How Paul Pierce is treated in LA

[slamtheking]

As far as I know, he doesn't get smacked in the head with a champagne bottle and then stabbed a dozen times with a hunting knife by a bunch of wannabes when he goes to clubs in LA.

Look, I have lived in Socal for like 5 years now and I hate Lakers fans ridiculous style.

But many of them grew up watching championship hoops, and they aren't dummies like most other fans.

And people in LA are just excited to see a celebrity of any kind, when you get down to it. They aren't going to get all Celtic Pride on a fool. Or maybe, they actually have their own life going on and just ignore a dude.

I swear, I love Boston. Born and raised, went to college there, worked downtown for 15 years and didn't move until I was past 30. But it is brutal seeing all the other billion New England transplants out here rocking Boston sports gear at all times. It's like a Red Sox hat is a required uniform or something. What are you, 12 years old?

Best part is, 90% of them are from outside of Route 128.

Boston is the only city with a major league franchise in any sport in New England.  With exception of Western Connecticut, the majority of sports fans in New England follow the Boston teams.  Making condescending comments about fans that don't happen to live inside the 128 loop is obnoxious and elitist.  I can go anywhere in New England (both inside and outside 128) and see Boston team paraphernalia
on many people anytime during the year.

[2short]

oh yeah, i live west of 128 and don't have any celtics gear but have been a celtics fan a long long time
what does where you live have to do with anything?
Oh wait I understand, if you don't live in indianapolis proper you can't root for the pacers, right? 

[GreenFaith1819]

Reading this makes me appreciate so much more a guy who actually wants to be a Celtic for life. Here is a player who grew up idolizing the Celtics bitter rivals. I mean he grew up in the 80's! I bet he absolutely HATED the Celtics. Then he played here and they lost for his first decade. He had every right to sour on the thought of playing here but he stuck it out (Im not sure he would have waited too much longer but still). I think it shows how much Paul felt a connection with Red and the history of this team, and still does to this day. Bill Simmons wrote in his book that Before 08, when both Kobe and Pierce were demanding trades, that he could see a scenario where players switched squads. You know what? I could see that too. My response? Go ahead Paul, you deserve a better situation even if it is with our rivals. At that point LA fans still had no reason to hate PP and he would be welcomed back home with open arms.

Instead he stayed, we built a championship roster and emabarassed LA in the finals. I love writing that!

Anyway the point is, Paul Pierce is a true Celtic in an era when you cant really fault a player for switching teams. There are so many variables in the business of basketball today that situations just get too complicated. Paul has been an elite player for our team and although there were some tough times, has always been dedicated to bringing more banners to Boston with his stamp on them. I think it is beautiful that he cares so much about his legacy with the Celtics.

So to answer the question, yes LA hates Paul Pierce. It is because he torched them in the finals. And this is perhaps his strongest bullet point on his resume to becoming a Celtics legend that no one will forget.

(TP for a great topic!)

Yes! And here's a Toast to hopefully at least One More Torching of LA by our Celtics this year, in June...raise your glasses (mine has Kool-Aid, by the way )...

And if Pierce and the Boston Celtics can indeed torch LA again in June of this year, another toast to Ray Allen! For I would love to hear him once again say that wonderful phrase that he uttered at the ESPYs in Summer of 2008:

"Another Win in LA", LOL.....Sweet!!

[screwedupmaniac]

I guarantee you that 90% of Lakers fans have no clue that Paul Pierce lives in LA or is from LA, and give him a hard time when they see him (though I'm sure they don't go overboard or anything - they aren't NY fans).

I dunno, Lakers fans are just as capable as Knicks fans of going overboard...remember the Lakers fans beating up a Celtics fan at the Staples Center during the '08 finals? The fans were watching the game on the jumbotron in LA while the game was being played in Boston:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCrQwTNt2fI&feature=player_embedded

[Jon Niednagel]

I guarantee you that 90% of Lakers fans have no clue that Paul Pierce lives in LA or is from LA, and give him a hard time when they see him (though I'm sure they don't go overboard or anything - they aren't NY fans).

  I don't know that 90% of the Lakers fans would recognize their own players away from the court, let alone players from other teams. And how many of those fans are diehard enough to say something to an opposing player if they did figure out who he was? A few hundred?

I classify Laker fans into three groups:

1) There is the group BBT is talking about. These are the *fans* who can afford to be seen at the Staples Center.

2) The casual sports fan not from LA who just wears LA garb out of bandwagon popularity, similar to Yankee hats, or because they want to fit in if they move to that region. They might know the players and some of the history, but they are not invested enough to give Paul a hard time or care one way or the other.

3) Lastly, there are the true LA fans. They seem to be very knowledgeable about the history of their team and the history of our beloved Cs. They truly despise our Celtics as much as we do the Fakers, and are as likely to say something to Paul as we are to Kobe (even though Kobe isn't from Boston and didn't grow up a Cs fan). As much as I want to view all Laker fans as the first two categories, there are a lot more of the third than I would like to admit.

[PosImpos]

I respectfully disagree that 90% of Laker fans do not know that he is from LA.

I think you're overestimating the actual NBA knowledge of 90% of Laker fans.  I bet most of them don't even know what team originally drafted Kobe, or that Pau has a brother playing in the league.

I don't know about that..they all seem pretty knowledgeable, at least from when I've chatted with them on their blog.

Anybody on a blog is not representative of the majority of their fanbase...even in New England I'm sure the percentage of fans that actually read up on the team online and post on blogs like this one are fewer than 5%.  

[Fafnir]

I respectfully disagree that 90% of Laker fans do not know that he is from LA.

I think you're overestimating the actual NBA knowledge of 90% of Laker fans.  I bet most of them don't even know what team originally drafted Kobe, or that Pau has a brother playing in the league.

I don't know about that..they all seem pretty knowledgeable, at least from when I've chatted with them on their blog.

Anybody on a blog is not representative of the majority of their fanbase...even in New England I'm sure the percentage of fans that actually read up on the team online and post on blogs like this one are fewer than 5%.  

True, but the majority of Lakers fans in the blog world are very knoweledgable.

The Lakers are very much a public/bandwagon team, so you get a lot of casual fans. Just a part of success. (unless you're the Spurs  )

[GreenFaith1819]

I guarantee you that 90% of Lakers fans have no clue that Paul Pierce lives in LA or is from LA, and give him a hard time when they see him (though I'm sure they don't go overboard or anything - they aren't NY fans).

I dunno, Lakers fans are just as capable as Knicks fans of going overboard...remember the Lakers fans beating up a Celtics fan at the Staples Center during the '08 finals? The fans were watching the game on the jumbotron in LA while the game was being played in Boston:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCrQwTNt2fI&feature=player_embedded

Well, I'm going to play Devil's Advocate here:

Did the Celtics Fan say something to incite it? Did they have too much to drink? I ask this because I've been there .

There was a time when I was younger when I would have a few (ok, a lot) of drinks and if I was in a crowd of Laker Fans, I would've probably said something to get a beat-down, too.

As raucous as LA Fans can get, I find it hard to believe that they would just turn around and arbitrarily take out their frustrations on the first person they see wearing a Celtics Shirt.

[Mr October]

I guarantee you that 90% of Lakers fans have no clue that Paul Pierce lives in LA or is from LA, and give him a hard time when they see him (though I'm sure they don't go overboard or anything - they aren't NY fans).

  I don't know that 90% of the Lakers fans would recognize their own players away from the court, let alone players from other teams. And how many of those fans are diehard enough to say something to an opposing player if they did figure out who he was? A few hundred?

I classify Laker fans into three groups:

1) There is the group BBT is talking about. These are the *fans* who can afford to be seen at the Staples Center.

2) The casual sports fan not from LA who just wears LA garb out of bandwagon popularity, similar to Yankee hats, or because they want to fit in if they move to that region. They might know the players and some of the history, but they are not invested enough to give Paul a hard time or care one way or the other.

3) Lastly, there are the true LA fans. They seem to be very knowledgeable about the history of their team and the history of our beloved Cs. They truly despise our Celtics as much as we do the Fakers, and are as likely to say something to Paul as we are to Kobe (even though Kobe isn't from Boston and didn't grow up a Cs fan). As much as I want to view all Laker fans as the first two categories, there are a lot more of the third than I would like to admit.

Living in LA the past 10 years, yes there are 3 distinct groups. Heck every city has these groups!! How many true Celtic die hard fans are sitting in the best seats in the Garden these days? Just like in LA, the most passionate fans are up in the 300s. The die hards tend to be made up of the working class (middle and lower). And those people are pretty darn similar from city to city (a mix of nice people and obnoxious jerks).

However LA is a major transplant city. Lots of fans of other cities move to LA to get into the entertainment industry. So you end up with a lot more people who are here to see the opposing teams, and with all the money flying around this town, you see a lot more celebrities and wanna-be's in the good seats.

But the vast number of hard core fans in LA who can't afford good seats are huge. Basketball is the number 1 sport in LA by far.

Anyway a lot of folks here respect the heck out of Pierce's game. And I can tell you Pierce jerseys are easily in the top 10 of ALL basketball jerseys i see on the streets of LA, especially when you get close to Inglewood.

[Mr October]

I don't know how Paul was treated by L.A fans before 2008 but I'm sure the Finals totally changed whatever good perception they could have had of him, since he is know hated by L.A fans for his "wheelchair acting" as they call it. (But what they really can't dig is how he killed the Lakers in the Finals ).

Yep the wheelchair thing didn't go over well at all. And I gotta admit that was pretty embarrassing and hard to defend. 

However defend him, I did!! Go Celtics!!!

If the C's and Lakers meet in the finals this year, it is going to be INSANE. There's still a lot of damage done - 39 point blowout anyone?

This video pretty much sums up the lingering feelings:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baTurbG4v-8

[guava_wrench]

I guarantee you that 90% of Lakers fans have no clue that Paul Pierce lives in LA or is from LA, and give him a hard time when they see him (though I'm sure they don't go overboard or anything - they aren't NY fans).

  I don't know that 90% of the Lakers fans would recognize their own players away from the court, let alone players from other teams. And how many of those fans are diehard enough to say something to an opposing player if they did figure out who he was? A few hundred?

I classify Laker fans into three groups:

1) There is the group BBT is talking about. These are the *fans* who can afford to be seen at the Staples Center.

2) The casual sports fan not from LA who just wears LA garb out of bandwagon popularity, similar to Yankee hats, or because they want to fit in if they move to that region. They might know the players and some of the history, but they are not invested enough to give Paul a hard time or care one way or the other.

3) Lastly, there are the true LA fans. They seem to be very knowledgeable about the history of their team and the history of our beloved Cs. They truly despise our Celtics as much as we do the Fakers, and are as likely to say something to Paul as we are to Kobe (even though Kobe isn't from Boston and didn't grow up a Cs fan). As much as I want to view all Laker fans as the first two categories, there are a lot more of the third than I would like to admit.

Those 3 groups sound like Boston.

I know many people who wear Red Sox gear, but really have no interest in the team, nor the sport of baseball. They just wear it because of the city.

I think this is mostly irrelevant to the OP. The question can be answered by referencing the people who realize he is from LA.

Does it really make a difference if someone is from the area? I am from NYC. I do not root for Lamar Odom. I have no problem rooting against him. LA is a big city. Native sons are a dime a dozen.

[Witch-King]

I don't know how Paul was treated by L.A fans before 2008 but I'm sure the Finals totally changed whatever good perception they could have had of him, since he is know hated by L.A fans for his "wheelchair acting" as they call it. (But what they really can't dig is how he killed the Lakers in the Finals ).

Yep the wheelchair thing didn't go over well at all. And I gotta admit that was pretty embarrassing and hard to defend. 

However defend him, I did!! Go Celtics!!!

If the C's and Lakers meet in the finals this year, it is going to be INSANE. There's still a lot of damage done - 39 point blowout anyone?

This video pretty much sums up the lingering feelings:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baTurbG4v-8

Lakers fans will likely try and use the excuse that we didn't beat a 'fully-healthy' Lakers squad in 2008 (Andrew Bynum was injured, inactive). Also, earlier in the season when we beat them Kobe was inactive, though he had chosen to play through the particular injury that was ailing him in a few games before we showed up in LA. Maybe they have to tell themselves that so they can psychologically avoid the reality that we may still very well beat them if we played them in another 7-game series  (ie Finals). Just to to give y'alls the 'heads-up' ...

[BballTim]

I guarantee you that 90% of Lakers fans have no clue that Paul Pierce lives in LA or is from LA, and give him a hard time when they see him (though I'm sure they don't go overboard or anything - they aren't NY fans).

  I don't know that 90% of the Lakers fans would recognize their own players away from the court, let alone players from other teams. And how many of those fans are diehard enough to say something to an opposing player if they did figure out who he was? A few hundred?

3) Lastly, there are the true LA fans. They seem to be very knowledgeable about the history of their team and the history of our beloved Cs. They truly despise our Celtics as much as we do the Fakers, and are as likely to say something to Paul as we are to Kobe (even though Kobe isn't from Boston and didn't grow up a Cs fan). As much as I want to view all Laker fans as the first two categories, there are a lot more of the third than I would like to admit.

  Ok, Ok. 500, 600 tops.

[buzz]

oh yeah, i live west of 128 and don't have any celtics gear but have been a celtics fan a long long time
what does where you live have to do with anything?
Oh wait I understand, if you don't live in indianapolis proper you can't root for the pacers, right? 

No, you can definitely root for them. We are all fans. I just don't get why every single Boston transplant has to rock a Red Sox hat at all times once they move from the place, lol.

Reminds me of the 40-year old dudes who wear an authentic jersey and bring their own glove to Fenway.

Sports not life or death in Socal. People probably just say, "s'up, Paul," when they see him.

[Jon Niednagel]

I guarantee you that 90% of Lakers fans have no clue that Paul Pierce lives in LA or is from LA, and give him a hard time when they see him (though I'm sure they don't go overboard or anything - they aren't NY fans).

  I don't know that 90% of the Lakers fans would recognize their own players away from the court, let alone players from other teams. And how many of those fans are diehard enough to say something to an opposing player if they did figure out who he was? A few hundred?

I classify Laker fans into three groups:

1) There is the group BBT is talking about. These are the *fans* who can afford to be seen at the Staples Center.

2) The casual sports fan not from LA who just wears LA garb out of bandwagon popularity, similar to Yankee hats, or because they want to fit in if they move to that region. They might know the players and some of the history, but they are not invested enough to give Paul a hard time or care one way or the other.

3) Lastly, there are the true LA fans. They seem to be very knowledgeable about the history of their team and the history of our beloved Cs. They truly despise our Celtics as much as we do the Fakers, and are as likely to say something to Paul as we are to Kobe (even though Kobe isn't from Boston and didn't grow up a Cs fan). As much as I want to view all Laker fans as the first two categories, there are a lot more of the third than I would like to admit.

Those 3 groups sound like Boston.

I know many people who wear Red Sox gear, but really have no interest in the team, nor the sport of baseball. They just wear it because of the city.

I think this is mostly irrelevant to the OP. The question can be answered by referencing the people who realize he is from LA.

Does it really make a difference if someone is from the area? I am from NYC. I do not root for Lamar Odom. I have no problem rooting against him. LA is a big city. Native sons are a dime a dozen.

I'm not really sure how to interpret your response Guava. I can't really tell if you are trying shoot down my response as irrelevant, or what. So, I'll just try to clarify what I intended to communicate in my earlier post, as it seems a couple of you may have misinterpreted my comment.

Guava and Mr. October, I certainly didn't intend to suggest that my tongue-in-cheek fan classification system was specific to LA Laker fans only. I see the parallels across every city and sport. However, I would say that in specific regard to basketball fans, the fan characterization is more pronounced in LA than anywhere else.
 
I also want to point out that I discussed the first two groups in response to a discussion that was taking place between PosImpos and BBallTim. Thus, it wasn't intended to be totally relevant to the OP. That said, I thought it was pretty clear that I take the position that folks in the first two categories wouldn't care about Paul being from LA and playing for Boston if they were to see him in LA. The third group, however, would clearly understand where Paul is from and might be bothered by it, and there are more true LA fans out there than my biases toward them allow me to admit (publicly).

As an aside to Guava's comment, personally I'm not bothered at all by non-baseball fans sporting Red Sox caps strictly for regional pride. That's fine.  I am somewhat perturbed by the person in, say for example, Las Vegas or Memphis who thinks wearing a Sox hat is trendy and somehow makes him/her cool. Of course, I prefer to see that over the same person wearing a Yankees hat. It is a conditioned response for me. In terms of basketball, however, I see this situation with Laker jerseys and hats much more than any other team. It's not that it doesn't occur with other teams, it is just a ratio thing.

Somewhat getting back to the OP's question, any reasonable fan anywhere is going to understand that that sports is a business, and there is no real justification for being mad at someone just because they were raised in your city and now play for a rival. That said, sports make fans irrational, so I could see some folks in LA being perturbed by Pierce since he was once of them but has now adopted Boston, embodies everything about the Celtics, and humiliated LA in 2008.