Antoine Walker Calls Paul Pierce Best Celtics Scorer; Fans Don’t Approve

Former Celtics forward Antoine Walker stirred the pot with Boston fans after dropping a bold take regarding three of the organization’s all-time greatest talents: Larry Bird, Paul Pierce, and Jayson Tatum.

During an appearance on NESN’s “Hold My Banner” podcast hosted by Travis Thomas, the question of who is the best scorer between Bird, Pierce, and Tatum was presented to Walker. And perhaps due to the bias of having shared the court with only one of the three, Walker took a stance that didn’t quite resonate with Celtics fans.

“I would probably say Paul, and the reason why I say that is he has an uncanny ability to get to the basket, get fouled. I’ve had games where Paul shot 15, 20 free throws in a game because he’s so physical and uses his body so well,” Walker said.

Walker did clarify that Tatum, in the future, could compete for a league MVP.

Bird won three NBA MVP awards while Pierce was never taken into true consideration, instead finishing his career a 10-time All-Star and MVP of the 2008 NBA Finals.

“I definitely believe he can be an MVP in this league, but I think also you need to look at Jayson’s team,” Walker said. “They got the best record in the league, he’s played with another guy who’s been good — or as good as him — in Jaylen Brown. … I would like to see him use his body and punish people a lot more.”

Here’s what the fans had to say in response to Walker’s take:

“Larry Bird by Far! Not even a question. The amount of ‘clutch’ or ‘Game winning shots’ between the two isn’t even close.” — ZZ25

“Try to imagine Bird playing in today’s game where so much emphasis is put on spreading the floor. If he were to play today he would have had his 3 % rise dramatically. Knowing how hard of a worker he was, he would have devoted a lot more time to the shot. Numbers would have been crazy.” — Briguy59

“This isn’t even close! Bird hands down is the best!!!!” — Mcgoo

“Pierce is great but Bird and Havlicek are ahead of him.” — ss