Boston Celtics star Paul Pierce had a lengthy NBA career that spanned 19 seasons. He spent the first 15 years of his career playing for the Celtics, even winning an NBA championship with them. After that, he suited up for the Brooklyn Nets, the Washington Wizards and the Los Angeles Clippers. However, it’s known to many that Pierce was originally a fan of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Pierce is a California native, born in Oakland and his family later moved to Inglewood. When he was growing up, he witnessed the greatness of the Lakers, as they played at The Forum, located in Inglewood. For a Laker fan, it was his dream to step foot in the arena of the Showtime Lakers.
Aside from being a fan of the Lakers, Pierce also looked up to Chicago Bulls star Michael Jordan. The 6-foot-6 guard was an icon in the 1990s and led his team to six NBA championships, not losing even once.
Coming into the NBA in 1998, Pierce wanted to play against Jordan. However, the six-time Finals MVP retired for a second time after winning his sixth title. He revealed that during his guest appearance at Julian Edelman’s “Games with Names.”
Additionally, his dream of playing at The Forum didn’t happen since the season was shortened to 50 games for each team. The Boston Celtics legend played in 47 games and the team didn’t face the Lakers that year.
“Yep. He went to Washington. That’s when I got to play against him, cuz he retired the year I came in. Yeah. So it was a couple of things that happened when I came into the league. Jordan retired, and the Lakers moved out of the Forum to the Staples… That was like my two biggest disappointments,” Pierce said.
The Boston Celtics star still got a chance to face Jordan
The thing about Jordan during the late 90s and early 2000s, he would eventually resurface. After his second retirement, the Hall of Fame guard suited up for two seasons. This time, it was with the Washington Wizards.
He was also much older at that time and wasn’t contending for a championship. Pierce, who wanted to face Jordan, got his wish. Although, he would’ve preferred to play against MJ back when he was with the Bulls.
“No, he didn’t have the athleticism. No, but because Bulls Jordan was like scary. I felt like I was on the same level as Jordan in Washington, you know, as a young kid,” Pierce told Edelman.
Pierce said that while he was still MJ, he his lack of athleticism was something that felt different about playing against him.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
