Aldridge: Pierce Expected to Opt-Out and Join Clippers

[BudweiserCeltic]

Pierce has always had the itch to play in LA. I was willing to give him a hall pass to play with the Lakers, so that says something about how much I love Pierce. If he wants to play for the Clippers, even in this current gross edition of it, it's more palatable to me.

So no problems with any of these developments.

[LarBrd33]

People here hate the Clippers?   Why?

I'd prefer Pierce coming back to boston, but it makes little difference to me if he's playing on the Clippers instead of the Wizards.

[crimson_stallion]

http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/05/25/rumor-paul-pierce-might-opt-out-of-contract-with-wizards-join-clippers/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Just thought I'd share this with you guys. Not sure how reputable Aldridge is, but in a sense it would make sense with him being from that area. Two issues, though: 1) what kind of deal can he get with the cap-strapped Clippers, and 2) if we are able to make a splash or two with the draft and/or free agents, would he prefer to have one last ride with his true home in the horrible Eastern conference over Doc and the Clippers in a rough Western conference with powerhouses like GS, Houston, OKC, and Memphis?

I'm surprised he isn't coming back to Boston. I guess if he thinks the Clippers could win a chip its a good gamble, but it seems unlikely..

You have to think that the Clips are throwing the full MLE at him, which would match what he's already making, so opting out isn't a big deal.

i wonder if there are tampering issues at hand here. If Pierce opts out of his current contract with a deal in place in LA, is Doc allowed to help that process along?

Hypothetically, would resigning DJ at the max and signing Pierce be enough to get them over that hump? As much as Pierce is an upgrade for them, I still don't think that'd be enough for them.

I think adding Pierce makes them a very dangerous team.

They already had the 2nd best record in the (very tough) West this year.  The one thing that made it hard for them in the playoffs was the lack of a real close outside of Paul (Griffin can score, but he's no closer), who was playing hurt.

CP3 and Paul Pierce are two of the better clutch scorers of this generation - putting those two guys together would be scary in the closing minutes of games.  Real scary.

Plus they could have a cool moniker - "Paul and Paul" lol

[sed522002]

People here hate the Clippers?   Why?

I'd prefer Pierce coming back to boston, but it makes little difference to me if he's playing on the Clippers instead of the Wizards.

Some probably don't like the Clips because of the Doc Rivers factor. I personally didn't care for them before Doc got there. It's just something about that team..they seemed whiny and entitled.

I think Blake did better this year, but previous seasons he would always be in the middle of some commotion on the court, but would act like he didn't know why some of the players wanted to tear his head off (maybe because of the little slick elbows and jabs under the basket that the ref wouldn't see). Then the commentators would be like "why is everyone picking on Blake?"...so that's my reason..lol. And don't get me started on the flopping of CP3 

[GzUP617]

If this is true, I'll no longer be able to cheer for Paul Pierce.

 might as well stop now, that's a weak reason to lose fandom.

[Moranis]

honestly it makes more sense for him to go to the Lakers and play with Rondo and Kobe.

[Celtics18]

If he were to re-unite with Doc and win another championship, I think that would be pretty cool.

[European NBA fan]

If this is true, I'll no longer be able to cheer for Paul Pierce.

 might as well stop now, that's a weak reason to lose fandom.

You can still be a fan of Pierce, and not be able to cheer for his Clippers uniform. I would probably feel the same way.

[sed522002]

If this is true, I'll no longer be able to cheer for Paul Pierce.

 might as well stop now, that's a weak reason to lose fandom.

You can still be a fan of Pierce, and not be able to cheer for his Clippers uniform. I would probably feel the same way.

Exactly, that's like Pierce unfathomably joining the Cavs. I wouldn't be able to really cheer for him like I want to because his success would be directly related to Lebron and Co. success..lol. There's no rules to how you're suppose to be a fan.

[rocknrollforyoursoul]

People here hate the Clippers?   Why?

I'd prefer Pierce coming back to boston, but it makes little difference to me if he's playing on the Clippers instead of the Wizards.

Because the Clippers are one of the whiniest bunch of whiners. Wizards have a way better team personality, in my opinion.

[bdm860]

If this is true, I'll no longer be able to cheer for Paul Pierce.

Just wait till Garnett announces his retirement sometime in July, only to come out of retirement in late February and join the Clips too.  Maybe they'll grab Perk on a minimum deal as well.

We can call them Celtics West.

[celticsclay]

I am totally fine with whatever they want to do, but in my opinion that team has a very very small chance a championship. I think if the wizards make a few moves this offseason they are actually closer to a title shot than the clippers purely because of conference.

This year the wizards were really close with Wall coming off of injury. Another year of development for Beal and Porter and they are probably projected for second place in the East next year without adding anyone. You add in one big to their rotation (Even KG could work for defense 20 minutes a game) and they really aren't missing much.

The clips on the other hand they were a few rebounds away from being bounced in the first round next year. San Antonio may not be the same contender next year. However, the rockets and Golden State look like they will still be better than anyone in the East. Dallas, Portland and Memphis are all lurking, plus Oklahoma city will be doing everything possible to put the best team on the court in hopes of keeping durant.

If you have one year left in your contract do you try to make it all the way through that to get to the finals? Or do you try and beat Boston, Toronto and the Cavs or something similar to get to the finals. It is 1 really tough series versus 3. I think you take the chances in the East every time.

[LarBrd33]

People here hate the Clippers?   Why?

I'd prefer Pierce coming back to boston, but it makes little difference to me if he's playing on the Clippers instead of the Wizards.

Some probably don't like the Clips because of the Doc Rivers factor.

Misplaced anger.   The hate for Doc is ridiculous.  He was a solid coach.  He was our coach during our little 3 year hiccup of relevance back in the late 00s.     He obviously didn't want to be here for a lengthy rebuild where KG, Pierce and Rondo were all being shipped out.  I didn't blame him.  He played the tank game for us back in 2007.  He paid his dues.

[jpotter33]

http://probasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/05/25/rumor-paul-pierce-might-opt-out-of-contract-with-wizards-join-clippers/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Just thought I'd share this with you guys. Not sure how reputable Aldridge is, but in a sense it would make sense with him being from that area. Two issues, though: 1) what kind of deal can he get with the cap-strapped Clippers, and 2) if we are able to make a splash or two with the draft and/or free agents, would he prefer to have one last ride with his true home in the horrible Eastern conference over Doc and the Clippers in a rough Western conference with powerhouses like GS, Houston, OKC, and Memphis?

I mean, you say his 'true home' in the sense that he'll get his number hung up here and will be regarded (rightfully) as a Celtics great, but Pierce has more ties to the Clippers than the Celtics as far as players, staff, culture, and short-term professional goals are concerned:

"This whole transition, man, we came in as strangers and bonded as brothers," said Garnett, a person Rondo has previously suggested was his closest friend on the team. "And I say that with Glen [Davis], Kendrick [Perkins], Tony Allen, with Eddie House and [James Posey], just a connection with what it is.

"When Ray [Allen] left [for Miami last summer], it was hard for everybody there. We saw Doc [Rivers] leave [for Los Angeles last month], that blew us out of the water. It's kind of like looking up at the wave coming. And now we're here, so I can only imagine what Do's going through.

http://espn.go.com/boston/nba/story/_/id/9493680/paul-pierce-kevin-garnett-lament-leaving-rajon-rondo-behind

Look at this roster. It's from the last year Pierce was a Boston Celtic.
http://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/BOS/2013.html

Is Pierce going to effectively retire (because that's exactly what it would be) to hang out with Brandon Bass, Sullinger, and Avery Bradley? To get the successively waning adoration of hometown fans watching Pierce look like an old guy for 20 minutes a night, if that, while the C's try to develop new players? Instead of being an old dude who can hit important shots for a playoff team over 20 minutes a night? I don't think that's a fair thing to ask of him, and I don't really think any Celtics fan wants him to do more than the one-day contract, if they look into their heart of hearts.

That was based on the conditions that we make a splash this summer and bring in some real talent, i.e. something like Love, DJ, etc. I don't expect him to waste his last years with the current roster.

[jpotter33]

People here hate the Clippers?   Why?

I'd prefer Pierce coming back to boston, but it makes little difference to me if he's playing on the Clippers instead of the Wizards.

Some probably don't like the Clips because of the Doc Rivers factor. I personally didn't care for them before Doc got there. It's just something about that team..they seemed whiny and entitled.

I think Blake did better this year, but previous seasons he would always be in the middle of some commotion on the court, but would act like he didn't know why some of the players wanted to tear his head off (maybe because of the little slick elbows and jabs under the basket that the ref wouldn't see). Then the commentators would be like "why is everyone picking on Blake?"...so that's my reason..lol. And don't get me started on the flopping of CP3 

This hits the nail in the head. Griffin and Paul are some of the whiniest, entitled players in the league. That's why I don't like the Clippers, anyways. Never could stand Paul, and Griffin was always borderline with me until he teamed up with Paul. I do like DJ, though.