Paul Pierce will suit up for the Boston Celtics’ opponent Monday night. But anyone who’s followed the Los Angeles Clippers forward knows where his heart truly resides.
Pierce will face his former team for what could be the last time when the Clippers take on the Celtics at Staples Center. The 38-year-old veteran hasn’t decided whether he’ll retire at the end of this season, yet that didn’t stop Pierce from getting swept up in nostalgia in a recent interview with The Boston Globe’s Gary Washburn.
“I always embraced the (Celtics’) history,” Pierce told Washburn. “Ever since I had my conversation with Red (Auerbach) and he helped me understand Celtic pride was all about. It’s like a family. Guys like Bob Cousy, (John) Havlicek… These are legends who created what the Celtics are all about, who created the banners, who created the retired jerseys.”
Pierce, who was named to 10 All-Star teams in his 15 years in Boston, has freely admitted he’d be open to working for the Celtics after his playing days are over. But even if that doesn’t work out, “The Truth” plans on returning to the city anyway with one of his former teammates and friends.
“Boston is always going to be a second home for me,” he said. “And I’m always going to see myself coming back. Me and Kevin (Garnett) talk about when we go back, check out a game. It’s always going to be love. I’m always going to have a special place in their heart and they’re always going to have a special place in mine.”
The most special part of Pierce’s tenure undoubtedly was the team’s NBA title in 2008, and the C’s are hoping to replicate that magic by possibly landing a big-name free agent this summer.
Pierce, who knows the city as well as any player, thinks Danny Ainge and Co. can accomplish that goal, and he even stoked the fire by invoking the name of a certain Oklahoma City Thunder star.
“It’s gonna happen. It’s gonna happen,” he said. “Even though it hasn’t. It’s like a lot of things you thought wasn’t going to happen, like it wasn’t going to be a black president. It’s gonna happen. And Kevin Durant could be the first one, who knows?”
Thumbnail photo via Robert Hanashiro/USA TODAY Sports Images
