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For a native of Los Angeles, Paul Pierce sure has made a lot of fans of the Los Angeles Lakers angry over the years. Most infamous was Pierce's performance during the 2008 NBA Finals as a member of the Boston Celtics when he used a wheelchair to get off of the floor during a game he returned to minutes later, providing a necessary momentum boost for the Celtics to capture Game 1 in the Garden. Lakers fans still take out their frustrations on him even seven years later, recently booing the now Los Angeles Clippers forward when he threw out the first pitch at a Los Angeles Dodgers game.
The Clippers are Pierces fourth team in the last four years, after being traded to the Brooklyn Nets in 2013 and then signing with the Washington Wizards in 2014. During his time with the Wizards, Pierce built up his uber-troll credentials. First, Pierce made comments criticizing former teammate Deron Williams' ability to handle the spotlight and then used photoshop to declare himself "King of the North" while playing the Toronto Raptors in the playoffs, leading Raptors' general manager Masai Ujiri to lead an "[expletive] Paul Pierce" chant outside of the Air Canada Centre.
Today, Pierce took a shot at Kobe Bryant during the Clippers' media day:
"That will be tough on some guys in L.A. to take on that (reduced) role *cough* Kobe *cough* I mean, you know, we get older." —Paul Pierce
— Kurt Helin (@basketballtalk) September 25, 2015
Sounds like someone might be a biiiit jealous of Bryant getting to play his entire career with one franchise while being paid handsomely to do so.
It would appear Pierce has accepted he will never be beloved by the majority of Los Angeles and is embracing his inner troll. Now it's time to furiously refresh Twitter, waiting for Kobe's reply. For now, enjoy these clips of people being upset with Paul Pierce:
#MasaiUjiri was back on stage at #JurassicPark ...listen to what he said this time pic.twitter.com/bswzVaOXzd
— BarDown (@BarDown) April 18, 2015
.@paulpierce34's first pitch on #ClippersNight at Dodger Stadium. #BouncePass pic.twitter.com/vvZX95U35p
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 29, 2015