The DA Show: Celtics Legend Robert Parish
BOSTON (CBS) - Boston Celtics legend Robert Parish joined 98.5 The Sports Hub's The DA Show Tuesday night, the night before he is to be honored at "The Tradition."
Parish is set to receive the Basketball Legacy Award at the annual event at the Garden, which will be presented by former teammate Bill Walton.
"I have to say that the excitement and the momentum is building. It'll come to a head (Thursday) evening," Parish said of the honor, noting his former teammate Walton has been "blessed with the gift of conversation."
Parish also recalls his time on the Celtics, remembering the trade that brought him together with Larry Bird and Kevin McHale in 1980.
Parish knew from the get-go they had something special with the original "Big 3."
"(I realized on) the first day of training camp; the intensity, the focus. Everyone was all business and dedicated," said Parish. "We all seemed to be on the same page. I knew from Day 1 we had the potential to do something special."
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And when Boston put together the "new Big 3," Parish was very excited for his former team. There was no animosity towards the new trio of Celtics, because Parish saw a lot of similarities between the two groups.
"I was happy for the Celtics. I was glad they were able to assemble that type of talent. What was very impressive about the current 'Big 3' is they were able to put their egos aside and that's what I feel like what we had in common," said Parish. "Larry, Kevin and I put our personal egos aside for the betterment of the team, and that's saying a lot. You're able to sacrifice who you are and what you want individually for the team. I was very impressed with them for doing that, especially Paul Pierce. He basically took a step back for Allen and Garnett, and you have to respect that."
Read: Hard To Fault Ray Allen If He Leaves
Parrish had the honor of playing with both Larry Bird and Michael Jordan during his time in the NBA, and said they both had the drive and killer instincts to be great.
"The most obvious one for me is Larry and Michael had unshakable confidence in themselves," he said. "No matter the situation or the circumstance, they always felt like they could get it done; that they could pull it out. That's something I always admired about them."
"They're the type of players if they get you down, they'll put their foot on your throat and keep you down," said Parish. "That's what you needed to get the job done night in and night out."
What did Parish think of LeBron James' performance this postseason? Did he see any of Bird and MJ in LeBron? And did he take more pride in a thunderous dunk or big defensive play? Hear all that and more with the legendary Robert Parish on The DA Show.
