(John Bazemore/Associated Press)
On Wednesday night, Isaiah Thomas made his first visit to TD Garden as a member of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Thomas didn’t play in the game, however. He was inactive after making his season debut the night before. Thomas, who was an All-Star twice and an All-NBA member once with the Celtics, declined to have a tribute video shown for him before the game on Wednesday. Thomas wanted to participate in the game during which his tribute video was shown. The only other Celtics-Cavs game in Boston this season is on Feb. 11. That’s the night that Paul Pierce, who won a championship and made 10 All-Star teams as a Celtic, is to have his jersey retired. Could the Celtics honor both Pierce and Thomas on the same night? Is that fair to Pierce? Pierce has left no ambiguity regarding his take on the matter:
“On February 11, the night I get my jersey retired, I’m not sure I want to look up at the jumbotron and see Isaiah highlights after all the years I put in. I had a chance to watch Kobe’s, and throughout the game, at timeouts, there was a lot of tribute videos for him, and I enjoyed to watch that throughout the game. Now, hopefully, the Boston Celtics will do that for me. I’m not sure I want to see an Isaiah video that night.”
Well, that probably settles that, unless Pierce changes his mind. The Celtics won’t go directly against Pierce’s wishes about a night devoted to honoring their former star.
