{"id":36832,"date":"2025-02-25T11:23:45","date_gmt":"2025-02-25T11:23:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=36832"},"modified":"2025-02-25T11:23:45","modified_gmt":"2025-02-25T11:23:45","slug":"decades-later-robert-parish-reveals-in-celtics-doc-why-he-chose-to-sit-out-larry-birds-legendary-fight-with-dr-j-the-boston-globe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=36832","title":{"rendered":"Decades later, Robert Parish reveals in Celtics doc why he chose to sit out Larry Bird\u2019s legendary fight with Dr. J – The Boston Globe"},"content":{"rendered":"

Who cares? Why give fresh air to this old topic now?<\/p>\n

Because this is Boston and this is Larry Bird and everything from back then still matters now. The Chief\u2019s somewhat distant relationship with his starry teammates has always been mysterious. Parish snubbed the team-sponsored reunion of the 1985-86 Celtics in 2016 and has been scarce around TD Garden since retiring.<\/p>\n

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Let\u2019s face it: Here in the Hub of the sports universe, we\u2019re always looking for new explanations on old episodes involving the Celts, Sox, B\u2019s, and C\u2019s. We never stop asking why\/if Johnny Pesky held the ball in the 1946 World Series. New and old recollections of the Sox\u2019 cataclysmic collapse at Shea Stadium (the \u201cBuckner Game\u201d) in 1986 are dissected and analyzed like the Warren Commission\u2019s Report. And what local sports fan isn\u2019t still wondering why Bill Belichick benched Malcolm Butler in Super Bowl LII?<\/p>\n

Just last week we heard words from a couple of Red Sox players that could create hard feelings in this year\u2019s clubhouse. Third baseman Rafael Devers said he won\u2019t give up his position to make room for Gold Glover Alex Bregman, and young teammate Triston Casas offended many with his insistence that Devers should play third and that Boston\u2019s top three prospects should be left off the Opening Day roster.<\/p>\n

For those who weren\u2019t there, it\u2019s hard to comprehend how big the Celtics were in the Great \u201880s. Bird had resuscitated the franchise in his rookie season (1979-80), the Celtics won the championship in \u201881, and in 1983 were preseason front-runners (along with the 76ers and Lakers) in October when Parish walked away from the team over a contract dispute. The Chief was outraged about sixth man Kevin McHale signing a new contract that would pay him a princely $1 million annually (remember when that was a lot of money for a pro athlete?).<\/p>\n

Parish at that time was beginning the third year of a five-year deal that paid him $650,000 annually and didn\u2019t like the notion of McHale making more.<\/p>\n

\u201cHow can you pay a starter more than a non-starter?\u201d Parish asked. \u201cIt\u2019s an insult to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

I was the Globe\u2019s everyday Celtics beat reporter in those days and came down hard on Parish, with a Sunday column that began, \u201cRobert Parish is wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Parish sulked at home, the 1983-84 (bound for another championship banner) Celtics embarked on an eight-day preseason trip west. While in Phoenix-Tempe for a exhibition with the Suns, Bird told me, \u201cIf Robert doesn\u2019t want to be here, he doesn\u2019t want to be here. We got enough talent on the bench.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"Decades
In an Oct. 11, 1983, Globe story, Larry Bird voiced his displeasure over teammate Robert Parish’s holdout.Globe archive<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Evidently those words stuck with Parish.<\/p>\n

Watching Part 5 of the HBO documentary at a private screening last Friday (Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Joe Mazzulla also attended), I saw the Bird\u2019s words on the silver screen in a blowup quote from the Oct. 11, 1983, Globe while we heard Parish speaking of his failure to come to Bird\u2019s defense in a dustup that started with the great Dr. J.<\/p>\n

Most of you have probably seen video of the fight and the famous photo of Larry and Doc with their hands at one another\u2019s throats. It was an early regular-season game in which Bird had 42 points in three quarters while Erving struggled. Larry at that time was at the height of his powers, in the middle of his three-year run as league MVP, while Doc was nearing the end. Julius got tired of Larry\u2019s trash talk and a brawl ensued.<\/p>\n

Bird did not like the way it unfolded. When 76ers strongmen Moses Malone and young Charles Barkley restrained Bird from behind, Erving got in a couple of licks as Larry was wrestled to the floor. M.L. Carr, Cedric Maxwell, and Dennis Johnson came to Bird\u2019s defense, but Parish \u2014 who was on the bench taking a breather when the fight started \u2014 was the only player on either team who never made it on to the court.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Moses wrapped his arms around Larry, choked him, I was right there,\u201d Parish says in the HBO doc. \u201cI stood there and watched the whole thing . . . This was the only time that I didn\u2019t feel a closeness to Larry. After I was beefing about contracts with the Celtics, to be honest, Larry didn\u2019t support me. He said, \u2018If Robert don\u2019t want to be here, just give me the ball and get out of the way.\u2019 I held a grudge for a minute, for sure, and that\u2019s why I did not help him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chief held the grudge for more than a minute. The Larry-Doc fight transpired more than a year after Parish\u2019s 1983 holdout. Four decades later, Parish is finally telling us why he never joined the brawl.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, it didn\u2019t matter. Teammates don\u2019t necessarily have to like one another. From all accounts, Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig weren\u2019t friendly, but that didn\u2019t derail the Yankees dynasty of the 1920s and \u201830s. Bird and Parish played together for 12 seasons and won three NBA championships for Boston.<\/p>\n

And now we know a little more about how they felt about one another.<\/p>\n

And maybe someday we\u2019ll find out why Malcolm Butler didn\u2019t play in that Super Bowl.<\/p>\n

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Dan Shaughnessy is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at daniel.shaughnessy@globe.com. Follow him @dan_shaughnessy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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