Published 19:22 IST, May 26th 2020
Paul Pierce vs LeBron James: Timeline of bitter rivalry from spit saga to monster dunk
Paul Pierce vs LeBron James: The Paul Pierce & LeBron James rivalry dates back to 2003 when Paul Pierce spit at LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers bench.
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The Paul Pierce and LeBron James rivalry dates back to 2003 when Paul Pierce spat at LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers bench. Pierce recently released a top five list of his NBA all-time players, which did not include the Los Angeles Lakers star. Perkins revealed the incident during an ESPN interview, which Pierce later confirmed. Here is the timeline of the infamous Paul Pierce vs LeBron James' bitter rivalry.
2003: Paul Pierce spit at LeBron and the Cavaliers bench
"I'm glad social media wasn't out then because I spit at they bench. I probably would've got fined." @paulpierce34 confirms @KendrickPerkins' story that him spitting toward the Cavs bench started his beef with LeBron. pic.twitter.com/k1DbLKhcQq
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) May 22, 2020
The spit incident is the earliest evidence of the Paul Pierce vs LeBron James rivalry. Perkins revealed that James was getting attention during his rookie NBA seaso and played one of his first few games against Pierce and the Celtics. Perkins revealed that Pierce was talking trash to the Cavaliers bench and spat at them. As per Perkins, it was the 'ultimate disrespect' and people were ready to fight after the game.
He added that from that day onwards, both James and Pierce hate each other. Pierce confirmed the story, saying that it happened during an NBA game which meant nothing. He remembers the trash talk but was not sure if he hit someone when he spit in their direction. He only recalls meeting in the hallway where things were about to 'go down', saying it was the 'basis of everything'.
2006: Cavaliers win despite Pierce's career-high
On February 15, 2006, Pierce dropped his career-high 50 points at the TD Garden while playing the Cavaliers. However, James bagged the 113-109 win in overtime. James also had a great game, scoring 43 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists.
2008: Celtics beat the Cavaliers
During the 2007-08 post-season, the Celtics beat the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference semi-finals. Though James won the first scoring title of his NBA career, his team was ranked fourth on in the Eastern Conference. Game 7 of the series is still considered one of the best NBA games by fans. James lost despite scoring 45 points and the Celtics bagged the NBA title while Pierce won the Finals MVP.
2010: Cavaliers lose once again
In 2010, the Cavaliers were ranked first in Eastern Conference with Celtics at No.4. While everyone expected James to lead the team to the NBA Finals, Pierce won the series and advanced ahead. Though the Celtics lost to late NBA legend Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers, the Cavaliers also made changes to their roster. Shaquille O'Neal moved to the Celtics, and James moved to the Miami Heat.
2011: Heat beat the Celtics
Though the Heat did not win the NBA Finals that season, James was able to beat Paul Pierce. He stated that the matchup was 'personal' as they defeated Celtics in Round 2 of the playoffs. Though the Celtics were leading by 87-82 in the deciding Game 5, the Heat went on a 15-0 run to beat Boston.
2014: Pierce demands matchup with James
During the 2013-2014 season, Heat met the Celtics in the Eastern Conference semi-finals. Pierce claimed that he can beat James and wanted to defend the now-Lakers star. He stated he could do a better job than anyone else, but ended up losing as James dropped 49-points during Game 4, making a new Heat playoff franchise-record.
2018: LeBron ruining Pierce's jersey retirement ceremony by defeating the Celtics
2018-19: Pierce talking trash and trolling James
During the 2017-18 playoffs, the cameras captured Pierce talking trash to James while he faced the Celtics. While it is not clear what Pierce said, James remained unaffected by his comments. In 2019, Pierce talked about being James' biggest rival, adding that he was the reason James moved to Miami.
Paul Pierce vs LeBron James: LeBron James dunk on Paul Pierce
2020: Paul Pierce Top 5 list does not include LeBron James
In last week's ESPN's NBA Countdown, Pierce named his top five NBA players list which excluded James. He stated that all James did was put the team together in Miami and Cleveland before joining the Lakers, whose tradition is already made. While fans agreed to most of his list, they expected James to be up there.
Updated 19:22 IST, May 26th 2020