Paul Pierce and LeBron James have maintained a healthy rivalry over the course of their respective careers. They matched up many times against one another in the NBA Playoffs when they both played in the Eastern Conference, and LeBron credited Pierce with being one of the players who "helped me get over the hump" and "become much better individually" during an interview in 2015. LeBron also referred to Pierce as his biggest rival back in 2013. And for his part, Pierce took the rivalry with LeBron so seriously that he once banned his teammates from wearing LeBron’s sneakers.
During an appearance on Any Given Wednesday with Bill Simmons on Wednesday night, Pierce spoke about why his rivalry with LeBron was so heated. He was quick to point out that it was never personal, but he said that he always wanted to get the best of LeBron in any situation on the basketball court.
"We played the same position, one, and I think that’s what the game is all about—creating rivalries. Dislike is what creates rivalries," he said. "You know, he wants to win a championship, I want to win a championship, you play my position and I think I’m the best, we play the same position, oh, we got to go at it…The thing about it—and he would tell you this—it just was on the court…If I saw him walking down the street, it wouldn’t be like, 'LeBron, let’s go. Put your hands up.' It was just the spirit of competing."
All of that being said, the idea of Pierce actively rooting for LeBron to win championships is laughable. There’s no way he would ever do that, right? Right—except for last season when the Warriors got involved. According to Pierce, he disliked last season’s Warriors team so much that he actually rooted for LeBron and the Cavaliers in the 2016 NBA Finals, even though he had previously made it a point not to root for LeBron since it would technically give him a leg-up on Pierce.
"I respect LeBron. People think we have a hate for each other, but I totally respect what he’s done," he said. "[But last season] was the first time I was happy he won [an NBA championship]—the first time. [I didn’t like] the other times. I just didn’t want Golden State to win last year, because I was just tired of hearing about the 73 wins. 'They gonna be better than the [1995-96] Bulls.' And I think the Bulls team that won 71 games [Ed. note: It was 72 games, Paul!] was the greatest team of all time. And I didn’t want that team to be in that conversation."
Pierce has been pretty outspoken recently when it’s come to criticizing the Warriors. He made Draymond Green mad by making some comments about Kevin Durant’s decision to join the Golden State roster this summer, and during his sit-down interview with Simmons, he also said that he thinks the Warriors "choked" in the Finals last season.
"Golden State choked," he said. "Seriously. I mean, 3-1? 3-1? You’re not supposed to lose. 3-1, you should never lose. Golden State choked."
For what it’s worth, Pierce’s current team, the Clippers, does have a history of trash-talking with the Warriors that predates Pierce. So maybe that’s why he seems to have such a vendetta against Golden State? But whatever the reason, if the Clippers and Warriors end up matching up in the playoffs this season, all of this stuff that Pierce just said—plus the stuff that’s been said in the past by Clippers and Warriors players—could make it a really fun series.
