The rivalry between the Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers defined the league for a long, long time. The competition between the two franchises reached its height in the 80s because of Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. But since then, the two teams have only met twice in the NBA Finals: 2008 and 2010. In the memorable 2010 Finals, the battles became heated just like in the old days due to the likes of Paul Pierce and Metta Sandiford-Artest. To be precise, it began when Artest was playing for the Indiana Pacers. After years, Artest recalled how his opponent Pierce was one of the toughest to beat and even sometimes used clever but dirty tricks to overpower him.
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During his appearance on The Podcast P with Paul George, the former Lakers forward recalled that the 10x NBA All-Star once pushed his head down on the floor and ended up breaking his tooth. “It was definitely some great battles for sure yeah. He actually broke my tooth. He pushed my head on the floor one time and my tooth came out in Boston. He’s a little dirty too,” Artest revealed on the podcast.
When asked about his documentary, “Quiet Storm,” which clearly showed Pierce and his rivalry, Artest admitted that it was simply because of the competition. He added how the Celtics legend often used to trash talk in the game. He further praised Pierce for his toughness during his playing days. He said, “He wasn’t as heavy as me but he’s a big player. He getting off too, he had good games I had good games you know. So it wasn’t necessarily I didn’t like Paul. It was just like we both trying to win the Eastern Conference.”
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He further added, “We were thinking about like we got to get home court advantage you know and so it was a natural rivalry.” Well, indeed The Truth was phenomenal and one of the most dominant players. But Artest’s hilarious pranks and tricks to stop Pierce were also seen on the court.
Metta Sandiford-Artest pulled down Paul Pierce’s shorts
5 points for Artest’s silly efforts, but 10 points to Pierce for his legendary comeback. During a game in Boston between the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers in 2004, Artest was up against The Truth. While Pierce constantly held control over the ball, Artest’s frustration continued to grow.
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Lakers forward Ron Artest vehemently disagrees with a referee’s call as the ball is awarded to the Hornets in the second half of game 5 of the NBA Western Conference playoffs at Staples Center. (Photo by Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Despite using every possible move, Artest failed to stop the 2008 NBA champ. That’s when frustration took over. Artest resorted to a silly trick of pulling Pierce’s shorts to slow him down. As if that trick ever had a chance to work on him.
The 10x NBA All-Star, Pierce was seen holding his pants while running across the court and went on to sink a three-pointer on Artest. The Truth was just unstoppable. This hilarious old clip shared by Boston Celtics fans can be found on social media. Which one of the above tricks shocked you? Let us know in the comments section.
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Pragya Vashisth