Paul Pierce was traded to the Brooklyn Nets in June, ending his 15-season career with the Boston Celtics. After nine teams passed on Pierce in the 1998 NBA Draft, the Celtics decided enough was enough and took the former Kansas star. Their faith in Pierce paid off; he developed into a franchise player, franchise icon, 10-time All-Star, and NBA Finals MVP in 2008. But with the 35-year-old aging and the Celtics rebuilding, the team decided it was time to move on.
Though Pierce will be playing for the Brooklyn Nets, that does not mean his heart does not still lie in Boston. It clearly does. Pierce posted a number of photos to his Instagram account on Tuesday along with the hashtag “#ThankYouBoston”
Thanks to help from The Awesome Boston, we posted a compilation of a number of the photos below. They capture many of Pierce’s best moments with the C’s.
Pierce actually posted a number of more photos to his account, which you can see here. It’s always difficult when a franchise icon goes to a new team, but this transition seems to be a smooth one. Pierce will always be regarded as a lifelong Celtic.
Between Pierce and Josh Cribbs’ awesome goodbye to Cleveland, these Instagram farewells are becoming very popular.
Photo: Instagram/Paul Pierce
