Reports: Paul Pierce To Leave Wizards For The Clippers?

Recent reports are that Paul Pierce is considering opting out of his final year with the Wizards in order to reunite with his former coach Doc Rivers and join the Los Angeles Clippers with the hopes of making one last run at an NBA title.

The last time fans saw Pierce, his season-saving buzzer-beater was not counted and the Washington Wizards were eliminated after a resilient effort against the East leading Atlanta Hawks. Pierce spoke on the grind of the season, the 17th of his storied career, and his future in stating:

"“Truthfully, what was going through my mind is, I don’t have too much of these efforts left, if any. These rides throughout the NBA season, throughout the playoffs, are very emotional. They take a lot out of not only your body, but your mind, your spirit…. I don’t even know if I’m going to play basketball anymore.”"

In a career that saw him win an NBA title in 2008, it is only reasonable that he ponders his future after basketball as he sees contemporaries such as Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant entering the twilight of their careers. The field also only seems to be getting younger and quicker with competition such as Kyrie Irving, Stephen Curry, and James Harden now dominating the league. There’s also the King in Cleveland who is still the force to be reckoned with in the Eastern Conference.

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The chatter around Pierce is that he is considering his options for what is the final step in his career. NBA.com’s David Aldridge spoke on the topic in his column and expanded on the idea of Doc Rivers possibly bringing in other veteran to bolster the bench with experience.

For Pierce, it would be the third move since leaving the Celtics in what has been a tumultuous journey the last few seasons. His experiment in Brooklyn with fellow former Celtic Garnett ended in failure as the team couldn’t find the desired chemistry together with Brook Lopez and Deron Williams in their short time together. In moving to the Wizards, he has provided veteran leadership to a young and talented roster that has been improving steadily the last few seasons. His presence has helped to bolster what is arguably becoming the second-best back-court in the NBA with John Wall and Bradley Beal. His buzzer-beater against the Hawks in the Eastern Conference semifinals also showed he retains his championship composure when his team needs him most.

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If he were to join the Clippers, Pierce would undoubtedly provide a great boost off the bench to compliment Jamal Crawford and Austin Rivers on the second unit. His inclusion in the squad will likely be undecided until the Clippers find out if they are able to re-sign DeAndre Jordan. Pierce would be taking a pay-cut in order to join the team. He is set to make $5.5 million in his final year with the Wizards. That would leave the Clippers with the option to pay Pierce the veteran’s exception of $1.5 million or a maximum mid-level exception of $3.7 million. These figures are all assuming that the Clippers pay the maximum to keep Jordan.

While the focus shifts to the conference finals, it seems that players and teams across the league are already chomping at the bit for next season. For more on the possibility of Paul Pierce returning home to Los Angeles and all Clippers news, stay tuned here at LA Sports HUB.

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