Clips’ Pierce starts and ends Boston finale in grand style
BOSTON — Paul Pierce walked back onto the parquet floor for one last tipoff, dropped to his knees at center court and gave the Boston Celtics leprechaun logo a big kiss.
“Lucky's been through it all with me, the ups and downs. He helped me out on a couple of occasions,” the former Celtics captain said. “It's the last time I'm going to touch this floor as a player. I'm sure I'll be back as a fan.”
With a deafening cheer and a shout of “Let's go, Pats,” Pierce was back in Boston on Super Bowl Sunday to give Celtics fans one last chance to celebrate the player who helped the NBA's most-decorated franchise return to the top of the league.
Restored to the Los Angeles Clippers' starting lineup by current and former coach Doc Rivers, Pierce was greeted with a long and loud ovation at his introduction when Boston Garden rang out again with his nickname: The Truth. A highlight video at the first timeout appeared to bring him to tears.
“Fans really showered me with a lot of love,” Pierce said after the Celtics won 107-102. “You really don't know what you've meant to a team while you're playing. It hit me a lot tonight, but I'm sure it's going to hit me a lot more when I'm done playing.”
After starting the game — his first appearance for the Clippers since New Year's Eve, Pierce sat on the bench until the game was out of reach. But in the final seconds, with the fans already standing and cheering, Pierce launched an on-target 3-pointer for one eruption.
“I'm glad I was able to cap it off, my last game in the Garden,” he said. “At least I can just say I put one last bucket in at the end of final the game.”
A first-round draft pick out of Kansas in 1998, Pierce toiled in Boston through the down years of M.L. Carr and Rick Pitino, watching as the once-proud team lost a franchise-record 18 games in a row while he was injured in 2006-07.
The next year, after the Celtics acquired Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen, Boston won its NBA-record 17th championship.
But as the New Big Three aged, general manager Danny Ainge traded them — and Rivers — off for the draft choices that would help them rebuild.
Pierce spent time in Brooklyn and Washington before reuniting with Rivers in Los Angeles.
Having announced that he will retire at the end of the season, Pierce's last visit to Boston became a mustsee event.
He spent Saturday visiting some old Boston favorites and recording it — including a chance encounter with current Celtics all-star Isaiah Thomas — on Instagram. In the final seconds, Thomas shared the spotlight with him again, backing off to allow the 2008 NBA Finals MVP a clean shot.
“If you give it your all here and win a championship they will love you,” Thomas said. “It drives me a lot. I want to be like that: give my blood, sweat and tears and come back and play your last game here. That type of love is unforgettable.”