Ahead of his induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Saturday, Boston Celtics legend Paul Pierce addressed the video that got him fired from ESPN in April.
Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reported on April 5 that ESPN fired Pierce from his role as an analyst after Pierce posted a video on Instagram that appeared to show him smoking marijuana in the presence of barely clothed women.
In an interview with Chris Mannix of Sports Illustrated published Tuesday, Pierce said his longtime agent, Jeff Schwartz, suggested he take the video down so as not to hurt his Hall of Fame chances.
Pierce refused and explained why:
“Come on, I didn’t do anything illegal. These motherf–kers in the Hall of Fame, some did [cocaine], f–king battery. What the f–k did I do? I was just having a good time. All the people coming after me, half you motherf–kers do the same s–t. You’re just hiding it. And you all are married while you’re doing it. I’m divorced. I’m retired. I’m having fun.”
Pierce added that if he had been left out of the Hall of Fame because of the video “it would be the biggest stiff job in Hall of Fame history.”
In terms of his on-court accomplishments, there is no question Pierce deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.
The 43-year-old spent 19 seasons in the NBA with the Celtics, Brooklyn Nets, Washington Wizards and Los Angeles Clippers. During his career, he was a 10-time All-Star and four-time All-NBA selection.
He also led the Celtics to an NBA championship in 2008 and was named NBA Finals MVP that season.
During the 2008 Finals against the Los Angeles Lakers, Pierce outdueled Kobe Bryant and averaged 21.8 points, 6.3 assists, 4.5 rebounds, 1.8 three-pointers made and 1.2 steals per game.
In 1,343 career regular-season games, Pierce averaged 19.7 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.6 three-pointers made and 1.3 steals, while shooting 44.5 percent from the field and 36.8 percent from beyond the arc.
Pierce also ranks 16th on the all-time NBA scoring list with 26,397 points and 20th in steals with 1,752.
Nicknamed “The Truth,” Pierce is preparing to take his true and rightful place among the greatest players, coaches and contributors in basketball history.
When Pierce gives his speech in Springfield, Massachusetts, on Saturday, he will be part of a 16-person class that also includes Chris Bosh, Chris Webber and Ben Wallace.