes. His style was created in friction. He held teammates to punishing standards, called them out in practice and drove the Bulls to six titles behind a relentless mix of greatness and pressure. It worked; no one questions that. Jordan was a six-time champion, five-time MVP and arguably the most feared competitor the league has ever seen. But Parish had seen both sides up close. Advertisement He joined the Bulls in the 1996 season, just in time to witness the second three-peat from the inside. Even at 42, he could feel the difference in locker room energy. Jordan's leadership could sharpen a team into its best form, but it came with a psychological tax. His intensity was constant. His volume was high. His presence left no room for down moments. Bird's leadership, by contrast, came with a slower burn. It wasn't built on domination. Players weren't pushed; they were invited to rise to the moment. In the long run, Parish found that it was more sustainable. He wasn't dismissing Jordan's greatness, just explaining that over the course of an 82-game season, the voice that echoes quietly often leaves the deepest impression. Bird won fewer championships than Jordan, but he built his success in arguably the most competitive era of team parity in league history. The '80s Los Angeles Lakers, Detroit Pistons and Philadelphia 76ers were dynasties of their own. Advertisement And yet Bird's Celtics always stood tall among them. Related: "I told him if he felt that strongly about it, come and get some" - Robert Parish recalls intimidating Michael Jordan during a practice This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 28, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
21-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
"One of the most interesting personalities" - Robert Parish on how playing with Dennis Rodman made the Chicago dynasty feel a lot different than Boston's
"One of the most interesting personalities" - Robert Parish on how playing with Dennis Rodman made the Chicago dynasty feel a lot different than Boston's originally appeared on Basketball Network. Robert Parish witnessed two dynasties from the inside out. Advertisement He was a cornerstone of the Boston Celtics' frontcourt in the 1980s, anchoring a team that captured three NBA titles with a blend of size, precision and Hall of Fame synergy. Years later, in the twilight of his career, he laced up once more with a Chicago Bulls squad that was closing in on its second three-peat of the decade. He witnessed, from a unique vantage point, how two different dynasties operated and succeeded in their own ways. Rodman's personality In 1996, at 43 years old and fresh off a short stint in the Charlotte Hornets, Parish joined a team already soaked in champagne — the defending champion Bulls. They had the coach in Phil Jackson, had the leader in Michael Jordan and his deputy in Scottie Pippen. Advertisement However, the Dennis Rodman factor was a different kind of machine for their success. "Speaking of personalities," Parish said, "one of the most interesting personalities [was] Dennis Rodman. Definitely." Rodman was one of the most unpredictable figures in the league. He was also one of the best hustlers. He had already earned two Defensive Player of the Year awards and built a reputation as an elite rebounder with the Detroit Pistons and the San Antonio Spurs. He brought his eccentricity and unmatched motor to a Bulls locker room already brimming with competitive fire. But for Parish, who had spent years alongside Larry Bird, one of the most relentless competitors the league had ever seen, Rodman's energy was unlike anything he had encountered in Boston. His years with the Celtics were defined by heavy minutes and heavier expectations. Between 1980 and 1994, Parish started over 1,100 games, formed the most formidable frontcourt in NBA history alongside Kevin McHale and Bird and became a bedrock of Red Auerbach's blueprint. Advertisement Rodman's presence symbolized the contrast. The Celtics' success had been a cold-blooded march built on structure, repetition and execution. Practices were grueling, the offense was deliberate and the locker room, while not without tension, operated within a traditional framework of veteran hierarchy. In contrast, Chicago's dominance in the mid-90s thrived within organized chaos. Under Jackson's triangle system and his psychological approach to coaching, the Bulls were freer, looser and yet just as precise when it mattered. Related: "When you start endangering people's health, it's taking away from the beauty of the game" - Michael Jordan criticized how the Pistons and the Knicks played the game Being a veteran When Parish arrived in Chicago on Sept. 25, 1996, signing as a free agent after his release from the Hornets, he wasn't expected to log major minutes. He played in just 43 games that season and averaged 9.4 minutes per contest. But he didn't need to chase stats, he had scored over 23,000 career points and grabbed more than 14,000 rebounds by that point. Advertisement What the Bulls needed was maturity and Parish, even in limited action, became a quiet north star for younger players navigating the edges of greatness. Chicago went on to win 69 games that season, finishing with a 69–13 record before steamrolling through the playoffs. For Parish, it was ring number four, a final chapter added to a Hall of Fame story and a unique glimpse into how another dynasty handled its business. He was the oldest in the dressing room, and while Jordan was the leader, he mentored the younger players as a veteran and let Rodman be himself because he knew that was how he operated. "That's the best way to roll with Dennis, let Dennis be Dennis," Parish said. "But the other young players — Jason Kaffee, Derrick Dickey — they gravitated towards me because they want to pick my brain about what it took to be a professional." Advertisement Parish didn't come to Chicago to reinvent himself; he came to reinforce what he had always stood for: longevity, discipline, and presence. The younger players on that Bulls team looked up to him not for what he could still do on the floor but for what he had already done. His 21 years in the league were marked by a near-religious dedication to conditioning, consistency and mental toughness. He played more games than anyone in NBA history and remained injury-free through eras defined by physicality. While names like Jordan and Pippen dominated headlines, Parish operated in the background with the same quiet demeanor he'd always carried. Advertisement In Boston, he was the silent enforcer, often letting his play speak louder than any pregame quotes. In Chicago, he became something else entirely, a living link between dynasties. Related: When Dennis Rodman's bodyguard stopped him from marrying Carmen Electra: "He drove around for three hours" This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 20, 2025, where it first appeared.
USA Today
09-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
On this day: Robert Parish, pick used for Kevin McHale traded for; Bird, Ainge drafted
On this day: Robert Parish, pick used for Kevin McHale traded for; Bird, Ainge drafted On this day in Boston Celtics history, President of Basketball Operations Red Auerbach pulled off one of the most lopsided trades in NBA history in 1980. Auerbach dealt a pair of first-round picks used to select big man Joe Barry Carroll and center Rickey Brown to the Golden State Warriors in exchange for big man Robert Parish and the draft pick used to select Kevin McHale. In one fell swoop, Boston's head honcho scooped up two-thirds of one of the greatest frontcourts ever assembled. Forward Larry Bird, who had already been drafted, completed the trio that win titles together in 1981, 1984, and 1986. It is also the anniversary of the 1978 NBA draft, in which the Celtics took three players of note. They selected small forward Jeff Judkins out of Utah with the 30th pick of the draft. Judkins played two seasons for Boston, averaging 7.3 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game before being drafted by the Dallas Mavericks in the 1980 NBA expansion draft. The Celtics also took shooting guard Freeman Williams out of Portland State with the eighth overall pick of the draft. Williams was immediately dealt with Kevin Kunnert, Kermit Washington, and Sidney Wicks to the (then) San Diego (now, Los Angeles) Clippers for Tiny Archibald, Marvin Barnes, Billy Knight, and draft assets. They also drafted a player you may have heard of -- forward Larry Bird. Bird was taken with the sixth pick of the draft despite still being enrolled in Indiana State University, exploiting a since-closed loophole in the Collective Bargaining Agreement to do it. He finished his final season at Indiana State before joining Boston for his Hall-of-Fame career that included three titles, 12 All-Star nods, 10 All-NBA teams, three Most Valuable Player Awards, and many other honors. The 1981 NBA draft also fell on this date, with the Celtics again taking three noteworthy players. The first was shooting guard Charles Bradley, a Wyoming standout, taken with the 23rd pick. Bradley played two seasons with Boston, averaging 3.3 points, 1.1 rebounds, and 0.5 assists per contest before being waived in October 1983. The Celtics took shooting guard Tracy Jackson out of Notre Dame with the 25th pick. Jackson played 11 games with Boston before having his contract sold to the Chicago Bulls. In those 11 games, he averaged 2.4 points, 1.1 boards, and 0.5 assists. The Celtics drafted shooting guard Danny Ainge -- formerly of BYU -- with the 31st pick. The move was a gamble since Ainge had already signed with Major League Baseball's Toronto Blue Jays. However, the move paid off big for Boston. Ainge won two titles with the team as a player which laid the groundwork for him to return later in life as an executive and win another in 2008.
