This lot is closed. Bidding ended on 9/7/2012.
Hall of Famer Robert Parish played in more games than any other player in NBA history. A 7-foot-1 center who combined strength, agility, and remarkable endurance, Parish won his first NBA Championship with the Celtics in 1981, his first year in Boston. Three seasons later, Parish and the 1983-84 Boston Celtics dominated the regular season with a league-best 62 wins, entering the playoffs as the top seed in the Eastern Conference. In the Finals, the Celtics would face the Los Angeles Lakers, their storied rival and the top seed in the West. L.A. opened the series with a six-point Game 1 victory at Boston Garden and the Celtics responded with a win in Game 2 thanks to a Gerald Henderson steal of a James Worthy pass and a last-second layup to send the game to overtime. The series moved to Los Angeles and the Lakers’ 33-point blowout in Game 3 gave them a 2-1 edge in the series before Boston responded with yet another overtime win in Game 4 thanks largely to a botched pass by Magic Johnson that was picked off by Parish late in the 4th quarter. The series returned to Boston for Game 5, now referred to as the “Heat Game”. With temperatures near 100-degrees outside, and no air conditioning in Boston Garden, temperatures soared on the court. An oxygen tank was needed to allow an aging Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to recover and the home court advantage helped the Celtics take the series lead 3-2. Back in L.A. for Game 6, the Lakers responded with an 11-point victory, sending the series back to Boston Garden for the decisive Game 7. Home court advantage once again aided Boston and the Celtics finished off L.A. with a 9-point victory, giving the franchise their 15th NBA Championship. The series was the eighth time in NBA history that the Celtics and Lakers met in the NBA finals, with Boston winning each time. In 23 playoff games that season, Parish averaged a double-double with 14.9 points and 10.8 rebounds. This size 13, 14k gold player’s ring weighs 40 grams and was presented to Hall of Famer Robert Parish after the Celtics defeated the Lakers in the ‘84 Finals, the second of three championships that Parish won in his 14-season tenure in Boston. The top panel reads “BOSTON CELTICS WORLD CHAMPIONS” surround a large .60-carat round-cut diamond in the center of a green Celtics shamrock. The right panel features the player name “PARISH” in relief above a casted image of Lucky the Leprechaun, a basketball along with a rim and net and an engraved banner that reads, “PRIDE”. “XV” appears on the basketball enameled in green, signifying the franchise’s 15th NBA Championship. The left panel reads “1984” and features a green enameled official NBA logo in relief along with an engraved banner that reads “TEAMWORK”. The inside of the ring is stamped “BALFOUR 14K”. The ring is in NRMT condition with light wear and it is accompanied by a LOA from Robert Parish.