Los Angeles Clippers: Paul Pierce Preferred Clippers Over Wizards

The adage goes “almost doesn’t count,” and entering the 2014-15 NBA preseason there’s word that the Los Angeles Clippers were much closer to acquiring the services of Paul Pierce than what was previously reported. In a conversation with NBA.com’s David Aldridge, Pierce discussed how close he was to signing with the Clippers.

"David Aldridge: Was Washington your first choice? I heard all summer you wanted to go home to L.A., to the Clippers.Paul Pierce: Obviously, this is my first time in free agency. I really didn’t know where I was going to end up. Truthfully, I thought I was going to end up back in Brooklyn, with Kevin [Garnett]. I told Kevin, if you’re not going to retire, then I probably will come back. But when Brooklyn didn’t give me an offer, it was like, I talked to him, and I kind of started looking at my options then. I thought I probably would end up with the Clippers with Doc [Rivers], but they wound up signing Spencer Hawes [and using the full mid-level exception] at the time."

It makes sense for Pierce to be naturally more interested in returning to Los Angeles. Born and raised in Inglewood, Pierce has envisioned a homecoming and reunion with Boston Celtics former coach Doc Rivers. It would fill a hole for the Clippers at the small forward, provide some extra scoring punch at the wing and satisfy many of whom wanted to see an upgrade over the recently departed Jared Dudley.

More from LA Clippers

• NBA Trades: This wild Mavs, Clippers, and 76ers deal must happen ASAP
• Ranking the 10 championship-less NBA teams by closeness to title
• Can the Clippers realistically sign Chris Paul after shocking waive news?
• NBA Rumors: This playoff team is now the leader to land Westbrook
• NBA Rumors: Westbrook may have played his final game for the Clippers

Instead fans will have to settle for

and

sharing the small forward responsibility They’ll hope to see Pierce in a Clippers uniform for the 2015-16 season. By then the Clippers will still have a weakness at the small forward and around $17 million to fix it.

Pierce won’t command that much. Most of it will be taken up by soon-to-be free agent center DeAndre Jordan and it’s possible he’ll join the Clippers for $3 million, unless the Clippers can secure a better option, or at the least a forward that’s still capable of playing adequate defense.

Hindsight is 20/20, and for the Clippers they’ll be looking forward — not in their rear-view. They’re stacked from top-to-bottom better than they’ve been in recent years and will seek to claim the Western Conference throne. Paul Pierce would’ve provided an extra push towards that goal, but he’s no longer the game-changer he was. It’s been a while since he’s been the truth, however in a league of studs and duds, positive contributions from willing players are always wanted.

Depending on how far Pierce travels in the eastern conference playoffs with the Wizards, it’s possible to see him in a Clippers uniform next season.