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USA Today via Reuters

USA Today via Reuters

Celtics veteran Paul Pierce boasts of a legacy brighter than most of the current players. The Truth was always one of the toughest competitors on the court during his playing days. How do you expect today’s players would fare against the formidable basketball players from the yesteryears? While the legend is confident of his prowess, fans and netizens were both surprised and delighted to hear the 2008 NBA Finals MVP’s bold remark.

During his appearance on NBC Sports Boston’s pre-game show for the Boston Celtics game against the Philadelphia 76ers, the 10x NBA All-Star’s hilarious comment caught fans’ attention.

Paul Pierce’s bold prediction

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With the In-Season Tournament well underway, the teams are showing tough competition heading towards the knockouts which will be held at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. So it was natural for that topic to be brought up during Pierce’s appearance.

When questioned about how he would have approached the In-Season tournament in 2008, he stated that he would have skillfully dominated the game. He said, “Man, we probably would’ve beat the s*** out of everybody. I mean that point differential would have meant a lot for us.” Regarding what he would have done with the $500,000 prize money, Pierce said, “Wouldn’t have made it out of Vegas.”

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He was further asked whether he liked the drama around the whole thing. “I actually do,” the 46-year-old said. “When guys were running up the score, they made it like a playoff-like atmosphere. I kinda like it because that’s something that can come back and haunt you because if you gotta see certain teams in the Playoffs, it’s a certain kind of build-up that you get in the regular season. It kind of thickens the plot.”

 

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The Truth was seen clicking some pictures of the game with his DSLR. It seems his presence boosted the Celtics’ confidence. The team led by Jayson Tatum beat the 76ers 125-119. While Tatum dropped 21 points, the 76ers were without MVP Joel Embiid. While Pierce gave his approval to the In-Season Tournament, there was a lot of backlash before it got underway.

In-season tournament courts were slammed by fans initially

Fans weren’t too pleased with the court designs for the In-Season tournament when they were released a month ago. Many claimed that the colorful courts hurt their eyes. However, the backlash soon dwindled as the games proved to be the most hard-hitting of the entire season.

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The NBA world was happy to see a Playoff level intensity being brought to regular season games, something even Pierce alluded to. With the knockouts about to get underway, it’ll be interesting to see who comes out on top. What are your thoughts on the In-Season Tournament? Let us know in the comments below.

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