NBA champion Paul Pierce has played a total of 1,513 games in his career, across the regular season and playoffs, but there's one that sticks out above the rest. In a recent appearance on the "Games With Names" podcast, the Celtics legend recalled his encounter with LeBron James and the Cavs in 2008, a match-up that he believes is one of the best the game has ever seen.
"The legacy of this is like one of the greatest NBA games of all time," said Pierce on the Games with Names podcast. "That wasn't a Finals game because it was young LeBron, who many considered the greatest basketball player that ever played the game, a young player carrying his team to heights they shouldn't have even been going to. It was just a battle of wills between the two stars of their teams. It was a win-or-go-home situation. That wasn't the game that sent him to Miami, but it put something on his mind 'cause when we did it again a couple years later, he had enough."
LeBron has seen plenty of rivals over his 22-year career, but Pierce was one of his first during an era when he still had something to prove. Before winning championships alongside stars like Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving, and Dwyane Wade, LeBron was leading a Cavaliers squad all on his own. As he carried them to contention in the East, it put them right up against the 'big three' Celtics.
Back in 2008, Boston's core was in its prime with Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce. After winning 66 games in the regular season (first in the East), they cruised through the first round before facing LeBron's young Cavs squad.
Even with the Celtics at the top of their power, LeBron still managed to push them to seven games in an intense and unforgettable showdown. At center stage was (of course) LeBron and his primary matchup, Paul Pierce.
The series began with the Celtics dominating their first home games, taking an early 2-0 lead. In Game 2, Boston blew out the Cavs with both teams shooting under 40% in a grind. James was the leading scorer, but he shot an abysmal 25% from the field and was -15 in 41 minutes.
LeBron did end up getting his revenge after going back to Cleveland for Games 3 and 4. Pierce struggled mightily in these games, scoring just 27 points combined while LeBron led his team to victory. This pattern held through the rest of the series, leading up to Game 7 with both teams having yet to secure a road win.
What followed was an epic battle in Game 7, with a trip to the Conference Finals on the line. In a final act of heroics, LeBron managed to drop 45 points, five rebounds, and six assists on 48.3% shooting to try and carry his team to victory. Meanwhile, Pierce countered with 41 points, four rebounds, and five assists on 56.5% shooting.
Ultimately, Pierce and the Celtics came out on top in Game 7 (97-92) to win the series, thanks to suffocating defense, elite star play, and a rowdy home crowd that turned TD Garden into a hostile environment for the Cavs. LeBron gave everything he had, but he couldn't stop the Celtics at their peak, and he had to watch them go on to win the title that very same season.
It happened again two years later, when the Celtics won the East only to see defeat at the hands of Kobe Bryant's Lakers in the NBA Finals. In an infamous announcement in the summer of 2010, James announced that he'd join the Miami Heat, where he finally took down the "big three" Celtics with a superteam of his own.
While the series was over 17 years ago now, it's still an all-time favorite among the fans and apparently for Pierce as well. It was a classic showdown between two superstars at the height of their powers and one that will be remembered forever.
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