Have we seen the last of Paul Pierce in the NBA?
We'll know soon enough.
Here's what Pierce told The Boston Globe‘s Gary Washburn:
Paul Pierce told the Globe on Wednesday night before Game 3 of the NBA Finals that he hasn’t made a decision on whether he will return for a 19th season but will in the next few weeks.
Pierce, 38, has two years remaining on a three-year, $10 million deal with the Clippers but is coming off the worst statistical season of his career. If Pierce does return for the 2016-17 season, he said it certainly will be his last.
“Well, we always say it’s 51-49. I get 51 percent of the vote and the rest of [the family] gets 49,” he said. “[My wife’s] input carried a lot of weight. We’ll figure out some things. I know I don’t want to be sitting at home, whatever I do, regardless. If I come back, it will be one more [season] and that will be it. No doubt.”
Chances are, Pierce will return for 2016-17. The decision to retire now would be so abrupt. He will turn 39 in October and barely played in the Los Angeles Clippers’ six-game playoff run, but as a future first-ballot Hall of Famer, it just feels like retiring now would be so sudden, bilking fans of the opportunity to say goodbye.
Not all players want that, of course. The Kobe Bryant treatment, that is. Tim Duncan, for instance, will probably peace out without ever even telling the San Antonio Spurs.
But Pierce is different. He seems like he would enjoy a season-long goodbye. And, frankly, players on his level deserve one. So bet on him coming back in 2016-17 to try ending his career on a higher note. The Clippers should still be title contenders, after all.
Just don’t bet on him playing beyond next season at all.
