Paul Pierce’s incredibly cutting tweet took aim at LeBron James and stoked bitter NBA rivalry
LeBron James versus Paul Pierce is one of the most entertaining feuds in recent NBA history.
The Truth took his battle with The King to the next level in 2010, after James had left Cleveland and formed a still-controversial Big Three in Miami.
“It's been a pleasure to bring my talents to south beach,†Pierce tweeted on November 12, 2010. “Now on to Memphis.â€
It was a not-so-subtle jab by Pierce at James, who had infamously declared that he was taking his talents to South Beach during The Decision TV special in July 2010.
Four months later, Pierce’s Celtics beat James’ Heat 112-107 in Miami early in the regular season.
Pierce was highly efficient in the win, sinking 10-of-16 shots for 25 points.
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James was fantastic, draining 17 free throws, grabbing 10 rebounds, dishing out nine assists, collecting three steals and scoring 35 points.
But Boston again got a win against James, continuing a trend that began when he was a young superstar with the Cavaliers.
“I'm not better than LeBron, but any given day I can be," Pierce on the the It is What It is podcast. "You wanna go back and YouTube [2008 Eastern Conference semifinals] Game 7? I mean the statistics, he left Cleveland, let's talk about it.
“I'm a big reason he went to Miami. I went for 41 in Game 7 and sent him home. He was thinking, 'You know what, I can't get past these Celtics and P. Pierce.' â€
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James and Pierce went at it during a heated 2008 playoff series.
Pierce kept talking big in 2010 but Boston had already peaked with its own Big Three.
The loaded Celtics had won it all in 2008 with Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, Rajon Rondo, Pierce and more.
Boston was bounced out of the playoffs in the following years, though, including a tough 2010 NBA Finals loss to Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers.
James and Miami were actually the better team when compared to the Celtics at the end of the 2010-11 campaign.
The Heat downed the Celtics 4-1 in the second round of the playoffs, before falling to Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks in the Finals.
That setback pushed James even more.
Miami never became a dynasty with The King.
But after taking his lumps early against Pierce, Boston began to decline and James won back-to-back world championships in South Beach.
The old Celtics-Heat rivalry resumes on Friday evening when the Eastern Conference teams match up early in the 2023-24 season.