One of those comments stuck with a rookie Paul Pierce when he spotted Kobe at a club in 1998. Pierce originally met Bryant at a forum when he was drafted in 1996.

It didn’t hurt that Allen had one of the NBA’s best perimeter players, Paul Pierce, on his team. Allen took the opportunity to be a sponge and soak up all the experience he could.

Paul Pierce and Kobe Bryant are two of the best NBA players of all time. During the prime of their careers, the Hall of Famers faced off against each other in the NBA Finals twice.

When he faced the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals in 2008 and 2010, Paul Pierce spent time trying to guard him. Pierce admitted on Fox Sports 1's "Speak" how difficult it was for him to go up ...

Former NBA star Paul Pierce made a bold declaration about himself on Thursday. The Boston Celtics great said he was the "best pure scorer" to ever play in the NBA, responding to a comment from ...

LeBron James and Kevin Durant recently discussed the prospects of Durant being the best pure scorer in the NBA. Well, Paul Pierce disagrees, proclaiming himself as that person.

Although they went 1-1 in those two championship series, former Celtics forward Paul Pierce talked about how hard it was to play against Kobe in those two Finals. "Facing Kobe was stressful.

Paul Pierce: "I mean, that’s our era of basketball, like pretty much. Like, the girls — if you notice over the last couple years — they’ve been a little more chippy than the men.

BOSTON - JUNE 10: Paul Pierce #34 of the Boston Celltics and Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers wait under the basket during Game Four of the 2010 NBA Finals on June 10, 2010 at TD Garden ...

Meanwhile, former Boston Celtics star Paul Pierce, who won Finals MVP in 2008, when the Celtics denied Kobe and Pau the first time out, was one of those who said that Gasol was the difference ...

Kobe doubled down on his belief that Pau was the difference-maker in that series, thanks to KB's influence. Paul already explained and used the same "battery pack" analogy in an April 2025 guest ...