Robert Lee Parish (born August 30, 1953) is an American former professional basketball player who played 21 seasons as a center in the National Basketball Association (NBA), tied for second most in league history. He played an NBA-record 1,611 games in his career. Parish was known for his strong defense, high arcing jump shots, and clutch rebounding late in games.
During his college career at Centenary College, he racked up impressive enough numbers to be drafted three times, twice by teams from the ABA, and finally in 1976 by the Golden State Warriors of the NBA, for whom he played four seasons as the highlight of an otherwise lackluster team. The Boston Celtics needed a new center following the retirement of Dave Cowens, and organized a trade with the Warriors for Parish and a draft pick that they would use to select forward Kevin McHale. The two would join young star forward Larry Bird on the Celtics, forming what is often considered the greatest frontcourt in NBA history, appearing together in five NBA finals and winning three championships over seven seasons during the 1980s. After the retirement of Bird in 1992, and McHale in 1993, Parish remained with the Celtics through the lean years of the early 1990s, leaving the team as a free agent following the 1993–1994 season. He would go on to play two more seasons with the Charlotte Hornets and one more with the Chicago Bulls, winning an NBA championship with the Bulls during the 1996–1997 season, becoming the oldest player to win a championship at the age of 43. He retired after that season with the most games played of any NBA player with 1611 games, a record that still stands.
Elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003, Parish was also named to the NBA's 50th and 75th anniversary teams. His nickname was "the Chief", after the fictitious Chief Bromden, a silent, giant Native American character in the film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. According to Parish, former Celtics forward Cedric Maxwell gave him this nickname because of his stoic nature.
