Paul Pierce isn't buying the speculation that the Boston Celtics had developed a reputation that scares away All-Star free agents. The future Hall of Famer defended the franchise for which he played in 15 seasons from 1998 to 2015.
Via John Karalis of MassLive.com:
“I don’t think a lot of this stuff has to do with the city. I think it has a lot to do with what direction you’re going to, the point of your career you’re at as a player. So I don’t really buy into those things because every player that I know that’s played for the Boston Celtics, 99 percent of them say ‘I didn’t know Boston was like this, this is one of the best franchises’ and they really liked playing for the city of Boston.”
Boston is a city of champions. The Patriots, Red Sox, Bruins, and Celtics have all had their share of the city's limelight. Beantown is home to one of the most passionate and knowledgeable fanbases in the league. People there love winners and will castrate those who do not bring glory to the city.
After a promising 2017-18 season where a bunch of role players carried the team to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Celtics' trajectory took a massive dip no thanks to a disrupted team environment.
Rumors have pointed to Kyrie Irving as the main reason behind the discord inside the locker room and he's likely on his way out of Boston. It cost them Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and a first-round pick that turned out to be Collin Sexton.
Worse, contract talks with Al Horford went in disarray, leaving the Celtics with the possibility of losing their best all-around player for nothing.
Despite the turbulence, all is not lost on Boston. Jayson Tatum, Gordon Hayward, and the rest of the remaining players still have what it takes to reach the postseason.
More importantly, the organization isn't one that can be classified as dysfunctional. That alone is a substantial aspect stars looking for a new home can consider when giving Boston a look.
So yes, Pierce speaks the absolute truth on this one.
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