Paul Pierce gives LeBron some credit, acknowledges him as the king of NBA
BOSTON -- Paul Pierce and LeBron James had their share of battles during Pierce's career, and the former Celtics star has made it clear through it all that he isn't a big fan of James'. As an analyst, Pierce has always been reluctant to give James his due.
That changed early Wednesday morning. Sort of.
A short time after LeBron surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA's all-time leading scorer, Pierce fired off a congratulatory Tweet to celebrate James' accomplishment. Pierce has never been able to put his former foe atop his all-time NBA player list when on TV, but he relented on Wednesday, admitting that LeBron is indeed the Greatest of All Time -- or the "GOAT."
That's quite the acknowledgement from "The Truth," though Pierce had a little fat finger mishap (we think) and went with GAOT. So he's mistakenly calling LeBron the "Greatest All of Time."
Honor to say I had a chance to match up with The GaoT I’ve alway never acknowledged u as King but u Truly the King #lRespect no player in NBA History had the pressure coming in the league to exceed expectations not only have u live up to it but u have surpassed it #allhailtheKing
— Paul Pierce (@paulpierce34) February 8, 2023
Perhaps Pierce was having a little too much fun on a historic Tuesday evening. But praise is praise.
Despite the small typo, Pierce is willing to hail LeBron as the king of the NBA. He even praised him for not just living up to, but surpassing all the sky-high expectations that surrounded James when he was the No. 1 pick back in 2003.