2010 Will be Redemption year for Pierce

[Change]

You heard it here. I'm not Nostradamus, but I see it happening once more. All his career Pierce has been slighted by the fans and media alike. And very much so under-appreciated even in Celtics nation. I hear the old rumblings resurface. Saying Paul Pierce can't do this anymore, he can't do that any-longer, blah, blah........  I think the Captain will rise above it, and prove his critics wrong once more. I expect big things from the Captain in 2010/2011. In my opinion, Celtics will be foolish to even hesitate re-signing/extending Paul Pierce contract.

[JSD]

You heard it here. I'm not Nostradamus, but I see it happening once more. All his career Pierce has been slighted by the fans and media alike. And very much so under-appreciated even in Celtics nation. I hear the old rumblings resurface. Saying Paul Pierce can't do this anymore, he can't do that any-longer, blah, blah........  I think the Captain will rise above it, and prove his critics wrong once more. I expect big things from the Captain in 2010/2011. In my opinion, Celtics will be foolish to even hesitate re-signing/extending Paul Pierce contract.

There's no question the captain has lost a half a step. But I'm with you, I'd hate to see him go.

[ManUp]

I don't see why Pierce would need to redeem his self. He did nothing wrong unless getting old is his offence. There is anything isn't Pierce can do at this point to change fans perceptions of him. His best years were wasted on some really terrible teams and he can't get that time back. It's pretty obvious that Pierce can't do certain things anymore. If Pierce was the same player he was in 06 there's no way he has those terrible series against Cleveland and LA, regardless of who was guarding him or vice versa(especially with the shots he got). The same thing could be said for any of the big 3. At this point we should just hope that they can have the same type of year they had last year and other guys step up.

[Change]

I don't see why Pierce would need to redeem his self. He did nothing wrong unless getting old is his offence. I don't think that there is anything Pierce can do at this point to change fans perceptions of him. His best years were wasted on some really terrible teams and he can't get that time back. I think it's pretty obvious that Pierce can't do certain things anymore. If Pierce was the same player he was in 06 there's no way he has those terrible series against Cleveland and LA, regardless of who was guarding him or vice versa(especially with the shots he got). The same thing could be said for any of the big 3. I think at this point we should just hope that they can have the same type of year they had last year and other guys step up.

Can you lose a step in half of season? He might have slowed down by injuries, but I'm not buying the incredible decline. Another catalyst in this is the changing of the team dynamic. The team became more Rondo centric. You gotta believe it affecting Pierce. Going from alpha-dog to 2nd fiddle, and sometimes 3rd or 4th option. Its a major adjustment. But in the playoffs, Pierce was money in 2/4 series. All i'm saying is Pierce will up his game this off-season & come back in better shape.

[Mr October]

I don't see why Pierce would need to redeem his self. He did nothing wrong unless getting old is his offence. I don't think that there is anything Pierce can do at this point to change fans perceptions of him. His best years were wasted on some really terrible teams and he can't get that time back. I think it's pretty obvious that Pierce can't do certain things anymore. If Pierce was the same player he was in 06 there's no way he has those terrible series against Cleveland and LA, regardless of who was guarding him or vice versa(especially with the shots he got). The same thing could be said for any of the big 3. I think at this point we should just hope that they can have the same type of year they had last year and other guys step up.

Can you lose a step in half of season? He might have slowed down by injuries, but I'm not buying the incredible decline. Another catalyst in this is the changing of the team dynamic. The team became more Rondo centric. You gotta believe it affecting Pierce. Going from alpha-dog to 2nd fiddle, and sometimes 3rd or 4th option. Its a major adjustment. But in the playoffs, Pierce was money in 2/4 series. All i'm saying is Pierce will up his game this off-season & come back in better shape.

I think he'll have to earn his extension by demonstrating his youthful recovery. I don't feel good about Pierce as a dominant player right now.

He's still top 20 in the NBA. But He's sliding. Two years ago I though he was top 10-12.

I hope for the best with Pierce, but I have my doubts about what this team (core of Pierce, Garnett, Allen) will be able to do beyond next year.

[housecall]

Pierce is still productive enough to be the #1 option on this team if the same core returns...Danny need to make sure they have decent backup players at all 5 positions.As Doc stated,"this starting 5 has never lost a series"says a lot.

[albas89]

He's still top 20 in the NBA. But He's sliding. Two years ago I though he was top 10-12.

Two years ago, during the whole 2008 playoffs(except from 3 games against the Cavs... but he totally made up for those games in game 7), Pierce was arguably the best player in the world... it didn't last long but it's true!!
and it's also true that injuries have taken their toll on Paul's obvious decline... but still,the man is a winner, how many times has he taken over when we REALLY needed him??
I can assure u that he can lead the C's to another title much more effectively than 95% of the players in this league...

[ManUp]

I don't see why Pierce would need to redeem his self. He did nothing wrong unless getting old is his offence. I don't think that there is anything Pierce can do at this point to change fans perceptions of him. His best years were wasted on some really terrible teams and he can't get that time back. I think it's pretty obvious that Pierce can't do certain things anymore. If Pierce was the same player he was in 06 there's no way he has those terrible series against Cleveland and LA, regardless of who was guarding him or vice versa(especially with the shots he got). The same thing could be said for any of the big 3. I think at this point we should just hope that they can have the same type of year they had last year and other guys step up.

Can you lose a step in half of season? He might have slowed down by injuries, but I'm not buying the incredible decline. Another catalyst in this is the changing of the team dynamic. The team became more Rondo centric. You gotta believe it affecting Pierce. Going from alpha-dog to 2nd fiddle, and sometimes 3rd or 4th option. Its a major adjustment. But in the playoffs, Pierce was money in 2/4 series. All i'm saying is Pierce will up his game this off-season & come back in better shape.

Injuries can take more than a step in half a season. KG is the perfect example. With Pierce it's been a slow process starting since 07 to now. He's had a lot of nagging injuries the last 3/4 years and playing through them has obviously taken it's toll. It's been pretty noticeable since last years play-offs where he was pretty much useless. Against the bulls he put up some of the worst 20 point games I've ever seen and then he was shutdown by the Magic (who he should have torched even worse then this year) and Hedo. He's still a very good player, but he can't carry this team the way he used to. When he does try and carry the team you can see it really takes it out of him. He's reached that point where his body can't keep up with what he wants to do. The skill and talent is still there, but the tank isn't as deep as it used to be.

[LB3533]

Paul was fine this past season and playoffs.

He doesn't need to redeem himself.

Father time and the chance in offensive philosophy of the team gives the perception that Paul didn't have a good year, though in fact he did.

[Brendan]

Pierce really worked on his game at various points in his career to adjust to what the team wanted - I think the team would do well to get Pierce in the block against smaller wings, get him some ISOs when Rondo is out and use him in the pick and roll whenever there is a good matchup.

I don't see Pierce's best seasons as wasted. He had a couple of playoff runs in the early 2000s. Then he played sublime basketball in 2008 as the best offensive threat (we forget Ray struggled until the finals), facilitator, all around player, and defender of the other teams best player. He also stepped up his game as needed c.f. CLE game 7, DET close out, and the LAL series. Does it stink that the C's under competent ownership didn't build more effectively around him earlier on? Yes. But Pierce had his own maturity issues and again, the C's lucked into him - change anything and we don't get him. (One spot higher we take Dirk, one spot lower he's gone.)

[Mr October]

Paul was fine this past season and playoffs.

He doesn't need to redeem himself.

Father time and the chance in offensive philosophy of the team gives the perception that Paul didn't have a good year, though in fact he did.

Pierce did have a good year. However, I'm primarily concerned with his conditioning. Smartly, he has picked his spots over the past year, and quite well in the playoffs.

Tomorrow is going to be a huge day in establishing the next few years of the Boston Celtics. Pierce is the first big domino.

[pearljammer10]

I definitely think he will have a redemption year if he picks up his option... Then he will be in a contract year. Players always play their hearts out during contract years.

[PosImpos]

If we can get him a capable backup so he only plays 32ish minutes a night and we somehow find a legit number one scoring option so Paul only has to be #2 or even #3 on a good night?  Then sure, I think he'll have a redemption year.

But if Paul continues to be our #1 option and play 35+ minutes a night, he'll continue to run out of gas and ultimately disappoint us more often than not.  At this point in his career, Paul is just not a #1 option, nor should he be playing for most of the game.

I feel the same way about Ray Allen.  I think Ray will have a much better year if we can get a good sixth man on the wing so Ray only has to be 25-30 minutes a night at most.  I believe Ray would put up the same numbers with better efficiency if he played fewer than 30 minutes a night.  He's too old to be running around 35+ minutes a night and still have the legs to knock down shots from every place on the court.

[Mr October]

If we can get him a capable backup so he only plays 32ish minutes a night and we somehow find a legit number one scoring option so Paul only has to be #2 or even #3 on a good night?  Then sure, I think he'll have a redemption year.

But if Paul continues to be our #1 option and play 35+ minutes a night, he'll continue to run out of gas and ultimately disappoint us more often than not.  At this point in his career, Paul is just not a #1 option, nor should he be playing for most of the game.

I feel the same way about Ray Allen.  I think Ray will have a much better year if we can get a good sixth man on the wing so Ray only has to be 25-30 minutes a night at most.  I believe Ray would put up the same numbers with better efficiency if he played fewer than 30 minutes a night.  He's too old to be running around 35+ minutes a night and still have the legs to knock down shots from every place on the court.

I'm OK with Pierce being our #1. We really don't have a choice. James, Wade, Bryant, Gasol, Dirk, Durant, Anthony are not coming here anytime soon.

We're going to need to rely on our leaky wall offense, to borrow from Kenny Smith. Most teams cannot stop all our weapons at once.

But I agree completely with Paul's minutes. He should average 32 per game. KG - 30 per game. Ray - 32 per game (his conditioning is the best of all the old guys).

[FallGuy]

Pierce really worked on his game at various points in his career to adjust to what the team wanted - I think the team would do well to get Pierce in the block against smaller wings, get him some ISOs when Rondo is out and use him in the pick and roll whenever there is a good matchup.

I don't see Pierce's best seasons as wasted. He had a couple of playoff runs in the early 2000s. Then he played sublime basketball in 2008 as the best offensive threat (we forget Ray struggled until the finals), facilitator, all around player, and defender of the other teams best player. He also stepped up his game as needed c.f. CLE game 7, DET close out, and the LAL series. Does it stink that the C's under competent ownership didn't build more effectively around him earlier on? Yes. But Pierce had his own maturity issues and again, the C's lucked into him - change anything and we don't get him. (One spot higher we take Dirk, one spot lower he's gone.)

My mind is winning the battle with my heart on this one. I hope next year is the last for Pierce in a Celtics uniform unless he's willing to play out his option and sign for less than $10M per year after that (which I doubt).