I think Shaq said it best to a Boston reporter back in 2001. He told the reporter that he knew Paul could play, but he didn’t know he could play like this. He told the reporter that Paul Pierce was the truth.
The Boston Celtics drafted Paul Pierce in the 1998 draft. I remember this draft like it was yesterday because Paul Pierce is exactly who I wanted the Celtics to draft. Honestly there is nothing this guy cannot do on a basketball court. He can dribble, rebound, pass, defend. He can shoot the three, free throws, and his mid level game is the best in the business. He is one of three Celtics to score over 20,000 points in his career with the other two being Larry Bird and John Havlicek. For his career he averages 22 points per game, 6 rebounds per game, 4 assist, 1.5 steals. He is a lock down defender and plays great team defense. One of the best things about Paul Pierce is the fact that no moment is to big for him. What I mean is he plays his best against the best. He loves the big stage and is not afraid to take the big shot. In my book he is very clutch and his nickname fits.
In the summer of 2007 the Celtics traded for Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett and I was so happy that we finally were building a championship team around Paul Pierce. Let’s face it he played for some pretty bad Celtic teams and I am thankful that he did not bailout on us like Lebron James did to the Cavs. Paul Pierce is also a very unselfish player. I have never seen a player do more with the number of shots he gets. Here goes a guy who can create his own shot and pretty much shoot when he wants, but he always makes the extra pass when needed and his step back is a thing of beauty. Most right-handed players including myself when they do a step back they go to the left, but Paul does it and goes to the right better than anyone I have ever seen. Paul has been one of the best players in the NBA for years, but in my opinion he never got the credit he deserved. When the Celtics won a champions in 2008, the look on his face and the other Celtics was priceless to me.