BOSTON — Paul Pierce is no stranger to winning at TD Garden. So, when the 10-time NBA All-Star and Celtics champion took the parquet for a three-point competition on Sunday afternoon, it felt just like the good ol’ days.
Pierce competed in the Celtics’ first annual Causeway Classic three-point shooting competition, going up against former ‘08 teammates Brian Scalabrine and Leon Powe, as well as former Celtic Evan Turner. The event, presented by Ticketmaster and held in front of Season Ticket members at the Garden, began with a first round that included all four competitors, and a final round between Pierce and Scalabrine.
Despite a cold start in the finals, Pierce edged out Scalabrine to win the inaugural competition.
Then, in a postgame interview with 1981 Finals MVP Cedric Maxwell, Pierce jokingly shouted, “We did it!” and “Anything is possible!” an ode to the words he and Kevin Garnett yelled out as confetti fell, moments after the 2008 championship became officially theirs.
The former Finals MVP then spent his post-competition press conference advocating for this current group of Celtics, who have exceeded expectations.
He began with Jaylen Brown, who is averaging 28.5 points, 7 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game this season — all-career highs. Pierce has been very impressed with Brown’s 2025-2026, which included setting a new franchise record for most consecutive 30+ point games (9).
“Brown is having an MVP season,” Pierce said. “Not enough is being said on how he’s held down the fort pretty much all year. To still elevate your game in your 10th year is pretty amazing, because most of the time, guys are who they are by the time they are in their 4th or 5th year.”
“It’s just unfortunate that he’s not in MVP talks like he should be,” Pierce said.
Pierce also showed love to Joe Mazzulla, who has led the Celtics to a 47-23 record this season despite critical offseason departures and Jayson Tatum’s Achilles rupture.
“This is just a testament of who Coach Mazzulla; he’s hands down the Coach of the Year,” Pierce said. “Coach Mazzulla hasn’t gotten enough credit for what he’s done to develop some of these young guys.“
Many former Celtics have maintained they’re not surprised at how much success the Celtics have had this season, but Pierce is not in the camp. He’s happy to admit he did not see this level of success coming so quickly.
“A lot of us was like, you know, not this year, maybe next year,” Pierce said. “Now, we’re weeks away from the playoffs, talking about we can actually win the East and be in the Finals.”
Pierce said he’ll be seeing Tatum for the first time since his return on Sunday evening, when the Celtics face the Minnesota Timberwolves. He briefly checked in with Tatum during his recovery, but said he wanted to give Tatum his space as he worked toward his recovery, recalling how Kevin Garnett went about his rehab in 2009 when the two were teammates.
Paul Pierce continues to embody Celtics culture
Nowadays, Pierce lives in Los Angeles, but said he always likes to see Tatum, Brown, and others on the road when they come through his city. Staying connected to the Celtics organization feels important, and it’s something that Mazzulla has always encouraged during his tenure as head coach.
That’s how it was when Pierce was a player, too.
“When I was coming up, there’d be times when I’d always look up, and I’d see Bob Cousy, I’d see John Havlicek, JoJo White — so it’s always been like that,” Pierce said. “And these guys will come to our practice also. And it was always open arms to the former players who helped build this place, who helped decorate this place. And that’s what Celtic culture is – it lives on through our history, through our culture. That’s something that’s always gonna be, no matter who’s here, as players or coaches or owners — the former players who helped build this arena, they always will be invited back, no matter who’s here.”
Pierce also explained why he uses his platform to shine light on the current Celtics’ success. He feels that in recent years, Celtics athletes have been snubbed, and pointed to the 2024 US Olympic basketball team as the latest example. Brown was left off that team just weeks after winning Finals MVP, and Tatum largely fell out of the rotation, just weeks after the two led the Celtics to the 2024 championship.
“I feel like Boston players don’t get their just due, for the most part,” Pierce said. “Obviously, Brown not being in the Olympics, Tatum not getting the minutes. I’m always advocating and pushing for them and fighting for them.”
Why does he think Boston athletes are often overlooked?
Pierce laughed when posed that question, pointing to what he perceives as envy from other parts of the country.
“I’d be jealous! We have everything,” Pierce said, with a grin. “We got the most championships — probably the best sports city in all of America.”
