Los Angeles Clippers guard Paul Pierce plans to end his NBA career with the team he spent his “glory days” with, the Boston Celtics.
In September Pierce announced that he plans to retire after the 2016-17 NBA season, which he will play with the LA Clippers, but he doesn’t want to retire there, according to ESPN.
(Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)
“I think I’ll always be remembered as a Celtic,” Pierce said. “I had all my glory days, all my prime was pretty much as a Boston Celtic. I think I owe the fans and I owe myself that much, just to be able to put that uniform on one more time and go out that way, say I retired a Boston Celtic,” he told SiriusXM NBA Radio.
Doc Rivers, who coached Pierce with the Celtics and coaches him now with the Clippers, agrees. “I think it’s important. I think we have to do that. And I think we will,” Rivers said. (RELATED: Paul Pierce Announces He Will Retire After One Final NBA Season)
Rivers has already talked about the possibility with Celtics president of basketball operations Danny Ainge as well as the assistant general manager Mike Zarren.
“Danny and Mike, we’ve already talked,” Rivers said. “The day [Pierce] retires, he’s going to retire a Celtic. He has to. Paul’s a Celtic. So when he retires, he’s got to retire as a Celtic. I don’t think anyone disagrees with me.”
Paul Pierce and Coach Doc Rivers while they were both still in Boston. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
The current Celtics coach, Brad Stevens, doesn’t seem to have a problem with the idea. Although he hadn’t heard of any plans on Boston’s end, he said Pierce is “a special Celtic whose number will be in the rafters.”