While you will never see a football or rugby player sporting a zeroed jersey, the usage is widespread in the United States, so much so that many players have proudly worn this number over the years. For a big name, yet become legendary, the reason was nevertheless a bit embarrassing: he was the worst player on his team…
This is a specificity of US sport: it is possible to wear the number 0, or 00, in different sports. In the NBA, there are countless players who have made this choice in the history of the league. The 0 has been worn, or still is, by Russell Westbrook, Jayson Tatum, Gilbert Arenas, Damian Lillard, DeMarcus Cousins and many others. Rarer, the “double zero” was chosen by Carmelo Anthony, Aaron Gordon or… Robert Parish.
Robert Parish, number 00 because too bad
The Celtics legend, who has hung on his record 4 championship titles, 9 All-Star selections and 3 All-NBA nominations, however, has a funny story about the origin of this number, which he does not have. elsewhere never left throughout his career. In Elvin Hayes’ podcast, the “Chief” explained:
The coach of my team in high school gave the jersey numbers based on their talent. So the best players got their shirts first, and then the rest got what was left. Me, I was the worst player on the team, and number 00 was the last number available. So that’s how I chose it, and I kept it all my career.
Beyond the comic aspect of the situation, this anecdote highlights above all an unknown facet of the big man’s journey. While history and archival footage often shows a dominant Parish at its peak, struggling against Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and company in the rackets, the “Chief” was not necessarily predestined to such success from a young age. .
Moreover, it is on tiptoe that Parish landed in the NBA, with “only” 9 points and 7 rebounds during his first season. The rest, we know it, and those who have forgotten it can refresh their memory below:
To see yourself being forced to wear the “00” in high school and then becoming a Hall of Famer, multiple champion, All-Star and member of the 75 greatest players in history: this is a journey that is not trivial! The coach in question must have felt very stupid seeing the career of the “Chief”…
