Time heals all wounds: Real s—. Especially in the New England.

Celtics legend Kevin Garnett Sunday saw his jersey retired at TD Garden, and, during the festivities, he called out former “Big 3” colleague Ray Allen, who was present in the stands.

“It’s good to see Ray Allen here, real s—,” Garnett said.

The two then embraced at mid-court for a hug before Paul Pierce made it a full “Big 3” reunion with a group hug in front of a standing ovation.

The three played five seasons together in Celtics green to win the franchise’s only championship (2008) since its 1980’s glory days.

Allen departed Beantown in 2012—to join LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and others on the Miami Heat “superteam,” nevertheless—which led to an icy, long-standing feud that made Allen persona non grata in Boston as well as in the “Big 3” clubhouse.

The rift even famously led to Garnett snubbing Allen during the Heat’s first meeting with the C’s after the move in 2012, as well as Allen missing Pierce’s 2018 jersey retirement.

On January 26 of last year, the basketball community was burdened with one of the biggest tragedies in recent memory. Kobe Bryant, and 13 year old daughter Giana Bryant, along with six others, perished in a helicopter crash in California. Bryant was an all time Los Angeles Lakers great. He led the team to five championships, with countless personal accolades along the way, including an MVP and multiple scoring titles. Bryant was known for his competitive spirit, something he got from the great Michael Jordan. This Saturday completes Bryant’s journey to basketball immortality, as he’ll be enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, in what is quite possibly the best class of all time. Included in the class are power forwards Kevin Garnett and Tim Duncan, both champions in their own right. The aforementioned Jordan is set to induct Bryant, and recently this past week Jordan revealed his last texts with the Lakers swing man.

“This tequila is awesome,” wrote Bryant.

Bryant’s text was in reference to Jordan’s Cincoro Tequila, a bottle of which was sent to Bryant at the launch.

“Thank you, my brother,” Jordan responded.

“Yes, sir. Family good?” Kobe replied.

All good. Yours?”

“All good.”

Jordan wanted to talk to Bryant about his daughter’s basketball team—which he was coaching. “He was really into coaching Gigi,” Jordan said, “so I hit him up about that.”

“I added that little crying/laughing emoji,” Jordan chuckles.

“Ah, back at you, man,” Kobe wrote. “Hey, coach, I’m sitting on the bench right now, and we’re blowing this team out. 45-8.” …

“I just love that text,” Jordan says, “because it shows Kobe’s competitive nature.”

Emotions will almost certainly run high on Saturday, even for someone as stoic and cold natured as Jordan. When asked about the speech, he told ESPN, “I was thinking, at first, I might be a little somewhat nervous about it, but then I realized I’m not going to be nervous about showing emotions for someone I absolutely loved,” “That’s the humanistic side of me—people tend to forget I do have one.”

Bryant will be enshrined on ESPN, at 5:30 PM ET.

On Monday, ESPN fired former NBA star and current NBA analyst Paul Pierce after an Instagram Live video surfaced on Friday night that showed women who may have been exotic dancers. There was also apparent marijuana smoking, according to The Associated Press. The news was first reported by Barett Sports Media.

ESPN declined to comment on the reports, but a source familiar with the situation confirmed that Pierce and the network had “parted ways.” Following this news, Pierce, also known as “The Truth,” tweeted about his prospects but did not mention the video or the firing.

“Big Things coming soon stay tuned make sure u smile #Truthshallsetufree,” read Pierce’s tweet.

Most notably, Pierce was a 10-time All-Star and was the MVP of the 2008 NBA Finals with the Celtics. He played 19 seasons in the NBA. He has worked for ESPN since 2017 and appeared on shows including NBA Countdown and The Jump. Before being hired, Pierce appeared as a guest on the network before being hired to help cover the NBA finals.

It is unclear if anyone will replace Pierce on ESPN’s NBA programming or if the network will rotate other personalities to fill his role.

On Tuesday, the finalists for the 2021 Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame class were revealed. Amongst the finalists are Paul Pierce, Chris Bosh, Chris Webber, Michael Cooper, Lauren Jackson, Ben Wallace, and Yolanda Griffith.

Pierce is a first-time nominee for the coveted Hall of Fame. He spent 15 of his 19 NBA seasons with the Boston Celtics. A 10-time All-Star, the forward was the face of Boston during his tenure with the team. In 2008, he won the NBA Championship and was named the Finals MVP.

Bosh was nominated for the Hall of Fame last year but did not make it as a finalist. Bosh played 13 seasons before his playing career ended in 2016 because of a blood clot. In 2019, Bosh officially retired with the Miami Heat. Bosh is an 11-time All-Star, two-time NBA champion, and an Olympic gold medalist.

Webber was the number one pick in the 1993 NBA Draft. He is a five-time All-Star and was the focal point of a competitive Sacramento Kings squad in the early 2000s. Additionally, he reshaped college basketball as part of Michigans iconic “Fab Five.”

Cooper spent 12 seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers during the “Showtime” era. Cooper won five NBA championships with the team and earned the NBA Defensive Player of The Year award in 1987. Additionally, Cooper was named to the All-Defensive team five times. The shooting guard then coached the Los Angeles Sparks, winning two championships and the 2000 WNBA Coach of the Year award.

Jackson is one of the most decorated women’s basketball players. She is a four-time WNBL MVP and a three-time WNBA MVP. Not only that, but she is a three-time WNBA scoring champion and seven-time WNBA All-Star. Jackson was awarded the Defensive Player of the Year in 2007 and was named WNBA Finals MVP in 2010.

Wallace, better known as “Big Ben,” is regarded as one of the greatest defenders in league history. The big man was a four-time All-Star and an NBA champion. Wallace was named to the All-Defense team six times and is one of two players to win four Defensive Player of the Year awards.

Griffith is an eight-time WNBA All-Star, a former champion, and a finals MVP.

The entire class of 2021 will be announced on May 16.

LiAngelo Ball has decided to enter the 2018 NBA draft.

LiAngelo Ball declares for 2018 NBA Draft news

The 19-year-old former UCLA star has been playing for Lithuanian team Vytautas Prienu. Just hours before his announcement, Ball scored 72 points in a Big Baller Brand Challenge game between Vytautas and the Guangdon Southern Tigers of the Chinese basketball league.

SLIDESHOW: 10 Highest-Paid Athletes

Ball’s younger brother LaMelo added 36 points and their outspoken father LaVar Ball served as the squad’s head coach in the 159-115 win.

SLIDESHOW: 30 Best Sports Instagrams!

LiAngleo — whose older brother Lonzo is a rookie for the Los Angeles Lakers — made headlines late last year when him and his UCLA teammates were caught shoplifting in China while the Bruins were in the country for an exhibition game.  Upon his return to the United States, he was suspended indefinitely by UCLA and left the program without having played a game.

Ball averaged 15.7 points in nine games with Vytautas. Many basketball experts seem to agree it is a long-shot for LiAngelo Ball to be drafted by the NBA this year (at least as a top pick).

One person who disagrees with these experts, however, is Paul Pierce. The former Boston Celtics star told TMZ that he believes Ball has a good chance of being drafted.

“I think he got a good shot man, you know. I hope all the Ball brothers make it to the league,” Pierce told TMZ Sports of the Chino Hills, California family.

LaVar Ball has also reportedly been grooming LaMelo to join the NBA as soon as possible.

Check out Pierce’s comments below:

Draymond Green did not shy away from taking a verbal jab at Paul Pierce in Thursday’s game between the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Clippers.

Paul Pierce Tweets Response to Draymond Green’s Trash Talk

In the opening minutes of the Warriors’ 123-113 home victory, Green began trash-talking the 39-year-old former Boston Celtics star, who is set to retire soon. The Warriors star taunted Pierce by saying he wouldn’t get a farewell tour like Kobe Bryant did in his final season last year because he wasn’t as loved.

“Chasing that farewell tour — they don’t love you like that,” Green yelled at Pierce– who was sitting on the Clippers’ bench– in audio picked up by TNT. “Couldn’t get no farewell tour — they don’t love you like that. You thought you was Kobe?”

The above video displays Green’s infamous kick-and-flop, a foul that has gained the Warrior a reputation as a dirty player in the past two seasons. 

Green previously criticized Pierce for the latter’s comments about Kevin Durant, in which Pierce said the former Oklahoma City Thunder forward was less competitive for signing with the Warriors last summer.

“I just wonder at what point do they get bored talking about the same thing. You got all these guys talking. Like (Paul) Pierce today, like, dude nobody care what you did or who you did it for,” Green told our Warriors beat writer Anthony Slater in October. “Just give it a break. Everybody got something to say and want to take everything he say and twist it.”

Early Friday morning, Pierce fired back at Green’s Thursday taunts with a vicious tweet that delighted scores of NBA fans. Pierce mocked Green and the Warriors for believing they would win last year’s NBA Championship after setting a record with 73 victories. Golden State blew a 3-1 lead in the Finals to lose the 2016 title to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

One fan, however, was quick to remind Pierce that his team once blew a similar 3-2 playoff lead to the Lakers.

The Warriors’s win on Wednesday was their 10th straight over the Clippers dating back to the 2014-15 season.

The Clippers next host the San Antonio Spurs on Friday night, while the Warriors will host the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday night.

MIAMI, FL – DECEMBER 16: Paul Pierce #34 of the LA Clippers reacts to a play during a game against the Miami Heat at American Airlines Arena on December 16, 2016 in Miami, Florida.

The Boston Celtics won their seventh consecutive game Sunday afternoon, although one of the most memorable shots of the game was scored by a Los Angeles Clippers star who used to play for Boston: Paul Pierce.

PAUL PIERCE FAREWELL

The TD Garden crowd loved both – the Celtics and Pierce – and seemed unsure about who to cheer more for.

Isaiah Thomas somewhat stole the spotlight from Pierce by recording 28 points to lead the Celtics to a 107-102 home win in Pierce’s final game in the Garden.

Thomas backed off Pierce in the final seconds, however, to let the 39-year-old 2008 NBA Finals MVP sink one more basket in the arena he called home for 15 seasons.

”I wanted him to shoot and make it,” Thomas said. ”That would have been the perfect way to go out. He did it the right way.”

The game also marked Pierce’s first appearance for the Clippers since New Year’s Eve, and he played the first five minutes before heading to the bench.

“I’m happy to be able to get one last shot,” Pierce said after coming off the Clippers bench with 19 seconds left and sinking a 3-pointer– his only points of the game– with 11 seconds remaining in Boston’s 107-102 victory. “I’m thankful to step on the court, get one last shot, bury it, give the fans some wave to the crowd, kiss Lucky (the leprechaun logo at mid-court), I’m happy, I’m satisfied. I feel I can put it all to rest now.”

The crowd chanted Pierce’s name in the final minutes, egged on by the Celtics’ cheerleaders and even Thomas. Pierce’s coach, former Celtics head man Doc Rivers, planned to put him back in at the end, but the Clippers turned a thrashing into a close game.

Before the game, Rivers relayed a special message to the Clippers.

”When you finish your career, remember what’s going to happen in five minutes,” Rivers recalled telling them. ”All of you aren’t going to be Hall of Famers, but just remember that when you finish your career, you’re empty and you can walk away with no regrets. That’s what Paul’s doing tonight.”

The Celtics attempted a franchise-record 52 3-pointers (making 16) en route to their win. Boston is thus the second team in NBA history to attempt 30 3-pointers in a half, according to STATS, Inc, as they went 9 of 30 in the first half. The Houston Rockets attempted 30-plus 3-pointers in both halves of the same game on Dec. 16, 2016, against New Orleans.

Boston Celtics 107-102 Los Angeles Clippers… by gs-bn
The Clippers (31-20) next visit Toronto on Monday, while the Celtics (33-18) will visit Sacramento on Wednesday.

MIAMI, FL – DECEMBER 16: Paul Pierce #34 of the LA Clippers reacts to a play during a game against the Miami Heat at American Airlines Arena on December 16, 2016 in Miami, Florida.

Paul Pierce announced last month that he will retire at the end of this season, his 19th in the NBA.

Clippers’ Paul Pierce Says He Plans To Retire As Celtic

On Wednesday, the Los Angeles Clippers small forward, who turns 39 on Thursday, provided additional details about his retirement during an appearance on SiriusXM, saying he wishes to end his career as a member of the team he played the longest for: the Boston Celtics.

“I would love to do that,” Pierce told SiriusXM NBA Radio (h/t to ESPNBoston.com’s Chris Forsberg). “I think I’ll always be remembered as a Celtic. I had all my glory days, all my prime was pretty much as a Boston Celtic. I think I owe the fans and I owe myself that much, just to be able to put that uniform on one more time and go out that way, say I retired a Boston Celtic.”

Pierce was drafted by the Celtics as the 10th overall pick out of Kansas in 1998, and played with them until 2013.

During his time in Boston, Pierce recorded 10 All-Star appearances and was named MVP of the 2008 NBA Finals, as he teamed up with Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to help the Celtics win their first NBA title in 20 years. As a Celtic, the 6-foot-7 forward posted career averages of 21.8 points per game and 6.0 rebounds per game.

The Celtics traded Pierce and Garnett to the Brooklyn Nets in the summer of 2013. That experiment lasted merely one season, however, and Pierce spent the 2014-2015 season with the Washington Wizards, with whom he displayed his ability to score big shots in the postseason.

Last summer, Pierce reunited with former Celtics coach Doc Rivers in Los Angeles, as Pierce returned to the city where he played high school basketball in order to join the Clippers. He averaged a career-low 6.1 ppg in 68 games for the Clippers last season.

Celtics fans will have one more chance to see Pierce play in the TD Garden this season, when the Clippers travel to Boston on Sunday, Feb. 5.

Pierce is known as “The Truth,” a nickname given to him by Shaquille O’Neal. 

WASHINGTON, DC – MAY 15: Paul Pierce #34 of the Washington Wizards looks for a shot against Paul Millsap #4 of the Atlanta Hawks during the first quarter at Verizon Center on May 15, 2015 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Well, it looks like Paul Pierce will get to play with his former coach, Doc Rivers, for the foreseeable future. Pierce just agreed to a three-year, $10.6 million deal with the Los Angeles Clippers that will be officially signed on July 9, according to ESPN’s Marc Stein and Ramona Shelburne.

Paul Pierce Signs Deal With Clippers

It was unclear whether or not Pierce was even coming back, as he consistently expressed uncertainty about his basketball future. “I don’t even know if I am going to play basketball anymore,” Pierce told ESPN. “These seasons get harder and harder every year, every day. Summers get even harder when you start getting back in shape. I’m 37 years old. I’m top two or three oldest in the league.”

However, it appears the ability to play for Rivers, who coached him for nine years in Boston and won a championship with him in 2008, and the chance to play in front of his home town crowd proved too good to pass up. On top of this, many expect Pierce’s veteran leadership, which was monumental in Washington, to give the Clippers the necessary positive push.

Simply, Paul Pierce, no matter what he said about his uncertain future, took the inconsistent Wizards to the Eastern Conference semifinals and nearly defeated the Atlanta Hawks. He showed flashes of genius — aka hitting a game winner — while also settling in to his background role.

He changed the culture in Washington so much that they wanted to re-sign him this offseason: “He’s a great leader, great mentor,” John Wall stated. “Just seeing his competitive drive and how hard he works, being the first and last guy here, never making excuses, that is something we can use.

But he is now taking his talents to Los Angeles: let’s see if he can make a difference with the fairly immature Clippers.

After securing Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett to an already stacked lineup including Deron Williams and Joe Johnson, many considered Brooklyn to be deep playoff team. However, their 2013-14 season ended with disappointment as they exited the playoffs early.

Since then, Pierce went to the Wizards as a free agent and Garnett was traded to Minnesota back in February. And in a recent sit-down with Jackie MacMullan, Pierce discussed his time in Brooklyn, calling it “horrible” and a “tough situation.”

“I’m much happier [in Washington],” he said. “It was a tough situation [in Brooklyn] last year. Horrible, really.” And he blames this unhappiness on the overall locker room mentality.

“It was just the guys’ attitudes there,” Pierce told MacMullen. “It wasn’t like we were surrounded by a bunch of young guys. They were vets who didn’t want to play and didn’t want to practice. I was looking around saying, ‘What’s this?'”

“Kevin [Garnett] and I had to pick them up every day in practice… If me and Kevin weren’t there, that team would have folded up. That team would have packed it in. We kept them going each and every day.”

And the two players that confused him the most were Deron Williams and Joe Johnson.

“Before I got there, I looked at Deron as an MVP candidate,” Pierce stated. “But I felt once we got there, that’s not what he wanted to be. He just didn’t want that.” He also claimed that the media attention did not help Williams; allegedly, he did not handle the Utah to New York media transition well and the “pressure got to him.”

“Joe [Johnson] is quiet,” Pierce continued. “He doesn’t want much attention. He doesn’t say much. There’s a lot of secondary guys on that team. KG and I went there looking at them as the main guys who would push us, because we were advancing in years. But we ended up doing all the pushing.”

The Nets had the opportunity to re-sign Pierce, but they chose not to. On top of this, they also traded coach Jason Kidd to the Bucks. And since then, they went from the sixth-seed in the Eastern Conference to on the verge of missing the 2014-15 NBA playoffs.

As for Pierce in Washington, he has accepted his limited role. The 37-year-old is only averaging 11.9 PPG, four RPG and two APG in only 26.2 MPG.

The Washington Wizards and other athletes joined the President on Sunday for his annual White House Easter Egg Roll. And during a shooting competition, featuring several teams of Wizards players and children, the commander-in-chief hit the game winner.

Afterwards, he high-fived his teammates, which included John Wall, and proceeded to trash talk his opponent Paul Pierce.

“I’m clutch. I’m clutch,” said President Obama according to John Wall. He can also be seen jokingly yelling in the video, “That’s three in a row! Would you like a second?”

Other athletes at the White House’s annual event were tennis player Caroline Wozniacki, the Arizona Cardinals’ Calais Campbell, WNBA star Angel McCoughtry and more.