Where is Paul Pierce, former Celtics star who was fired from ESPN?

May 30, 2023

Former Celtics star Paul Pierce (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)Getty Images

What is Paul Pierce doing these days? Let’s take a look at where the former Boston Celtics star is now and what he’s up to now that his playing days are over.

Born in Oakland, California, Pierce attended Inglewood High School, where he was cut from the school’s basketball team as a freshman and sophomore. But as a junior, he rose to stardom, going on to become a McDonald’s All-American and playing college ball at Kansas for three seasons.

Pierce, who grew up as a Lakers fan who hated the Celtics, was drafted No. 10 overall by Boston in the 1998 NBA Draft. Pierce quickly established himself as one of the Celtics’ top scorers. By his third season, he led the team with 25.3 points per game while finishing second in rebounds (averaging 6.4).

In 2000, Pierce was attacked at a nightclub in Boston. The Celtics star, 22 at the time, was stabbed 11 times in the face, neck and back and was also hit over the head with a bottle. Pierce was released form the hospital three days later and went on to play all 82 games that season for Boston.

Pierce made the first of his 10 All-Star teams during the 2001-02 season along with the first of his four All-NBA nods. That same season, Pierce earned his nickname “The Truth,” thanks to a now-famous quote from Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal praising him after a Celtics overtime win over the Lakers.

“Take this down. My name is Shaquille O’Neal and Paul Pierce is the (expletive) truth. Quote me on that and don’t take nothing out,” he said.

The 2001-02 Celtics eventually made it to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they lost to the Detroit Pistons in six games.

That would be the furthest Pierce’s Celtics would get until Danny Ainge and Doc Rivers acquired future Hall of Famers Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to form a new “Big Three” in Boston. The trio of Pierce, Garnett and Allen led the Celtics to their first NBA championship of the century and ushered in a new era of success in Boston. Pierce was named the MLB of the 2008 NBA Finals.

Pierce’s Celtics would make the NBA Finals again in 2010, but failed to secure another title. He 15-year run in Boston ended during the 2013 NBA Draft, when he was traded to the Brooklyn Nets alongside Garnett. Pierce played one season in Brooklyn before spending a year with the Washington Wizards and finishing his career with a two-year stint with the Los Angeles Clippers.

In July 2017, Pierce signed a ceremonial contract in order to officially retire as a member of the Celtics. In February 2018, his No. 34 jersey was retired by the team and raised to the rafters, joining the collection of Boston legends honored at TD Garden.

Shortly after retiring, Pierce made the jump to the TV side of things, joining ESPN as a basketball analyst. Pierce’s time at ESPN came to an abrupt end in 2021. He was fired shortly after posting a video of himself with a group of exotic dancers on social media.

Pierce later boasted that he didn’t need ESPN and that, “I made more money with this crypto in the past month (than) I did with y’all in a year.”

In 2021, Pierce was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

The Celtics legend then became one of a number of former athletes who got into legal trouble as part of their promotion of cryptocurrency brokers. In 2023, Pierce was fined $1.4 million by the SEC for making false promotion statements.

Pierce is currently back on TV, but not as a broadcaster. The Celtics legend was a late addition to the reaily show, “Stars on Mars,” which features celebrities working together in a simulated Mars habitat. In truth, the show is based in Australia and features celebrities living together and teaming up to perform various missions as handed out by host William Shatner. Other athletes on the show include Marshawn Lynch, Richard Sherman and Lance Armstrong.

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