MEAWW.COM / NEWS / CELEBRITY NEWS

Paul Pierce tries to disqualify LeBron James from GOAT debate with Lakers loss, fans say he's jealous, ‘salty’

The Pierce-James feud is not a new one. In May, Pierce listed off his top-five NBA players and left James off completely and as most know by now, the grudge Pierce holds against James is a personal one

People on the internet were up in arms on Wednesday, August 19, over two basketball players -- Paul Pierce and LeBron James. Pierce, a former Boston Celtics forward who played 19 seasons in the NBA and currently is an analyst on ESPN, made a comment on James. 

On Tuesday, August 18, the Los Angeles Lakers lost to the Portland Trail Blazers, with the latter scoring a 100-93 victory. In the game, The Trail Blazers’ Damian Lillard had 34 points. Lakers’ James on the other hand had 23 points. 

Following this game, in an appearance on ‘First Take’ on Wednesday, Pierce said that if James and the Lakers lose to the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round, he could no longer be considered in the conversation about the greatest players of all-time, adding, “I’ve already said he’s not a top-five player of all time.”

NBA Central tweeted a clip of the commentary, writing, “Paul Pierce says LeBron is disqualified from the GOAT debate if he loses in the first round. ‘I’ve already said he’s not a top-five player of all time’.”

The Pierce-James feud is not a new one. Earlier in May, Pierce listed off his top-five NBA players and left James off completely. And while he isn’t the first one to do that, in Pierce’s case, the snub was motivated by a personal grudge. His former Celtics teammate Kendrick Perkins said, “Here’s the thing: Paul Pierce’s list is personal. Right? Because we don’t talk about this enough, but Paul and ‘Bron have never liked each other since ‘Bron rookie year.”

Perkins explained then, “We’re playing in Columbus, Ohio, my rookie season against the Cleveland Cavaliers, right? You know when LeBron was coming into the league, he was getting a lot of heat from players. … So, his first preseason game was against Paul Pierce. So, Paul is talking noise to the bench, right? He’s talking big noise to the Cavs bench, and they’re sitting over there -- ‘Bron and them, they’re all sitting over there, Drew Gooden and everybody."

He further narrated, “So, Paul actually spits over there at the bench. Right?! The ultimate disrespect. It ended up turning up. After the game, both teams were meeting in the back. Guys was ready to fight. We had to hold people back. Like, it went up from there. Ever since that moment, LeBron James and Paul Pierce hate each other. They don’t speak to each other. Even now and today.”

On Twitter, NBA fans found Pierce’s comments petty. A Twitter user wrote, “LeBron: *breathes*, Paul Pierce:” with a Michael Jordan meme that says, “I took that personally.”

Another NBA fan wrote, “Paul Pierce trying time push a narrative that LeBron is not Top 5 All Time… First of all...someone who isn’t Top 100 All Time shouldn’t be speaking so loudly…”

Another said, “Every time Paul Pierce speaks I lose brain cells.”

More and more fans complained about Pierce’s pettiness. One wrote, “bro lebron really does own real estate in paul pierce’s head after beating him in the playoffs so much.”

One Twitter user noted, “The more Paul Pierce talks about LeBron James, the more jealous and salty he sounds.”

But there were also those on Pierce’s side. One fan wrote, “Paul Pierce cracked LeBrons a** many many times, thats why #paulPierce can say what he says about Lebron. If you have a problem with it, that's because you don't watch Basketball & you only watch Twitter. Period.”

Another said, “I’m tired of People acting like Paul Pierce was a scrub man smh. He is gunna be a Hall if Famer and he was a damn Finals MVP put some respect on his damn name!! #TheTruth.”