Paul Pierce enjoyed the results of Tuesday night's NBA Draft Lottery, and not merely because his Celtics won the No. 1 overall draft pick. He enjoyed it because he played a part in the whole process.
You see, in 2013, the Boston Celtics traded Pierce, along with Kevin Garnett, Jason Terry and D.J. White for Gerald Wallace, Kris Humphries, MarShon Brooks, Kris Joseph, Keith Bogans, three first-round picks (2014, 2016 and 2018), plus the right to swap first-rounders in 2017. So in a way, he feels responsible for the Celtics' No. 1 pick. As he enters retirement, Pierce says it's his parting gift to the team that drafted him.
Pierce played only one season with Brooklyn after being shipped off in the 2013 blockbuster trade that shifted the powers of the Eastern Conference. Then he made stops with the Washington Wizards and finally the Los Angeles Clippers.
Although Pierce didn't retire with Boston, he's a Celtic through-and-through. He won an NBA championship with the team and spent 15 seasons playing in TD Garden. Now he's riding into the sunset in style by "gifting" his team the No. 1 draft pick, who might help the franchise compete for the NBA title for years to come.
And hey, if that pick doesn't work out in this draft, the Celtics still have Brooklyn's first-rounder for 2018.