At his introductory press conference with the Clippers, ex-Celtics captain Paul Pierce said "this is probably the last ride of my career" as a player and brought up a conversation he recently had with C's president of basketball opertations Danny Ainge.
Ian Thomsen of NBA.com wrote about the Ainge-Pierce exchange:
"I ran into Danny a couple days ago and he said, `When you're ready, we have a spot for you,' '' says Pierce. "I think he was meaning as a player, but maybe it was in the front office ...''
How about working for his old, and now current, coach Doc Rivers when his playing days are over?
"I could see that,'' Pierce said. "I could see that because Doc respects my basketball mind. Just because you play for one franchise doesn't mean you're going to be working for them. Danny Ainge is one of the fortunate ones: Look at all the great players who have been in that [Celtics] organization who are working for other organizations — look at Larry Bird, Kevin McHale. It could be Paul Pierce as a Boston guy working for the Clippers.''
While Pierce is reveling in his homecoming to Los Angeles, he said he's glad it happened now and that he probably couldn't have handled it when he was younger.
"You've got to know yourself,'' he said. "I know how difficult it would have been for me, being from here — a young immature kid playing at home. I wouldn't want that. That would be a whole other monster, with all of the distractions and that. Things happen for a reason. This is all destiny, I believe.''
Boston Celtics
