Will Paul Pierce Be Focused On Boston Farewell Or Super Bowl LI Next Sunday?
BOSTON (CBS) -- Next Sunday will be an emotional day for Paul Pierce.
"The Truth" is set to retire at the end of the season, and his February 5 visit to the TD Garden with the Clippers will be his final trip to Boston. There will no doubt be another emotional video tribute to the man who spent 15 seasons in green, helping Boston raise their 17th championship banner back in 2008.
It also happens to be Super Bowl Sunday and Pierce's favorite team, the New England Patriots, will be playing for their fifth championship when they take on the Atlanta Falcons later that night. So while Pierce will be bombarded with love and cheers from the Celtics and the Boston crowd, his mind will probably be on the big game, according to C's president of basketball ops. Danny Ainge.
"I think that Paul is going to really be wanting to watch the Super Bowl that day," Ainge told 98.5 The Sports Hub's Toucher & Rich. "I know that for sure. He's the biggest Tom Brady fan in the world."
Ainge said if you ever want to get into a heated discussion with Pierce, or if you're an opposing player and want to throw him off on the court, than Tom Brady's place in NFL history is a good hot button topic.
"If you ever wanted to throw Paul off his game in practice or just get him in a heated argument, just say, 'I think Peyton Manning is better than Tom Brady,' and he would just go off and want to fight," said Ainge. "He's the biggest Tom Brady fan and Patriots fan in the world, so I know that he'll have other things on his mind in his last game at the Garden, that's for sure."
Listen to Ainge's full chat with Toucher & Rich here.
