WALTHAM, Mass. — Paul Pierce pulled a Kobe Bryant on Monday, announcing this upcoming season will be his last. But his former boss believes it could be more of a Michael Jordan situation.
Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge was asked Monday at the team’s media day what he thought of Pierce stepping away after the 2016-17 campaign, but he didn’t sound too sure that’d actually be the case.
“First of all, I think Paul can play for a few more years,” Ainge said. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”
So why does Ainge, who won an NBA title with Pierce in 2008 and spent roughly a decade with the 10-time All-Star, think Pierce will be back for more two seasons from now?
“Paul loves the game,” Ainge said. “He loves basketball, and I think that it’s hard to see him walking away. I know there will come a time when he will, but he’s one of the greatest Celtics of all time. He’s a great competitor.
“The thing that stands out more than anything about Paul — after all of the great shots and great plays and everything else that he did here — was just watching him, sitting right outside my office, seeing him come in at midnight and work on his game and work on his conditioning. He really loved the game and took it very seriously.”
Relentless work ethic notwithstanding, the 38-year-old clearly is in the twilight of his career, having averaged just 18.1 minutes and 6.1 points per game for the Los Angeles Clippers last season. And perhaps his former teammate, Kevin Garnett, recently calling it quits pushed Pierce to realize his time has come.
It sounds like Ainge doesn’t buy that explanation, but at least Avery Bradley, the only current Celtic to play with both players, seems to be accepting the truth.
“I’m sad, because we’re all going to miss them,” Bradley said of Pierce and Garnett. “The game is going to miss them, because we appreciate them so much. But I’m happy for them at the same time, because they accomplished so many things.
“Their time is just up.”
Thumbnail photo via Gary A. Vazquez/USA TODAY Sports Images
