Paul Pierce's Mind Games Taking Washington Wizards to Greater Heights
The Washington Wizards brought in 17-year veteran Paul Pierce for his leadership and poise last summer, and he's been worth every penny of his two-year, $11 million contract so far.
His two stellar performances in Games 3 and 4 of Washington's first-round sweep of the Toronto Raptors alone were worth the price tag, and he's showing no signs of slowing in the second round.
After scoring 19 points against the Atlanta Hawks in a 104-98 win Sunday in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, Pierce is averaging 16.2 points on 54.2 percent shooting in five postseason games. He's hitting a scorching-hot 51.5 percent of his attempts from beyond the arc, including multiple crunch-time buckets in Games 1 and 3 of the Raptors sweep.
And that's just his tangible production. The Wizards also acquired something immeasurably valuable in the fearlessly spoken veteran. Quite literally, Pierce has talked the talk.
Pierce's antics against the Toronto Raptors before and during a convincing series sweep rightfully earned him plenty of headlines. He drew the ire of Toronto media, including the Toronto Star before the matchup even began, after proclaiming to ESPN.com's Jackie MacMullan during an interview last month that the Raptors don't "have the 'it' that makes you worried."
After winning the first two games of the series, Pierce's bravado continued, according to Michael Lee of The Washington Post:
After the sweep last week, Raptors guard Greivis Vasquez couldn't help but admire Pierce for the effect his demeanor had on the series, via ESPN.com.
"He knew what he was doing because he's done it for so long, but it works," Vasquez said of Pierce's banter. "You need to have that spiciness, you need to be a little bit like an assh--e like he is, saying the things he say and back it up. This man said whatever he say and he went on the court and did it."
Like Vasquez, most of the NBA world has been marveling at a player who can back up a chatty mouth with big-time performances at this stage of his career. Former coaches and teammates of the future Hall of Famer aren't surprised by Pierce's display during Washington's strong start to the postseason. After watching him develop a winning swagger during 15 years in Boston, they know it is in his DNA.
Doing His Talking on the Court
To identify the origin of Pierce's psychological edge, you have to look back to the early stages of his career, when the small forward played most of his mind games on the court, instead of through the media.
The 10-time All-Star's defining moment in that realm came during a tightly contested Game 3 of the 2003 first-round series between the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers. A young Pierce was trading verbal barbs with Indiana Pacers forward Al Harrington as the 24-second shot clock ticked down in the closing seconds of the third quarter.
Referee Joe DeRosa instructed both players to quit yapping seconds before Pierce calmly rose up and drilled a three-point shot in Harrington's face to cap a 21-point quarter for the small forward.
"He said, 'I hope you're ready, because I'm ready to bring it,'" Harrington recalled in an Associated Press game recap (via USA Today).
Celtics TV play-by-play man Mike Gorman called that play from courtside and told Bleacher Report it was among the first shades of the villainous demeanor Pierce has now seemingly perfected at age 37.
"Paul was always brash," Gorman said. "He always had a bit of a chip on his shoulder that made him a good player. He had it early, but he expressed it more by the way he played than the talking.
"A lot of people say they want the ball in big situations, but as the stakes rise, sometimes those guys hide. Paul always wanted the ball in his hands in those spots and wanted to be the guy. Because of his personality, at least up until the last couple years [in Boston], he wasn't really that outspoken. He did some outrageous things in that Indiana series, but not as much as he has now."
The confidence that Pierce exuded in that moment against Harrington and the Pacers was reflective of a swagger he carried in all aspects of his life.
"That was him every day," said Pierce's former assistant coach, Jamie Young, who has worked for the Celtics since 2001. "Whether he was playing guys one-on-one or talking trash. It didn't matter the time of the year or how big the game was, he always had that edge. Always taunting, whether it was practice or in games. Talking trash. That's just who he is. It doesn't matter if it's not basketball. It could be checkers or whatever the game or competition is, he's going to do the same thing."
"That's Why They Brought Me Here"
Pierce found a team that could use that kind of competitive mentality when he elected to sign with a young but promising Wizards squad last summer. With a talented backcourt in John Wall and Bradley Beal, combined with a formidable front line of Nene and Marcin Gortat, Pierce sought to be the missing piece that could push a capable core into a contender by giving them some attitude.
"This is a persona that Paul has taken at this point in his career," Gorman explained. "This persona is a combination of a lot of different people he's played with, such as Antoine [Walker], to Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen and everyone in between. Now, it's Paul's time."
"I think he lives for [this kind of situation]," Young added. "He puts that pressure on himself, especially in the role he is now. I think he does it on purpose, to take pressure off the other guys on his team. I'm not surprised at all at what he's done and how he's motivated."
Former teammate Leon Powe experienced firsthand the arrogance Pierce has given his team in the postseason. Powe played with Pierce for three seasons, including the 2007-08 Celtics championship team.
"He took a lot of pressure off during all of the games," Powe explained. "He put a lot of burden on himself to go out there and perform well, in many cases he did. Going back to our playoff days [during Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals] in 2008 against LeBron [James] and the Cavs, KG, and my teammates didn't have 'it.' Pierce said, 'Don't worry about it, I got y'all. Just give it to me.' He commenced to score points [41] back and forth with LeBron, and we ended up winning that game."
While Pierce spread some of that confidence to his teammates in the Big Three era, Avery Bradley sees a little bit of that process unfolding with Pierce's new teammates in Washington.
"I wouldn't say [Pierce's trash talk] takes the edge off, but it can give you confidence as a team. Having somebody who believes that much in one's self. It can rub off on everyone else," Bradley said.
Pierce's ability to get into the head of his opponent has been a constant theme throughout his lengthy career and appeared to take a toll on the Raptors.
"It destroys you mentally when you get a guy like Paul Pierce who comes into your building," longtime Celtic and team radio analyst Cedric Maxwell said. "He's waving on the crowd, edging on you. You try to figure out how to get to this guy, and he comes into your home and wins two games. You lose all hope. It's demoralizing what happened to those guys."
"If you let him get into your head, he won," Powe recalled, having faced Pierce as an opponent for two seasons during his career. "You have to tune him out, but sometimes a team can't do that because they don't know what it's like to go to the promised land, because he's been there. Pierce has been there. It's hard on that [opposing] team. He comes out and performs also. He knows when you talk, you have to back it up."
Pierce has done just that, helping set up the Wizards with a realistic path to the Eastern Conference Finals.
After Pierce challenged Beal and Otto Porter Jr. to raise their games in his interview with MacMullan, the duo responded emphatically. Porter in particular has exceeded expectations, surpassing his regular-season averages in points (9.6) and rebounds (8.0) per game while playing some of the best basketball of his career during Washington's first five postseason games.
Additionally, head coach Randy Wittman has unleashed Pierce at power forward regularly during the postseason, and the small-ball lineup has been a dangerous weapon for the Wizards. Combining Wall's distributing ability with the potent outside shooting of Beal, Porter Jr. and Pierce and the low-post skills of Marcin Gortat has helped that specific lineup post 130.5 points per 100 possessions, according to NBA.com/stats, 18.3 points better than the team's postseason average.
That kind of scoring output gives Washington a strong chance to keep pace with the Hawks' high-powered offense for the remainder of the series, especially after stealing Game 1 in Atlanta.
In the midst of his 12th NBA playoffs, Pierce is relishing the underdog role and competitive drive that has made him into this postseason's most memorable villain, while also turning the Wizards into a legitimate threat in the Eastern Conference.
"One thing I do know about Paul Pierce by playing with him is he's a true competitor," Bradley declared. "He goes out there, and he proves himself. That's Paul Pierce. The Truth."
Unless otherwise noted, statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.
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