Home

NBA

WATCH: Nearly 40 Year Old Michael Jordan Torched Celtics Legend on Halloween

Published 11/01/2022, 3:10 PM EDT

Follow Us

via Getty

Michael Jordan had an incredible NBA career spanning 16 years. He won six championships with the Chicago Bulls during the 90s. However, Jordan retired thrice in his career, making a comeback to the NBA twice. After winning his sixth championship with the Bulls, Jordan retired for the second time in his career. It seemed His Airness has made the final decision to retire from the NBA. However, he decided to play for the Washington Wizards in 2001.

Many thought Jordan was way past his prime and couldn’t have a profound impact this time around. However, he made his critics eat their words with his performances. One such performance was when the Washington Wizards hosted the Boston Celtics in 2002. Michael Jordan bullied Celtics’ superstar Paul Pierce in a huge Wizards win.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

The Boston Celtics and the Washington Wizards were in the same division, the Atlantic Division. Michael Jordan was in his second season with the Wizards. Paul Pierce was Celtics’ star player and was among the best players in the league at that time.

Paul Pierce started the game for the Celtics and scored 12 points, the highest for his team in the game. Michael Jordan, however, came off the bench and scored 21 points in 22 minutes. The Wizards registered a massive 114-69 victory over the Celtics on Halloween night. While it was an embarrassing loss for Paul Pierce and the Celtics, it was also a wholesome moment for ‘The Truth’ to play against his ‘idol’.

Paul Pierce once revealed meeting his idol Michael Jordan

Paul Pierce idolized Michael Jordan from his childhood days and grew up watching him. He joined the NBA in 1998, Jordan’s final year with the Bulls in the NBA. However, Pierce got to see more of Jordan, when the 6-time champion decided to play for the Wizards. Paul once revealed his first meeting with Michael Jordan, which was a special one. Paul was in college in 1997 and met Jordan after a Bulls’ preseason game.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

“I’m like, I can’t believe I have Mike in here. This dude, I had three posters on my wall when I was in high school, of Mike, and he’s standing right here. I had a chance to shake his hand, watch him play in a preseason game. One of the greatest, if not the greatest, just to be able to have that moment with him,” Paul had said.

Trending

Get instantly notified of the hottest NBA stories via Google! Click on Follow Us and Tap the Blue Star.

Follow Us

Indeed, the first meeting with your idol is always special. Pierce’s dream came true when he was drafted by the Boston Celtics in 1998 and got to play against the Bulls. He went on to win a championship with the Celtics in 2008.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

WATCH THIS STORY: Michael Jordan’s 5 Rumored Affairs After Divorce With Juanita Vanoy

What do you think of Paul Pierce’s NBA career? Let us know in the comment section below.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Abhishek Singh

859Articles

One take at a time

Abhishek Singh is an NBA writer at EssentiallySports with over two years of journalistic experience with Chase Your Sport and Dribl. A Football Management graduate, he has previously interned in the Indian Super League, I-League and the AFC Champions League. In addition to being a Michael Jordan fan, Abhishek is an ardent Steph Curry and Warriors guy, and believes they have a few more championships in store before the former retires.
Show More>

Edited by:

Satagni Sikder