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HH Tournament: (4) Jo Jo White vs (5) Robert Parish

By Jeremy Karll

Sep 11, 2015; Springfield, MA, USA; Jo Jo White (left) on stage during the 2015 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony at Springfield Symphony Hall. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 11, 2015; Springfield, MA, USA; Jo Jo White (left) on stage during the 2015 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement Ceremony at Springfield Symphony Hall. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports /
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Jo Jo White and Robert Parish is the next matchup in the Hardwood Houdini Tournament

To no surprise, Bill Russell defeated Rajon Rondo to be the first player to advance to the Elite Eight. Today we have maybe the most even matchup of the tournament up to this point. Jo Jo White and Robert Parish face off to decide who gets a date with Bill Russell in the Elite Eight.

Don’t forget that this is based solely off their playing careers with the Boston Celtics. Any coaching or front office experience shouldn’t be taken into account, neither should their collegiate careers or any other NBA teams they may have played for.

Jo Jo White – 2015 Hall of Fame Inductee

18.4 PPG, 5.1 APG, 4.3 RPG, 1.3 SPG

10 Seasons with Boston, 2x Champion, 7x All-Star, #10 Retired by Celtics

Jo Jo White is still considered one of the best scorers in Boston Celtics history. He averaged at least 18 points per game in seven consecutive seasons with the Celtics and shot a solid 44.2 percent from the field. Even though he was part of two championship teams and had averaged 21.5 points per game during his postseason career, White’s durability is matched by only a handful of players.

There is a sense of security that players give coaches when they rarely miss a game. Even more so when they’re key starters like Jo Jo White was. White appeared in 717 games with Boston, rarely missing a game. In fact, White still ranks ninth all-time in Celtics history in minutes played.

It shouldn’t come as a huge surprise considering he averaged 37.3 minutes per game with the Celtics, including at least 39 minutes six times. White’s playing time ranks sixth all-time in Celtics history, making his durability all more impressive.

After only appearing in 60 games as a rookie, he followed it up with 75 and 79 games in his next two seasons. Although, that dwindled in comparison to the durability he showed over the next five seasons. White appeared in all 82 games for the next five seasons before suffering an injury in 1977-78 that ended his franchise-record streak of 488 consecutive games played.

To put in perspective how rare an 82 game season is, let alone five in a row, there were only 18 players last season who didn’t miss a game. Although, only five averaged more than 30 minutes per night and James Harden was the only one who played more minutes than White averaged during his time with the Celtics.

Durability isn’t a sexy stat, but health is one of the most important things key players can have. To know that Jo Jo White was going to suit up every game for 488 straight games is incredible, and it can’t be understated.

Robert Parish – 2003 Hall of Fame Inductee

16.5 PPG, 10 RPG, 1.5 BPG

14 Seasons with Boston, 3x Champion, 9x All-Star, #00 Retired by Celtics

14 seasons with one team is a long time. Robert Parish still ranks second all-time in games played and fourth in minutes played with the Celtics. He was a double-double machine with Boston, finishing his career averaging 16.5 points and 10 rebounds per game. However, there are few players in Celtics history that can match his intensity and dominance on the defensive end.

Parish never made an All-Defensive Team during his time with Boston, which is one of the most astounding things in NBA history. With one of the most historic franchises in NBA history, Parish is the franchise leader in blocks and trails only Bill Russell in rebounds. Granted blocks weren’t recorded when Russell played, however considering Parish the second best defensive big man in Celtics history isn’t crazy.

In 1980-81 Parish blocked 2.6 shots per game and followed it up with 2.4 blocks per night the following season. Not to mention that he also averaged double-digit rebounds in eight seasons with Boston, including a career-high 12.5 rebounds in 1988-89 when he was 35-years-old.

Surprisingly, Parish never led the league in blocks or blocks per game. Still, every year he was one of the most reliable defensive centers in the league and acted as the rim protector the Celtics were missing last season. In fact, Parish only failed to average at least one block once and averaged at least 1.5 blocks per game in half the seasons he played with Boston.

Bill Russell is arguably the best defensive center in NBA history, therefore being second to him is justified. Robert Parish joined the Celtics when he was 27-years-old and stayed with him until he was 40. Throughout the years his consistent level of dominance on the defensive end still has yet to be matched by anyone but Russell.

Don’t forget to vote on Twitter @HoudiniCeltics! The poll is up for 20 hours. Comments on here don’t count as votes, only the poll on Twitter will be looked at to determine who goes on to round two.

Next: Isaiah Thomas Not Happy With 2K Rating

Also, look at tomorrow’s match-up to see the results from today’s showdown.