In their rich history, the Boston Celtics have won 18 NBA titles, the most of any team in history. Robert Parish was there for three of those championships (1981, 1984, and 1986).

The 1986 team stands out for its historic 40-1 home record. Recently, Parish was asked about who would win a game between the 1986 team and the 2024 team, per Celtics on CLNS. Without hesitation, Parish said the '86 team would win, and for one particular reason.

“Nobody had an answer for Bill Walton…Today's Celtics, they couldn't do nothing with William.”

In 1985, Bill Walton joined the Celtics after battling injury-plagued seasons. Since his college days at UCLA, Walton has had fractures in his feet.

He joined Boston as a backup for both Parish and Kevin McHale. Altogether, Walton played 80 games during the 1985-86 season as the backup center. In the process, he would go on to win the Sixth Man of the Year.

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Also, Bird won his third MVP Award, and Boston won the NBA title in six games over the Houston Rockets.

Throughout his career, Walton was known for his passion for the game and for an unconventional, hippie lifestyle. That rubbed off on the straight-laced, traditionally minded Celtics.

In 2024, Boston won their first NBA title since their magical run in 2008. That same year, Walton passed away from cancer at the age of 71.

Ultimately, they finished with a 64-18 record, 16-3 in the playoffs, and defeated the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals in five games. That year, Jaylen Brown won the Finals MVP.

Parish won another NBA title with the Chicago Bulls in 1997.