Paul Pierce had a nasty reputation for smack-talking against his opponents on the court. He and Kevin Garnett had shaped their image as a duo who could psychologically impact their rivals. Not many were spared of ‘The Truth’s’ trash talks, including his former teammate Bradley Beal. In an appearance on ‘All The Smoke’ podcast in 2020, Bradley Beal described his first perception of Pierce as an arrogant player. However, this changed after Pierce joined the Washington Wizards, proving himself an excellent teammate and role model for young players.
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Everyone, who has faced Paul Pierce during their playing careers, has interesting stories to tell about the Celtics legend. Iman Shumpert recently recalled instances of Paul Pierce’s trash-talking in his podcast alongside Gilbert Arenas. All of such stories and instances only add up to the glorious career of Paul Pierce as an NBA legend and a star Hall of Famer.
Bradley Beal recalled his first perception of Paul Pierce
Bradley Beal was selected as a 3rd overall pick by the Washington Wizards in the 2012 NBA Draft. He was widely regarded as a bright prospect, which Paul Pierce challenged through his trash talks in one game. During Beal’s second season in the NBA in 2013-14, Pierce was playing with the Brooklyn Nets and was facing the Wizards sophomore for the first time. Recalling his first perception, Beal said,
“Man, when i first played against P. Pierce, he was in Brooklyn. I thought Paul [Pierce] was the most arrogant a**hole I’ve ever witnessed play a game of basketball, talk ridiculous to you. I’m at the free-throw line, he on the bench standing up, ‘I don’t see it. I don’t know why they drafted you. I don’t see it.’ I’m mid free throw, I look, ‘What the f**k?'”
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As evident as it is, Bradley Beal had taken the trash talk personally. He wanted to seek redemption against ‘The Truth’ in their next game in two weeks. Bradley Beal dunked against Paul Pierce in that game, which might or might not have impressed the 2008 NBA champion. But it was enough for Beal to prove his capabilities as a talented, young player. Speaking about the same, Beal added:
“I knew we played them two weeks later. I dunked his a**. Dunked the s**t out of P. Then he’s like, ‘Okay, okay!'”
But Beal’s perception of Pierce was about to change when he joined the Wizards for the 2014-15 season. Pierce was an excellent teammate and inspirational role model for the young Wizards team. Describing his changed perception of Paul Pierce, Beal added:
“And then sure enough, the next year, he was on our team. The most amazing teammate, the best dude. And I was like, that’s the true sign of like a winner.”
Paul Pierce’s one-year stint with the Wizards was exceptional for his personal achievements. After dropping 14 points against the Atlanta Hawks on November 25, 2014, Pierce surpassed Jerry West’s position as 17th in the NBA’s career scoring list. Just two weeks later, Pierce posted a season-high 28 points against his former team, Boston Celtics, to pass Reggie Miller and climb to the 16th place in the career scoring list.
Paul Pierce claimed himself to be the GOAT on and off the court
Die-hard Paul Pierce and NBA fans are well aware of the online persona Paul Pierce has created of himself. He attempts to be as fun and hilarious as possible on X. During the All-Star break this year, the Truth once again rattled his fingers on Twitter and self-proclaimed himself as the GOAT, on and off the court.
If you have an NBA legend calling himself the GOAT, there is hardly any convincing that would change Paul’s mind otherwise. Days later, Pierce even claimed to have played a better career than Dwyane Wade during an ESPN segment. While fans contest these claims unequivocally, Pierce’s antics do make him an entertaining and hilarious character on and off the court.
