The rampaging Los Angeles Lakers eliminated the Denver Nuggets from the playoffs on Saturday, thus affording to LeBron James his 10th NBA Finals appearance. The milestone did not escape the notice of Paul Pierce, a one-time James rival, who said the remarkable feat pushed The King to be the greatest of all time.
The Boston Celtics legend, now an analyst for TNT, said what James did was not easy, adding the Lakers superstar is certainly moving closer to the league occupied only by NBA giants. James and his crew will clash with the Miami Heat in an expected bruising series for the Larry O'Brien, and Pierce said the superstar is certainly a GOAT candidate.
James getting his shot No. 10 for the NBA title makes him equal to fellow Lakers icon Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. For this achievement, Pierce said his former rival will be No. 2 to Michael Jordan, provided James will lead Los Angeles to their first NBA championship since the Kobe Bryant and Phil Jackson era.
"I'm gonna keep it real. If LeBron James ... wins a title this year, I'll put him right behind Michael Jordan," Lakers Daily reported Pierce as saying.
Pierce placing James behind Jordan, who owns six NBA rings that he collected while starring for the Chicago Bulls, makes sense. Jordan enjoys a lead over the Lakers star and as Pierce pointed out, the latter is inching closer.
If James finds success in his battle for NBA supremacy with the Miami Heat, then Piece is right to say that James is fast catching up.
The stance from the former NBA champ is a far cry from his earlier insistence that James should not even be part of the NBA greats, the GOAT candidates in the Top 5. Most likely, Pierce's issue with James is the fact that the Lakers star holds a 3-6 record in the NBA Finals and it seemed impossible for him to narrow the gap considering he is already 35.
On the other hand, Pierce's view on the subject could also be influenced by his competitive history with James. As Clutch Points pointed out, Pierce and James were on opposing sides in the past seasons and the clashes before did not exactly make them good friends.
In the late 2000s, Pierce had the upper hand on James and his Celtics crew caused heartache to The King's Cleveland Cavaliers on two occasions. But when James moved out of Ohio and joined up with the Miami Heat, he started collecting NBA titles.
The last count shows three NBA rings for James and possibly another in the ongoing campaign. Pierce can only brag of one NBA title with no chance of adding to that meager collection.
