After a legendary career with the Boston Celtics, and some other teams along the way, Paul Pierce had his No.34 jersey retired by the team on Sunday night in a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Over the course of his career, Pierce was the Celtics' franchise superstar. After being drafted in 1998, Pierce weathered the storm during the Celtics' 22-year championship drought. In a tough Eastern Conference that featured the 2004 NBA champion Detroit Pistons and the then-New Jersey Nets, Pierce struggled to gain any success for his team.
Yet, he stayed determined and led the Celtics to their 17th franchise title with a win over the Los Angeles Lakers, who were led by Kobe Bryant. Pierce out-dueled Bryant and won the Finals MVP award after spectacular performances in the series.
Later, Pierce would also help the Celtics become perennial postseason contenders, even pushing the Miami Heat to seven games in 2012. The Celtics showed their gratitude to the newest Celtics legend by posting a tribute video of Pierce's greatest moments.
Inglewood made him.
Kansas shaped him.
But he was always a Celtic and that is The Truth.#ThankYouPaul https://t.co/anzr8a6QDl— Boston Celtics (@celtics) February 11, 2018
The tribute video covers Pierce's entire career, from his roots into some of his signature moments with the Celtics. While this is an honor for the Celtics to appreciate one of the best players in the league's history, this is definitely a memorable experience for “The Truth.”
The Celtics have honored numerous superstars in the past such as Larry Bird, John Havlicek, and Bill Russel, just to name a few. Being in company with those NBA greats has to be satisfying for Pierce, who shares some of the Celtics' defining history.
Now that he has been properly honored, it's time for the next Celtics legend to rise from the new generation of NBA players.
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