Paul Pierce Discusses Death Threats, Needing Police Protection During Celtics Career

Basketball Hall of Famer Paul Pierce has spoken about needing police protection and receiving death threats during his time playing for the Boston Celtics.

In an interview with Steve Bulpett of Heavy.com, Pierce explained he received death threats even before he was stabbed at a nightclub in Boston in 2000.

"I was getting death threats before the case came up," he said. "One time I was sitting in a restaurant and they came up and gave me the cordless phone from the restaurant. He was like, 'Somebody's calling for you.' I was like, 'What?' It was a threat. That's what I was dealing with."

Pierce was stabbed a total of 11 times in the face, neck and back during a private event on Sept. 25, 2000, and required lung surgery.

Speaking to Bulpett, Pierce said he wouldn't go to nightclubs "for a long time" because he "didn't want to put myself in that position again."

Pierce noted he did hire personal security and received additional observation from law enforcement, but he was also advised to carry a weapon for protection.

"My license was to carry on me, but I wasn't flashing it and doing all that," Pierce said. "I went and applied and got my license. You know, me and Lynchie (former Celtics director of security Phil Lynch) used to go to the gun range."

Following Ja Morant's Instagram Live video from March 4 in which he flashed a gun at a nightclub in Colorado, Pierce took to Twitter to offer a defense of the Memphis Grizzlies star using his own personal experiences:

Police in Glendale, Colorado, declined to press charges against Morant after investigating.

The NBA suspended Morant eight games for conduct detrimental to the league.

Pierce told Bulpett he didn't disagree with the discipline imposed on Morant but wanted to make sure people wouldn't "make an early judgment" over what happened before they learned more about the situation.

Despite being stabbed multiple times five weeks before the start of the 2000-01 NBA season, Pierce was able to play all 82 games for the Celtics. He spent the first 15 years of his career in Boston and ranks second in franchise history with 24,021 points scored.

Pierce was named MVP of the 2008 NBA Finals after leading the Celtics to victory over the Los Angeles Lakers. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as part of the 2021 class.