Los Angeles Clippers forward Paul Pierce goes against fellow veteran Jason Terry of the Houston Rockets. (Photo : Getty Images)
Veteran small forward Paul Pierce is reportedly not yet ready to retire and is planning to continue playing for the Los Angeles Clippers next season.
It would be the 19th season in the league for the 38-year-old former Kansas Jayhawks standout. Pierce spent most of his professional career as the team leader of the Boston Celtics, winning one championship with the franchise during the 2007-2008 season when he joined forces with Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to form the first modern Big Three in the NBA, beating arch-rival Los Angeles Lakers in the 2008 NBA Finals in six games.
After spending his first 15 seasons with the Celtics, the 10-time NBA All-Star was included in Boston's blockbuster trade with the Brooklyn Nets in the summer of 2013 when he, along with Garnett, Jason Terry, and three future first-round draft picks, were dealt to the Nets in exchange for Kris Humphries, Gerald Wallace, Kris Joseph, MarShon Brooks, and Keith Bogans.
Pierce stayed with the Nets for one season before signing a two-year, $11 million contract with the Washington Wizards in July 2014. He opted out of his second season with the Wizards to reunite with his former Celtic champion coach Doc Rivers in Los Angeles, signing a three-year, $10 million deal.
The 2008 NBA Finals MVP had struggled throughout last season with the Clips, averaging only 6.1 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.0 assists in 18.1 minutes of playing time a night, the lowest in his career including his rookie year, which made him seriously consider retirement at the end of the season, as per CBS Sports.
The report mentioned, though, that Pierce is "still weighing everything and will make a final decision in a few weeks," which means that there could still be changes that will be announced soon.
Fansided noted that Pierce has "one guaranteed year left on his contract" and is set to receive $3.5 million in 2016-2017 from the Clippers. After that, in 2017-2018, "only $1 million of the $3.7 million is guaranteed".
"I thought I had one more good year (this past season), but obviously I didn't like how it all went with my role," said Pierce in an interview during the recent NBA Finals. "I'm still just trying to figure it out. A lot has got to do with my role I'm going to play. To come back and sit 82 games, I don't know if I can do that."
