Earlier this week, Celtics legend Paul Pierce celebrated his 45th birthday. Pierce, who had courtside seats to Tuesday night’s season opener at TD Garden, has kept a relatively low profile since his departure from ESPN last year, the result of an ill-advised Instagram video, streaming, against his better judgment, a debauched poker game complete with booze, blunts and bikini-clad strippers twerking and giving massages. It took ESPN all of three days to sever ties with the All-Star forward, spelling an abrupt end to Pierce’s four-year stint in Bristol. Pierce declined to offer an apology, expressing more relief than embarrassment at his dismissal, suggesting his time at the worldwide leader had run its course.
Pierce, who was at least partially responsible for brokering a truce between estranged teammates Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen (the long-running feud was finally put to bed at Garnett’s number retirement this past spring), seems to have a sense of humor about the incident, laughing off a decidedly NSFW birthday cake he received earlier this week.
Though Pierce’s lapse in judgment may have cost him a lucrative broadcast career, the Hall-of-Famer is still a fixture on the interview and podcast circuit, maintaining an active Twitter presence while recently collaborating with Garnett, Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson on “Certified Smoke,” a Showtime crossover event previewing the upcoming NBA season. Pierce, like many in the media, predicted Boston to reach the Finals for a second consecutive season, and while the Celtics still have a long road ahead of them in a competitive Eastern Conference (particularly without coach Ime Udoka), they certainly looked the part in Tuesday night’s opener, cruising to a nine-point win over Philadelphia.
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