Basketball fans aren’t the only ones who think Paul Pierce in Brooklyn is awkward. Celtics great Robert Parish echoes similar sentiments. The 4-time NBA Champion went through the same thing towards the end of his career, spending two years in Charlotte and his last season with Chicago.
Parish shed light on what Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett are going through.
“Just accept the fact that it is going to be awkward initially. That’s all. Because he has worn the Celtics green for so long and it is going to be really awkward for him. But it was time for a change and what I do like about what the Celtics did for Pierce and Garnett, they didn’t send them somewhere to another situation that is not going to be successful. They sent them someplace where they are going to win. Garnett and Pierce have earned that right.”
The 9-time all-star went on to admit that despite being in Chicago and Charlotte, he always felt like a Celtic.
“Un-com-fortable,” Parish said (of wearing the Charlotte uniform). “In my mind, I would always be a Celtic. I was very thankful and humbled that the Hornets saw fit to allow me to play a couple more years, but the only time I thought of myself as a Charlotte Hornet was game time. Other than that, when the jersey came off, I still felt like I was a Celtic.”
There’s no doubt the adjustment will be difficult for both Pierce and Garnett, but winning would go along way to speeding up the process.