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Celtics Basketball => Celtics History => Topic started by: clover on January 26, 2013, 07:30:50 AM

Title: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job; says Bird, McHale won't help him (merged)
Post by: clover on January 26, 2013, 07:30:50 AM
I loved The Chief as a player. 

But his past teammates haven't owed him a job and badmouthing them for not hiring him is no help either. 

Of all the big-time college programs in the country, or d-league or even pro teams internationally, I'm sure someone would have been glad to take him on their staff, and he could have created demand at the NBA level from there. 

We also of course don't really know him as a person like his old teammates do, and didn't he have some sort of domestic abuse issues?  But an unfortunate story all around.

http://www.boston.com/sports/basketball/2013/01/25/robert-parish-yearns-for-nba-coaching-job/2nHzPnNCisC5pEv5R2eqWP/story.html
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: Who on January 26, 2013, 07:56:02 AM
I still Parish could be a phenomenal big man coach. Great fundamentals and understanding of positioning and economy of movement. I don't know if Parish still does them but he used to coach big man camps in the summer with his old mentor Clifford Ray too.

Looks to me like an ideal big man development coach.
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: moiso on January 26, 2013, 08:22:04 AM
I could see him as a big man coach or something along those lines.  Not so much as a headcoach.  Not sure if his communication skills are good enough for that.
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: ssspence on January 26, 2013, 09:25:20 AM
Kind of an odd article. Doesn't seem to be helping his cause by pooping on his old teammates.
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: PRIDE on January 26, 2013, 10:19:21 AM
Celtics should hire The Chief to assist the development of Fab Melo and Jared Sullinger. I would to see Melo learn the dropstep move that Parish used.
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: Who on January 26, 2013, 10:31:15 AM
Celtics should hire The Chief to assist the development of Fab Melo and Jared Sullinger. I would to see Melo learn the dropstep move that Parish used.
I think Parish would be fantastic for Fab Melo.
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: bdm860 on January 26, 2013, 10:41:13 AM
Kind of an odd article. Doesn't seem to be helping his cause by pooping on his old teammates.

Ya I don't think the article did him any favors.

Quote
“I need a coaching job in the NBA. I’m restless and I need money. ”

Seems like the absolute wrong mentality to have.  I need a coaching job because I have nothing to do and need money.  When the answer should be something like I love the game so much and want to be a part of it or want to give back or have so much knowledge and experience to share, etc.

Sounds like he couldn't care less about coaching, and just wants a high paying job that he thinks he won't have to work at.
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: CelticHooligan3 on January 26, 2013, 10:42:24 AM
So he blew through 24 million and 80 grand a year was too little pay for random community service engagements? Sorry Chief no sympathy here.
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: bdm860 on January 26, 2013, 11:12:08 AM
I can understand how a lot of these former players think it's so easy though.

You have some guys like Mark Jackson, Avery Johnson, Larry Bird given jobs right away, and so everybody thinks it's that easy and a job should just be given to them.

The thing is, every NBA player has been auditioning for this role their entire pro playing careers, but they don't even realize it.

Are you good with the press? Did you have good relationships with coaching, management, and all the other staff? Did you demonstrate leadership during your career?  Did you mentor young players when you were a vet? Do you have a great basketball mind and a love for the game?  Or do you just happen to have the physical skill set for basketball and that's why you made the NBA, didn't care about anyone but yourself, weren't easy to coach, didn't cooperate with the team staff, etc?

I think you get a guy like Mark Jackson, most likely always demonstrated that he loved the game, had a great basketball mind, showed leadership, and was always great with the staff, so ya he get's a job no problem.

But then you have guys like Dee Brown and Walter McCarty, maybe they love the game, and were good with the staff and press, but they never demonstrated leadership or a great basketball mind (maybe they only had average-to-good basketball minds).  So ya they have to work for it a little bit.  Brown had to start in the WNBA, then D-League, and now is finally an NBA assistant.  McCarty had to start as an assistant in college, then worked his way up to NBA assistant.

Then you have guys like Kareem, Parish, and Ewing.  Maybe they only showed they were tall and good at basketball, but never great with team staff or the press, and never showed a great basketball mind?  That's why they struggled to get an NBA coaching job. (Ewing seemed like he expected a coaching job right away, wanting to be a head coach of the Knicks with no experience, then realized he had to work for a coaching job and show he had what it took since he didn't show it during his pro career, that's why he has a job now).

So ya you have guys like Parish who 15 years after they stopped playing, now decide they want a job (for the wrong reasons), while demonstrating zero desire or ability to coach during a long NBA career, and doesn't understand why they aren't just handed a cushy job.  You had a 20 year career to show you would be a good coach, what was going on then?

(Obviously I'm assuming some things here about players personalities and behind-the-scenes behavior, but I think that's generally how it goes down).
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: Who on January 26, 2013, 11:41:59 AM
So ya you have guys like Parish who 15 years after they stopped playing, now decide they want a job (for the wrong reasons), while demonstrating zero desire or ability to coach during a long NBA career, and doesn't understand why they aren't just handed a cushy job.  You had a 20 year career to show you would be a good coach, what was going on then?
Parish has been trying to get a coaching job in the NBA for the past 10 years.

Parish has been working as a coach during the summers running a big man camp along with Clifford Ray (the best big man coach in the NBA and former mentor to Parish).

This is something he has been interested in for a long time. Not some sudden whim or desire. 
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: Roy H. on January 26, 2013, 11:55:14 AM
What a whiny, entitled interview.  He thinks he's owed something, but doesn't seem willing to work his way up.

Parish was a great player, probably even better than many fans remember him.  However, nobody owes him a job just because of his past. 
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: bdm860 on January 26, 2013, 12:03:33 PM
So ya you have guys like Parish who 15 years after they stopped playing, now decide they want a job (for the wrong reasons), while demonstrating zero desire or ability to coach during a long NBA career, and doesn't understand why they aren't just handed a cushy job.  You had a 20 year career to show you would be a good coach, what was going on then?
Parish has been trying to get a coaching job in the NBA for the past 10 years.

Parish has been working as a coach during the summers running a big man camp along with Clifford Ray (the best big man coach in the NBA and former mentor to Parish).

This is something he has been interested in for a long time. Not some sudden whim or desire.

If working for a few weeks as an instructor at a camp in the summer shows you want to coach...
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: Who on January 26, 2013, 12:06:01 PM
So ya you have guys like Parish who 15 years after they stopped playing, now decide they want a job (for the wrong reasons), while demonstrating zero desire or ability to coach during a long NBA career, and doesn't understand why they aren't just handed a cushy job.  You had a 20 year career to show you would be a good coach, what was going on then?
Parish has been trying to get a coaching job in the NBA for the past 10 years.

Parish has been working as a coach during the summers running a big man camp along with Clifford Ray (the best big man coach in the NBA and former mentor to Parish).

This is something he has been interested in for a long time. Not some sudden whim or desire.

If working for a few weeks as an instructor at a camp in the summer shows you want to coach...
Working with and learning from the best big man coach in the business
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: TripleOT on January 26, 2013, 06:00:31 PM
There's an inference that three of the 80s Celtics easily slid into well paid jobs without paying a ton of dues, while the other two, Parish and DJ, did not.   

McHale parlayed his being from Minnesota into a front office job with a new-ish franchise with no history.  He brought them some NBA cachet.  Ainge was able to slide from an assistant coaching gig in Phoenix to head coach in a season.  Bird, after being groomed by Red in Boston, wisely bolted when the Pitino coup rolled into town, and parlayed his hometown iconic-ness in Indiana into a job. BTW, Bird's coaching winning percentage is higher than Red's (in only three seasons).  Ainge was no slouch either on the sidelines, winning 60% of his games.  McHale is another story, both on the sideline and in the front office.   

Parish spent his last NBA years as a vagabond.  He doesn't have a hometown where he's an icon, so he couldn't have gone the route of McHale or Bird. In hindsight, as his playing career ended (with him picking up a five million dollars his last four seasons to fill out the end of the roster), he should have made him move into coaching then.

There's no set way for a player to transition into head coach or front office executive.  The easiest and best way is to have decision-makers and owners covet you.  Whining about being on the outside for almost two decades, and asking back in because you're broke, probably isn't the best way to be coveted.

To be a successful coach in today's NBA you have to be an upbeat, communicator type.  I don't see Parish as that. He should try to hook on somewhere as a big man coach and PR ambassador.     
Title: Robert Parish: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale Won’t Return My Calls
Post by: Kane3387 on January 29, 2013, 12:14:43 PM
http://www.slamonline.com/online/nba/2013/01/robert-parish-larry-bird-kevin-mchale-wont-return-my-calls/

Sad stuff. Sounds like the Chief is broke and needs help.

Quote
Once named one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history, Robert Parish now just wants to coach in the NBA. The only problem, according to the 59-year-old, is that former Celtic teammates and current NBA insiders Larry Bird and Kevin McHale won’t return his calls asking for help. From a story that ran A1 in Saturday’s Boston Globe: “‘People shouldn’t feel sad; they should help me get a job,’ said the Hall of Fame center with the deep voice on the other end. ‘I need a coaching job in the NBA. I’m restless and I need money.’

I guess no one is willing to help him.

Quote
…Parish, 59, said that Bird and McHale, both of whom have held coaching and front office jobs in the league (McHale is the coach of the Houston Rockets), have done nothing to help him in his quest to return to the NBA, although he says he has reached out to them. He calls his Hall of Fame teammates ‘acquaintances.


Parish says the Big Three are not friends.

Quote
‘In my case, I don’t have any friends,’ Parish said. ‘I saw Kevin at an event; he said he was going to call me. He never called. I called Larry twice when he was at the Indiana Pacers; he never returned my call. And not just Larry. Across the board, most NBA teams do not call back. You need a court order just to get a phone call back from these organizations. I’m not a part of their fraternity.’

Bird says this is not true.

Quote
Bird has a rather different recollection. Traveling, he sent a concise text in response to questions from the Globe: ‘Robert never called me for a job. Period.’


McHale says he tried to help him with Minnesota. I guess there is no room on his staff in Houston. You would think he could be a good big man coach with all the young front court players in Houston.

Quote
McHale, for his part, expressed remorse in a voicemail. He said he tried to hire Parish when he was in Minnesota, but ‘I went back and checked . . . we were actually reducing spots at the time. Then I was let go from Minnesota.’”
Title: Re: Robert Parish: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale Won’t Return My Calls
Post by: slamtheking on January 29, 2013, 12:20:19 PM
eh, not convinced. 

if it were true, it wouldn't surprise me -- look how DJ could never get that final break to be head coach.
Title: Re: Robert Parish: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale Won’t Return My Calls
Post by: indeedproceed on January 29, 2013, 12:24:32 PM
eh, not convinced. 

if it were true, it wouldn't surprise me -- look how DJ could never get that final break to be head coach.

He was a head coach of a D-League team, wasn't he? For him it was a matter of time, just so happened he didn't have much left.

Parish...I dunno what you can say about him.

Title: Re: Robert Parish: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale Won’t Return My Calls
Post by: pearljammer10 on January 29, 2013, 12:35:15 PM
I need money too. I should totally just get an NBA coaching job. Will someone help me?
Title: Re: Robert Parish: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale Won’t Return My Calls
Post by: ssspence on January 29, 2013, 12:35:40 PM
Parish long had a reputation for smoking weed daily. Could have something to do with the lack of interest from piers to pull the trigger.
Title: Re: Robert Parish: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale Won’t Return My Calls
Post by: Evantime34 on January 29, 2013, 12:43:58 PM
This makes me sad, I think he could teach some young players a thing or two about the game. The Celtics should hire him as a consultant to personally coach Fab.
Title: Re: Robert Parish: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale Won’t Return My Calls
Post by: CelticsFan9 on January 29, 2013, 12:48:21 PM
I wish he'd come here and coach Melo.  That'd be pretty awesome.
Title: Re: Robert Parish: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale Won’t Return My Calls
Post by: KGs Knee on January 29, 2013, 01:06:16 PM
Parish long had a reputation for smoking weed daily. Could have something to do with the lack of interest from piers to pull the trigger.

This is probably part of it, but I doubt it comes from the coaches themselves.  More of an ownership issue.

When you're a player with significant talent, ownership will look the other way (I'd wager half the players in the league currently partake).  As a guy trying to get into coaching, it gets you "black-listed".

Walton, Kareem, Chief were all known for their "habits", and none of them ever got a coaching job.  Although, in Walton's case, I'm not sure he ever wanted one.  He was an awesome announcer (NBC) for a while though.
Title: Re: Robert Parish: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale Won’t Return My Calls
Post by: clover on January 29, 2013, 01:19:34 PM
http://www.slamonline.com/online/nba/2013/01/robert-parish-larry-bird-kevin-mchale-wont-return-my-calls/

Sad stuff. Sounds like the Chief is broke and needs help.

Quote
Once named one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history, Robert Parish now just wants to coach in the NBA. The only problem, according to the 59-year-old, is that former Celtic teammates and current NBA insiders Larry Bird and Kevin McHale won’t return his calls asking for help. From a story that ran A1 in Saturday’s Boston Globe: “‘People shouldn’t feel sad; they should help me get a job,’ said the Hall of Fame center with the deep voice on the other end. ‘I need a coaching job in the NBA. I’m restless and I need money.’

I guess no one is willing to help him.

Quote
…Parish, 59, said that Bird and McHale, both of whom have held coaching and front office jobs in the league (McHale is the coach of the Houston Rockets), have done nothing to help him in his quest to return to the NBA, although he says he has reached out to them. He calls his Hall of Fame teammates ‘acquaintances.


Parish says the Big Three are not friends.

Quote
‘In my case, I don’t have any friends,’ Parish said. ‘I saw Kevin at an event; he said he was going to call me. He never called. I called Larry twice when he was at the Indiana Pacers; he never returned my call. And not just Larry. Across the board, most NBA teams do not call back. You need a court order just to get a phone call back from these organizations. I’m not a part of their fraternity.’

Bird says this is not true.

Quote
Bird has a rather different recollection. Traveling, he sent a concise text in response to questions from the Globe: ‘Robert never called me for a job. Period.’


McHale says he tried to help him with Minnesota. I guess there is no room on his staff in Houston. You would think he could be a good big man coach with all the young front court players in Houston.

Quote
McHale, for his part, expressed remorse in a voicemail. He said he tried to hire Parish when he was in Minnesota, but ‘I went back and checked . . . we were actually reducing spots at the time. Then I was let go from Minnesota.’”

That Bird statement about Parish having never called him "for a job. Period", along with Bird's having said that previous teammates have regularly called asking for money makes me suspect that that's what Parish has called him for.

Title: Re: Robert Parish: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale Won’t Return My Calls
Post by: fairweatherfan on January 29, 2013, 01:46:21 PM
That Bird statement about Parish having never called him "for a job. Period", along with Bird's having said that previous teammates have regularly called asking for money makes me suspect that that's what Parish has called him for.

Yeah, that's my take on it too.  And probably exactly the kind of behavior that would get such a terse response from Larry.

Shame about Chief, but if no one wants to help him out, it's probably because he has a bad reputation, deserved or not. 
Title: Re: Robert Parish: Larry Bird, Kevin McHale Won’t Return My Calls
Post by: 2short on January 29, 2013, 02:19:33 PM
Parish long had a reputation for smoking weed daily. Could have something to do with the lack of interest from piers to pull the trigger.
:D
i seem to remember the chief getting busted for mail ordering weed when in boston
was brushed under a carpet but i know it got some headlines
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job; says Bird, McHale won't help him (merged)
Post by: Mr Green on March 05, 2013, 10:00:23 AM
If Parish is genuine about coaching, he should offer one on one tutorial sessions with bigs during the offseson, similar to the camps that Olajuwon offers. After all, the journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step and such and such.
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: tenn_smoothie on April 14, 2013, 12:31:32 AM

To be a successful coach in today's NBA you have to be an upbeat, communicator type.  I don't see Parish as that. He should try to hook on somewhere as a big man coach and PR ambassador.     

uh, don't you think that if Parish is not "upbeat and a communicator", then a PR job would be even worse for him than a coaching job ?

I don't much see Parish as a coaching type either, but that was part of what made him so great as a player. no BS, no pretense, no card tricks, just get in there and, along with some very under-rated skills, grind the other guy down. go back and watch 1984 - he simply beat Kareem up in the finals and he and Max won game 7 for us, plain and simple. not a bunch of trash talk either, but nobody ever messed with the guy. it's a shame he blew through his money and can't just enjoy his summer camps and be done with it.

personally, I am sick of the stepford coaches we see roaming the sidelines now in their $1000 suits both in the pros and in college. they look the same, act the same, coach the same. we used to have personalities who went their own way and didn't care about fashion or saying just the right thing to the press or about being a player's coach or about trying to be mysterious personalities (Phil "bandwagon" Jerkson) - they just coached, baby.
Title: Re: Robert Parish yearns for NBA coaching job
Post by: tenn_smoothie on April 14, 2013, 12:58:12 AM

To be a successful coach in today's NBA you have to be an upbeat, communicator type.  I don't see Parish as that. He should try to hook on somewhere as a big man coach and PR ambassador.     

uh, don't you think that if Parish is not "upbeat and a communicator", then a PR job would be even worse for him than a coaching job ?

I don't much see Parish as a coaching type either, but that was part of what made him so great as a player. no BS, no pretense, no card tricks, just get in there and, along with some very under-rated skills, grind the other guy down. go back and watch 1984 - he simply beat Kareem up in the finals and he and Max won game 7 for us, plain and simple. not a bunch of trash talk either, but nobody ever messed with the guy. it's a shame he blew through his money and can't just enjoy his summer camps and be done with it.

i'm sure the smoke and knocking his wife around have stayed with him - in the back of the NBA's ever-vigilant PR mindset these days. I did find his comment dismissing himself for having a "guest" when his wife came by his hotel room a bit unsettling - like, "what's the big deal ?" you also heard stories that Miss Nancy was quite a handful herself and that Robert felt like a load had been lifted when they separated. I know they are pro athletes and all, but it's kinda normal there, Chief, for any wife or husband to get real upset when they find you in bed with someone else. I find it extremely sad that he sold his rings - no way that does not hurt him deep down to have to have done that.

on a related note - personally, I am sick of the stepford coaches we see roaming the sidelines now in their $1000 suits both in the pros and in college. they look the same, act the same, coach the same. we used to have personalities who went their own way and didn't care about fashion or saying just the right thing to the press or about being a player's coach or about trying to be mysterious personalities (Phil "bandwagon" Jerkson) - they just coached, baby.