Paul Pierce has a monumental decision to make this coming summer. Pierce enjoyed a good season with the Washington Wizards this previous year, as he played a massive role for them in the postseason. The Wizards ended their final offensive possession with the ball in the truth’s hands during four of the six games they played against the Atlanta Hawks in the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Pierce buried three out of the four shots, though one was taken back due to the buzzer going off before the ball had left his hand. What I’m trying to say is, Pierce, 37, can still play and is most certainly still worthy of being dubbed the truth.
Pierce can opt out of his contract this summer and enjoy, what will most likely be his last year in the NBA, elsewhere. Who knows, there have even been rumors of him hanging it up this summer and never playing another game. However, if Pierce decides to opt out, the Los Angeles Clippers will be his primary suitor. After all, they do have Pierce’s beloved former head coach Doc Rivers who he won a title with in Boston. The Clips did acquire swingman Lance Stephenson a couple of days ago, but Rivers emphatically denied that he would be the starting small forward going forward. Rivers referred to his plans farther down the road this offseason:
“We got a lot of work to do,” Rivers said. “Worst case, and it’s not a bad case, I still think that Lance is an upgrade, even at that position if we wanted to start him. I’m planning on doing more things this summer.”
Rivers seems sold on going all out for his former prodigy. Following from ESPN’s Arash Marzaki:
“One of the options the Clippers are exploring, according to sources, is Paul Pierce, who could sign a mini-midlevel exception of $3.37 million for up to three years if he declines his $5.5 million player option with Washington. Players don’t normally turn down money but it’s essentially a $1 million difference this season for Pierce, 37, to return home and be reunited with Rivers, who was his coach in Boston for nine seasons, including the 2007-08 championship.”
Pierce had stated before how much he loves mentoring the young studs in the nation’s capital such as John Wall, Bradley Beal, and Otto Porter. However he could be closer to winning a title with the Clippers rather than the Wizards. LA was ousted against the Rockets in this year’s postseason and are looking to build on it. A clutch player such as Pierce could be exactly what they need to go over the top.
